FEATURE ARTICLES

PHILIP VIAN, UK managing director, WinScribe, examines the benefits of digital dictation.

The Health Facilities Management Association’s ninth annual conference, held recently at Brighton, had important pointers for clinical staff as well as non-clinical personnel. NICHOLAS MARSHALL reports.

ANDY HOPKIN, regulatory law expert at Browne Jacobson, explores the ramifications of a Trust court case, the health and safety obligations of NHS Trusts, and the practical steps they can take to avoid errors and litigation.

In the second section of a two-part article, JOHN BEESLEY, RGN, LLM Healthcare Law, BA (Hons), NEBOSH, examines a further range of issues relating to consent in the perioperative setting and puts forward four scenarios for consideration.

Examining the gap between infection control theory and practice will be this year’s Infection Control Nurses Association conference.

Research into an immunomodulatory approach to the treatment of tuberculosis has yielded notable results, reports SUSAN PEARSON.

A technological advance for organ transplantation is set to make a major impact, The Clinical Services Journal reports.

The continuing trend for miniaturisation in medical technology was clearly evident at the most recent ComPaMED.

An evaluation of the antimicrobial properties of sanitising product TECare by Dr A TAYLOR MB CHB, et al. – Leesbrook Surgery, Lees, Oldham.

The management of long-term medical conditions presents significant challenges which must be addressed as a matter of urgency, delegates at a recent conference were told. JASON RAYFIELD reports.

In the first section of a two-part article, JOHN BEESLEY RGN, LLM Healthcare Law, BA (Hons) NEBOSH, examines why patient consent is required, and explores the challenges perioperative practitioners face when the consent process is not as robust as it should be.

To significantly reduce healthcare-acquired infections in the NHS, more collaborative working is needed, and greater attention given to basic procedures. This became clear at the Hospital Hygiene conference held recently at ExCeL, London, as NICHOLAS MARSHALL and JASON RAYFIELD report.

Effective staff training on the use of equipment, and standardisation of certain devices, can create a higher level of safety for patients. LESLEY FUDGE, MSc BA (Hons) RGN, reports.

Medical writer WILLIAM CHECK explores the effectiveness of comprehensive or “global” admission screening to prevent the spread of MRSA in hospitals. The article originally appeared in CAP Today, the news magazine of the College of American Pathologists.

SARAH COPLEY, Workforce Designer; ERIKA OTTLEY, Associate Workforce Designer; and JEANETTE RIGBY, Project Manager – all from the National Practitioner Programme – provide an overview of the Anaesthesia Practitioner role in this article, which forms part of a series in The Clinical Services Journal focused on modernisation.

Smart tags and packaging are saving lives, preventing illnesses, errors and crime, and sharply reducing costs in healthcare. Report by Dr PETER HARROP FIEE, chairman, IDTechEX.

Considerable attention continues to be given to issues surrounding the decontamination of equipment for gastrointestinal endoscopy, and The Clinical Services Journal summarises the latest British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines.

Sudden cardiac death, particularly that which happens following an episode of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, has been studied using fluorescence resonance energy transfer technology inside individual cells. SUSAN PEARSON examines research into a condition that affects predominantly young children and adolescents.

MARK C. BELLAMY MA MB BS FRCA, professor of critical care anaesthesia, St James’s University Hospital, Leeds, explores the challenges facing anaesthetists in ensuring better outcomes for morbidly obese patients before, during and after surgery.

Dr RONALD R CUTLER CSci FIBMS, a principal lecturer in infectious diseases and pathology at the School of Health and Bioscience, University of East London, profiles the avian influenza pathogen and advises against complacency.