FEATURE ARTICLES

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.

To ensure comprehensive action is taken to improve the prevention and treatment of stroke, hugely challenging – but achievable – tasks have to be tackled, a recent conference heard. NICHOLAS MARSHALL reports.

The anticipated problems related to adequate safe future supplies of allogeneic blood in the UK continues to be a cause for concern, due mainly to the impact of vCJD. BARRY HILL reports on a recent meeting which aimed to examine best blood transfusion practice.

JASON RAYFIELD reviews the recent European Science Foundation report Nanomedicine, and talks to report steering and organising committee chair Professor RUTH DUNCAN, Welsh School of Pharmacy, Cardiff University, about the challenges that lie ahead for this emerging multidisciplinary field.

The cost-effectiveness of a nurse-led early discharge scheme for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is outlined by CAMILLA BRIND BSc (Hons) RN, respiratory nurse specialist at the Kent and Sussex Hospital, Tunbridge Wells.

Official media partner The Clinical Services Journal previews products and services from the imminent Hospital Hygiene exhibition.

Dr BERWYN CLARKE, chief scientific officer at Lab21, underlines the value of pharmacogenetics in optimising patient outcomes.

Reduction of potential risks and greater cost efficiency are fundamental surgical ideals. Dr DAVID COATES MB BS FRCA, consultant anaesthetist in Bristol, reports that these benefits can be provided for hip arthroplasty by the use of autologous blood transfusion.

The Peninsula Radiology Academy in Plymouth has been designed to solve the severe shortage of consultant radiologists by offering state-of-the-art teaching methods to make training faster, more effective and more appealing to recruits. JASON RAYFIELD reports.

In the January issue of The Clinical Services Journal, JACKIE YOUNGER, National Practitioner Programme Lead, described the development of the Surgical Care Practitioner role. In this issue, she explains the organisational development, patient safety issues and benefits realisation that need to underpin the role.

BILL MOFFITT, UK operations manager for TBS G.B. Telematic & Biomedical Services, gives Nicholas Marshall an insight into how vital biomedical engineering and telemedicine services are moving forward.