RECENT NEWS

A vaccine to combat C. diff has shown promising results in initial trials and researchers hope to test the product in NHS hospitals later this year.

A new deadly strain of MRSA has emerged which is acquired through casual contact in the community. Currently it is believed to be more prevalent within the gay population in San Francisco, but two cases of the USA300 strain have been recorded in the UK.

A study of medicines to treat the pain of arthritis has been launched in Scotland. The SCOT Trial, (Standard Care versus Celecoxib Outcome Trial), will compare different types of treatment for arthritis – a series of conditions which affect around nine million people in the UK.

The elimination of pathology and laboratory medicine from the curriculum in many medical schools, and consequent lack of knowledge of basic science among junior doctors, are jeopardising patient safety, according to a report in the Annals of Clinical Biochemistry.

NICE has published its final draft guidance on the use of drug-eluting stents for the treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD).

New research commissioned by the National Institute for Health Research’s Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme will investigate whether giving premature babies probiotics decreases the risk of bacterial infections. Over 42,000 premature babies are born per year, and they have an increased risk of picking up infections which can cause long term complications or even be fatal.

Intensive care consultants and anaesthetists at the East Lancashire NHS Hospitals Trust, UK, are using SonoSite hand-carried ultrasound systems for placing central lines, and for performing nerve blocks, during upper and lower limb surgery at the Royal Blackburn and Burnley hospitals.

Healthcare companies recently had their achievements recognised at the Medilink UK National Health Technology Awards. The Health Technologies KTN Innovation Award was picked up by Brandon Medical for the development of Symposia – the world’s first fully integrated medical tele-video system for healthcare. The IP-based open-ended platform allows complete integration of any medical video source, providing full collaborative working between clinicians across any distance.

Researchers have suggested that competition between NHS hospitals may lower the quality of care and found that death rates from heart attack actually rose. In a paper published in Economic Journal, Professor Carol Propper of the University of Bristol said that the “internal market” led to a decline in standards, despite waiting times being reduced.

A leading Harley Street X-ray and ultrasound clinic is now up and running with Agfa HealthCare’s most advanced CR unit – the DX-S, which offers faster image acquisition. The Xray Xpress Clinic, at 121 Harley Street, has also installed Agfa HealthCare’s Drystar 5503 Imager to operate in conjunction with the new CR unit.

New measures must be taken to protect healthcare workers from healthcare acquired infections such as MRSA, according to a report to be adopted by the European Parliament. The report focuses on the need to reduce workplace-related diseases and accidents across the EU and in particular to better protect vulnerable workers such as those in healthcare.

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) issued a warning of potentially fatal outcomes if incorrect doses of oral chemotherapy drugs are administered. The NPSA raised concerns that the risks of prescribing, dispensing and administration errors are potentially increased if the normal safeguards used for injectable anticancer medicines are not applied.

Bromley Hospitals NHS Trust has been issued with an improvement notice by the Healthcare Commission. The Trust runs three hospitals in south London – the Princess Royal University Hospital, Orpington Hospital and Beckenham Hospital. Following unannounced visits to Princess Royal University Hospital, the Commission found breaches of duty relating to cleanliness and the decontamination of equipment.

A screening test for early detection of breast cancer is under development which checks changes in proteins found in saliva. Scientists from the University of Texas Dental Branch say the test can distinguish healthy women from those with benign breast tumours, and those with malignant breast tumours.

A report published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine has provoked controversy by claiming that female consultants working in the NHS are responsible for fewer patient episodes each year than their male counterparts. Researchers from the Universities of York and Birmingham claim that male consultants conduct 20% more episodes.

TÜV Product Service has announced that it will be providing practical training on ISO 13485: 2003 and the Medical Devices Directive specifically for sterile services departments.

Foundation Trusts seeking to take advantage of a potential loophole that could allow them to increase the amount of income they generate from private patient care are walking a legal tightrope according to health law experts at Browne Jacobson. Unison is seeking a judicial review unless Monitor, the Foundation Trust regulator, steps in to stop the growing numbers of Foundation Trusts setting up joint ventures, special purpose vehicles and charities to get around a legislative cap.

The programme of training courses run by Lancer Academy for decontamination of endoscopes and surgical instruments is expanding, with endoscope reprocessing proving particularly popular.

Council trading standards chiefs are launching a nationwide project to identify inaccurate hospital weighing scales that could be putting patients' lives at risk. The new scheme follows a series of pilot studies by trading standards officers which found hospital staff using inaccurate and unsuitable scales to calculate dosages of medication for patients, including small children.

The second phase of a national healthcare initiative that has improved the quality of patient care and helped to control costs across a wide range of core NHS services, has been launched by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement (NHS Institute).