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Top health stories |
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Welcome to all of our new members and E-members In recent months the Patients Association has been campagining on behalf of patients and carers who have been raising their concerns about the quality of hospital care. Many members have highlighted their concerns around the quality of nursing care. We have also been contacted by many nurses who feel changes to nurse training have played a part. The Nursing & Midwifery council this week launched a counsultation on standards for nurse training which members may wish to participate in. There was continuing revelations about out of hours care as the inquest into the death of David Gray continues with the Liberal Democrat party proposing new rules for foreign doctors. We are still recruiting for a West Midlands focus group, click the link below to find out more. 1. Out of hours: Only two GPs for a county of 600,000, further inquest revelations, Lib Dem proposals announced 2. A new director for dementia strategy 3. Consultation on nurse training 4. NICE recommends blood clot screening for all hospital patients 5. NHS Trust Systems played part in nurse Killings Opportunity to take part in West Midlands Focus Groups
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1. Out of hours: Only two GPs for a county of 600,000, further inquest revelations, Lib Dem proposals announced The out of hours GP service in Suffolk is so overstretched that on some nights there are only two GPs on call to serve the entire county of 600,000 people. A nine month old baby died while his parents waited for a call back from the GP. Taylor Smith’s parents were told he had a bug but when his parents called the GP out of hours service after he woke up with a bright rash at 2am, they were told to wait for up to four hours for a call back from a GP. Taylor in fact had Meningitis and by the time a GP called back at 5am he had died from blood poisoning. Local GPs have written to the Trust to express their concerns about patient safety with Dr Claire Giles, chair of the Suffolk Local Medical Committee, saying “the patches covered by these doctors have got bigger and bigger as the funding has been cut”. Take Care Now, the company contracted to provide out of hours care in Suffolk, Worcester, Essex and Great Yarmouth and Waveney, has recently come under fire for hiring foreign doctors to cover out of hours shifts, including Daniel Ubani who, after little sleep and on his first shift in the UK, gave 70 year old David Gray a fatal overdose of a painkiller that he was not familiar with. They are currently under investigation by the Care Quality Commission, have already lost their contract with NHS Cambridgeshire and are due to be replaced by a new out of hours service in Suffolk in April this year. Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary Norman Lamb MP has outlined proposals for the reform of how doctors from the EU are regulated when working in the UK. The proposals have been published as the inquest into the death of David Gray continues. This week the inquest heard on Tuesday that Dr Christopher Browning, had issued a warning to staff in January 2008 about incorrect doses in response to the two earlier cases. In both cases, the patients were given 30mg of diamorphine before collapsing and requiring resuscitation in hospital. Dr Browning, TCN’s clinical governance lead, told TCN’s clinical team that out-of-hours doctors should contact their duty managers before opening the palliative care box containing larger doses, saying that it was a “systemic failure…which we must take steps to remedy”. The Liberal Democrat proposals would require all doctors wanting to work in the UK to pass a test of their English language skills and would synchronise suspension of doctors across Europe. To read the proposals in full click the link below: PA Director Katherine Murphy welcomed the proposals commenting "The Ubani case could still happen. That is simply unacceptable. It's clear something needs to be done and we hope the proposals gain cross party support." |
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2. A new director for dementia strategy Having come under fire from a number of outlets since its announcement last year, the government’s Dementia Strategy has been given a new director to oversee how dementia is treated in England. Professor Alastair Burns, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Manchester, will promote better care for those with dementia in the NHS and in social communities. Although it mainly affects the elderly, almost 15,000 people under 65 suffer from a form of dementia and the total is expected to rise to a million by the end of the decade due to the demographic change of an ageing population. Professor Burns said his challenge was to build on the progress that had been made in recent years “to make a real positive difference to people with dementia, their families and carers. I very much look forward to working with colleagues to realise this ambition.” Phil Hope MP, Minister for Care Services, said that Professor Burns’ possessed a “unique understanding of what works for people with the condition and their carers”. The appointment comes after the National Audit Office released a report criticising care services in England for not being given the high priority they were promised when the Dementia Strategy was announced last year. The Alzheimer’s Society welcomed the appointment of Prof Burns with chief operating officer Ruth Sutherland saying they were “delighted”. |
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3. Consultation on nurse training This week the Nursing & Midwifery Council launched its consultation on the new standards for nurse training. NMC Chief Executive and Registrar, Professor Dickon Weir-Hughes said “This consultation has to focus on the future. Our work has been affected by major developments in health and social care that aim to meet future health needs in a changing health care system. Health Minister Ann Keen said “I welcome the NMC’s consultation on the proposed pre-registration education standards and we will be responding." PA Policy Director Kieran Mullan said "It is vital that patients and the public take part in this consultation to make their voices heard. We all know that many many nurses do a fantastic job but we need to make sure the new standards make sure that all nurses are delivering the kind of care every patient deserves.
The consultation is open until 23 April 2010. You can download the survey questions, along with printer-friendly versions of supporting documents from our website www.nmc-uk.org. If, you are unable to complete the online survey for any reason, or would like to receive it in a different format please contact us on 020 7642 5880 or email consultations@nmc-uk.org stating your requirements.
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4. NICE recommends blood clot screening for all hospital patients The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) produced updated guidance on the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) this week. VTE are blood clots that usually develop in the leg and are most often associated with long haul flights but the condition is actually considerably more common in hospital inpatients. As many as 25,000 people who are admitted to hospital in England are estimated to die from blood clots each year. Many of these deaths are described as easily avoidable as preventative measures include the wearing of compression stockings, blood thinning drugs such as heparin and the use of foot pumps or pneumatic devices. NICE recommended that all patients going into hospitals should be screened for blood clots. Patients at high risk of developing a blood clot include:
- Patients expected to bed-ridden for a prolonged period of time; Professor Tom Treasure, a cardiothoracic surgeon who acted as chairman of the guideline development group said that “Blood clots are a silent killer. So it is the responsibility of medical professionals to take the very simple steps set out in the guideline which can help prevent unnecessary deaths and long term illnesses.” Hospitals that do not undertake NICE’s screening recommendations are expected to be penalised financially by Primary Care Trusts. From the 01/04/2010 hospitals that do not screen at least 90% of its patients risk losing a percentage of its income. The Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson stated that “The Department of Health is prioritising the prevention of venous Thromboembolism across the NHS. I welcome this clear advice from NICE and would expect hospitals to implement it.” |
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5. NHS Trust Systems played part in nurse Killings A report from Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority released the findings of the Independent Inquiry into the Colin Norris Incidents at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in 2002. The report stated that overall “a combination of factors, including organisational, systems and cultural factors, provided an opportunity for Colin Norris to carry out his intent to harm patients.” In 2008 Colin Norris, a staff nurse at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust was convicted of the murder of four patients and the attempted murder of a fifth. He received a prison sentence of a minimum term of thirty years. During a period of six months in 2002, five elderly female patients Doris Ludlam, 80, Bridget Bourke, 88, Irene Crookes, 79 and Ethel Hall, 86 who were all non-diabetic and had undergone surgery to repair a hip fracture suddenly suffered severe hypoglycaemia resulting in brain damage and their eventual deaths. Colin Norris gave lethal injections of insulin to his victims. It was only when Ethel Hall fell into a hypoglycaemic coma despite not being diabetic that suspicion was aroused. Her doctor sent a blood sample for analysis and Mrs. Hall’s insulin levels were found to be at least 12 times the norm. The report found that “the systems in place at the Trust to monitor the supply and administration of drugs at the time of the incidents were not robust enough to identify and prevent malpractice. Colin Norris was a trained nurse who had access to drug cupboard keys and the means to administer lethal injections to elderly and vulnerable patients.”
In response to the findings of the report the Patients Association Director Katherine Murphy said:
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Opportunity to take part in Focus Groups The Patients Association would like to hold some focus groups this year in the West Midlands region. Anyone interest in taking part should be emailed to events@patients-association.com. Any questions should also be sent to the events@patients-association.com email address. We currently expect this event to place at a central Birmingham location on the morning of Thursday 4th February.
The Patients Association always strongly encourages patients and the public to take up any opportunity to put forward your views on issues affecting all users of the NHS. Running focus groups also help us generate income vital for supporting the charity. |
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How can you help? Full membership and donations provide direct support for our work. If you also wish to become a full member for only £10 a year you can now sign-up online at http://patients-association.org.uk/Membership-Subscription or email mailbox@patients-association.com for details. You can make a donation here http://www.patients-association.org.uk/Support-the-PA You can also show us your support by leaving your comments on our new Twitter page: |
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If you have been forwarded this email and would like to receive your own copy in future sign up for free as a Patients Association E-Member on the website: |
