RECENT NEWS

The Healthcare Commission has launched the biggest inspection programme ever carried out in NHS acute Trusts to check whether they are meeting standards on infection control. It will inspect all 172 acute Trusts annually as part of a drive to: reduce death and illness from healthcare-associated infections, improve the experience of patients in hospital, and increase public confidence in the NHS. The programme was established at the request of the Secretary of State for Health.

A study at the University of Leicester has concluded that screening people at risk of impaired glucose tolerance or Type 2 diabetes, enabling early treatment, would be cost-effective.

Graphite Capital has sold Summit Medical to The Riverside Company, a global private equity firm. Summit’s core products include bone cement mixing systems for hip and knee replacements, orthopaedic implants and a blood transfusion system for reinfusing a patient’s own blood.

Eastwood Park Training Centre has been appointed the official training partner of the IDSc (Institute of Decontamination Sciences).

Diabetes UK has warned that the Government will fail to deliver on standards it set itself five years ago if it does not refocus NHS efforts. In 2003, the National Service Framework (NSF) for Diabetes set out a vision for diabetes services in England to be delivered by 2013. Diabetes UK has reviewed progress and concluded that while some people with diabetes in some parts of the country receive excellent care, many are still not benefiting from the effective delivery of diabetes services that the NSF set out to achieve.

Details of a programme aimed at improving the safety of anaesthesia were recently highlighted at a conference held by the College of Operating Department Practitioners (CODP) at Fontwell Park racecourse, in Arundel. The “Improvement Through Partnership” initiative has identified 12 recommendations as part of a two-year project supported by the Royal College of Anaesthetists, CODP, the Association for Perioperative Practice and the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland.

The burns unit at Whiston Hospital, part of the St Helens and Knowsley NHS Trust, which pioneered the use of cleansing hand gel for all ward visitors 11 years ago, has taken a further step forward in its aims to prevent infection.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina have suggested that melanoma survival depends on where the skin cancer first appears.

Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, claims that nurses could double the amount of time they spend on direct patient care and slash unnecessary paperwork, as a result of a £50 m project aimed at improving efficiency on wards.

More patients are rating the care provided by NHS hospitals as “excellent”, according to data published by the Healthcare Commission. The survey of patients found that 42% of respondents gave their care the top possible rating, up from 38% in 2002, and an increase from 41% in the last survey.

Throat cancer patients could soon need fewer operations, saving the NHS millions of pounds a year, due to a new speech valve developed by the University of Hull and Medway School of Pharmacy.

Results published by the charity “Action for ME” show that one third of people surveyed, who said that they had undertaken graded exercise therapy (GET), reported that it made them worse. When properly administered by a specialist who understands ME, GET can help some individuals. Nearly 45% of respondents said that they had found the treatment beneficial.

A research team led by University of Sunderland scientists has made a breakthrough in the fight against a deadly hospital infection, which kills tens of thousands of people every year. They claim to have discovered a technique for the early detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which particularly infects patients with cystic fibrosis.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the National Collaborating Centre for Nursing and Supportive Care (NCC NSC) have issued guidance to the NHS in England and Wales on preventing hypothermia in patients before, during and up to 24 hours after surgery.

The Institute for Decontamination Sciences (IDSc) has endorsed the programme of City & Guilds Accredited training courses run by Lancer Academy for decontamination of endoscopes and instruments.

Around 1,300 extra consultant radiologists are needed in England over the coming years if the NHS is to meet the increasing demand for emergency interventional treatments, diagnostic imaging and screening, the BMA has warned.

Vacancy freezes and fears of redundancy continue in the NHS, despite a £1.8 billion surplus, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has warned. A survey of almost 330 of the UK’s specialist and experienced nurses found a third said their organisation had a vacancy freeze in place and one in four have been at risk of redundancy in their current role, with 20% still at risk.

More than 90% of final year midwifery students are struggling to find a job, a new survey published by the Royal College of Midwives reveals. The survey comes as the midwifery profession is moving into a new era as an all-graduate profession. The survey also revealed that 81% said the move to degree-only training would have a negative financial impact on them. Ten per cent of the students surveyed already had debts of £7,000 to £9,000.

Diabetes UK has warned that the Government will fail to deliver on standards it set itself five years ago if it doesn't refocus NHS efforts. In 2003, the National Service Framework (NSF) for Diabetes set out a vision for diabetes services in England to be delivered by 2013.

Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, led by Professor Nazneen Rahman, have been taking part in an international study into the causes of neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer.