FEATURE ARTICLES

SUZANNE CALLANDER reports on the introduction of a device that aims to ensure that rigid endoscopes used in minimally invasive surgical procedures are of good enough quality to ensure patient safety and reduce delays in surgery.

Up to 80% of diabetes-related amputations in England each year are preventable, and Diabetes UK is warning that inadequate foot checks are part of the reason that so many amputations happen unnecessarily.

Medical technology guidance,1 published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), looks at a device that claims to reduce variability of diagnosis of diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The Clinical Services Journal reports on the guidance findings.

The second tri-annual Digestive Disorders Federation (DDF 2015) meeting takes place from 22-25 June at London’s Excel centre. Discussion themes range from an update on bowel cancer screening, driving improvement in liver transplantation and understanding eating disorders – to nutrition in the context of cancer treatment and IBD guidelines. DR CATHRYN EDWARDS, DDF 2015 programme committee chair, provides an overview of the event highlights.

At the recent Nuffield Trust’s Health Policy Summit, Professor ANDREW MORRIS spoke about the impact of big data on the future of healthcare and the potential for information technology to help shape future healthcare delivery.

Six winners of a Department of Health funded competition, as part of the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI), are set to receive a share of over £2 million to help develop cutting-edge technology solutions to help kidney patients.

Medtech Innovation Briefings have recently been introduced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to support NHS and commissioners considering using new medical devices and medical technologies. SUZANNE CALLANDER reports on some of the latest briefings.

The NHS faces unprecedented demand from patients and technology is seen as a key enabler to reduce inefficiencies and support patient safety improvements. But is enough being done to engage nurses?

Inadvertent perioperative hypothermia is caused by a combination of many factors: anaesthesia, surgical exposure, cool ambient temperatures and the infusion of cold intravenous and irrigation fluids.1,2

Five billion people worldwide do not have access to safe surgery and anaesthesia, more than double previous estimates, resulting in more deaths than malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis combined. KATE WOODHEAD RGN DMS reports.

The only stupid mistake is one that you do not try to learn from’, said Trevor Dale, at a recent conference on patient safety. He provided an overview of human factors engineering and the importance of managing fallibility in the healthcare environment. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

STEVEN PEAK provides an insight into a new solution that could provide Trusts with flexible capacity, through the ability to ‘dock’ specialist facilities – as and when required – from MRI units and operating theatres, to endoscopy suites and wards.

ANN MCQUEEN, FIONA CAMERON and CHRIS CONNOLLY provide an insight into a hand hygiene improvement campaign at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh which used the SureWash training system.

Nearly half of all pancreatic cancer patients are diagnosed as a result of an emergency presentation to A&E – a much higher percentage than for most other adult cancers. Pancreatic cancer nurse specialist, DIANNE DOBSON, highlights the action that must be to be taken to improve diagnosis and survival.

The MHRA Alert in 2012 bought TOE probe decontamination to the forefront of hospital decontamination policy. The Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s central endoscope decontamination unit has found a solution to address the challenges of providing rapid, reliable disinfection between each patient.

SUZANNE CALLANDER spoke to JAN THOMAS about the need for the NHS and private healthcare providers to work collaboratively for the benefit of patients.

A recent report from the Health Foundation evaluates the findings of its six-year ‘Safer Clinical Systems’ programme which explored how improvements in healthcare quality could be made using techniques from hazardous industries.

The search for a human blood substitute has seen work undertaken on modified haemoglobins and also investigation into the use of artificial oxygen carriers, as Dr FRANCIS AJENEYE explains.

Inadvertent hypothermia can be prevented by very simple measures – including decreasing patient exposure, providing them with warm clothing, as well as active measures such as fluid warming, warming mattresses and warming blankets.

The Clinical Services Journal revisits best practice guidance on patient warming and reports on the latest developments.