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Mental health policy in England
16/01/2020
Around one in four people in the UK suffer from a mental health problem each year. The NHS has set out that it wants to achieve parity of esteem...
Consultation on the NHS standard contract 2020/21
16/01/2020
NHS England is consulting on the NHS standard contract for 2020/21. Comments on the draft contract can be made by Friday 31 January 2020 either by...
New campaign urges public to speak up about the NHS
14/01/2020
Healthwatch England has launched the #SpeakUp2020 campaign, encouraging everybody to speak up about what would make health and social care services ...
NHS combined performance summary
12/08/2019
NHS England has published monthly performance statistics for ambulances, referrals to treatment, NHS 111 and other key areas. Read more here .
Service user experience in adult mental health services
09/08/2019
This updated quality standard covers improving the experience of people using adult NHS mental health services. It describes high-quality care in priority areas for improvement. More...
Overpayments of carer’s allowance
09/08/2019
The parliamentary work and pensions committee has found that carers are being disproportionately heavily penalised for years of Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) administrative errors or their own honest mistakes, in a confusing and outdated system. The report highlights the example of a...
New lung cancer treatment option approved by NICE
09/08/2019
Another new life-extending treatment for some people with lung cancer is to be made available on the cancer drugs fund following its approval by NICE in draft guidance. Immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (also known as Keytruda) used with chemotherapy drugs carboplatin and paclitaxel will now be an...
Tackling loneliness
08/08/2019
The government's loneliness strategy was published in October 2018. It set out a wide variety of cross-departmental measures that the government would take to provide national leadership to tackle loneliness in England. This briefing explains the strategy, the steps taken so far by the government,...
Aspirin may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer
08/08/2019
Aspirin taken daily for two years or more could reduce the risk of colorectal cancer in people with Lynch syndrome, says NICE in new draft updated guidance. People with the condition have an increased lifetime risk – estimated to be four out of five people – of developing colorectal cancer. Regular...
Children and young people’s mental health workforce growth is ‘encouraging’
08/08/2019
The last three years have seen the children and young people’s mental health workforce grow by 23%, largely in community based services. A study for Health Education England found encouraging growth, particularly in NHS employed staff, where numbers have increased by almost a quarter in the two...
Six ways health services can improve waiting rooms
06/08/2019
Here are six steps that people have told us health and social care services can take to provide a better environment while they wait. Read the full story by clicking here .
Healthwatch charts experience of service users with a sensory impairment
05/08/2019
Healthwatch has published anecdotal evidence about the experience of using NHS services for people with a sensory impairment or loss. Read it here .
Same-day pharmacy consultations offered to patients
24/07/2019
Patients with minor health issues will be offered same-day appointments at their local pharmacy, under a new deal announced by the Health and Social Care Secretary. Click here to read the full article.
Thousands to benefit from lifesaving heart op
19/07/2019
Fifteen hundred people a year are set to benefit from an innovative new heart procedure to prevent strokes in younger people. The new treatment tackles patent foramen ovale, better known as hole in the heart, a common condition that can trigger stroke. This potentially lifesaving procedure helps...
Breast cancer drugs option joins cancer drugs fund
19/07/2019
Another potentially life-extending drug combination for some people with advanced breast cancer will now be available under the cancer drugs fund following approval by NICE and publication of draft guidance. More....
EMAS rated ‘Good’ overall and ‘Outstanding’ for caring in latest inspection
17/07/2019
East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) is delighted to announce that we have been rated as ‘Good’ overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and ‘Outstanding’ for caring. To read the full article please click here .
HPV vaccine could prevent over 100,000 cancers
11/07/2019
Estimates suggest that the HPV vaccine programme could prevent over 64,000 cervical cancers and nearly 50,000 non-cervical cancers by 2058. From September 2019, boys in school year 8 will be offered the free Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine for the first time. Worldwide, about 5% of all cancers...
Alexa will see you now
11/07/2019
The NHS is collaborating with Amazon to provide reliable health information from the NHS website through voice-assisted technology. The technology will help patients, especially the elderly, blind and those who cannot access the internet through traditional means, to get professional, NHS-verified...
Government updates plans to maintain the drug supply in the event of a no-deal Brexit
10/07/2019
The government has confirmed further details of its plans to maintain the supply of medicines and medical products in the event of a no-deal EU exit. These include procurement exercises to secure extra freight capacity, continuing the build-up of buffer stocks, securing extra warehouse space and a...
Inquiry into better housing for older people
10/07/2019
Age UK has published the findings of an inquiry to understand the detrimental impact of poor housing on older people's physical, mental and social wellbeing. It puts the cost to the NHS of poor housing at an estimated £1.4 billion a year. The report contains 13 recommendations that look at the...
Patients face long wait to see benefits from NHS funding boost
10/07/2019
New analysis from the King’s Fund suggests that patients face a long wait before they will see improvements in care as a result of the government’s £20 billion NHS funding boost. The think-tank’s latest quarterly monitoring report draws on analysis of NHS performance data and a survey of NHS trust...
Service users needed for Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education (GIFHE) programme
05/07/2019
The BSc (Hons) Nursing (Adult) programme starts at the Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education (GIFHE) January 2020. The nursing team are looking for 2 service users to volunteer to deliver sessions aimed at ensuring student nurses understand what health and health care means to service...
Healthwatch report on the role of dementia care reviews
05/07/2019
Analysis of data from councils by Healthwatch shows that regular reviews of dementia care are not being carried out, despite evidence that such reviews are an essential part of effective dementia care. Healthwatch analysed data from 97 local councils.
Early cancer detection and survival to be prioritised by NHS
05/07/2019
Monitoring one-year survival will be central to measuring progress in transforming cancer care, the Department of Health and Social Care says. Screening programmes will be overhauled and diagnosis made faster and more accurate with new state-of-the-art technology as part of a blueprint for rapidly...
Eye health experts warn of dangers of smoking to sight
05/07/2019
The Association of Optometrists (AOP) is warning that millions of smokers in the UK are putting themselves at increased risk of blindness or sight impairment by continuing with the habit. This comes as almost all (96%) optometrists taking part in a survey said they examine a patient every month who...
Survey of adult carers in England 2018/19
05/07/2019
The survey covers informal, unpaid carers aged 18 or over who care for a person aged 18 or over, where the carer has been assessed or reviewed by social services. The survey sought carers’ views on whether they have a balanced life alongside their caring role.
Changes to the Access to Infertility Treatment Policy
04/07/2019
Have your say on some proposed changes to the Access to Infertility Treatment Policy - for more information and to have your say please click here.
Primary care networks open for business
04/07/2019
The 1 July go-live date for primary care networks (PCNs) has come and gone, with NHS England reporting that more than 7000 GP practices - more than 99% - have formed. Around 7,000 practices across England – more than 99% – have formed more than 1,200 PCNs. GPs will recruit multi-disciplinary teams...
