FEATURE ARTICLES

SUSAN PEARSON investigates an award-winning medical imaging instrument that takes a new approach to implementation of the photoacoustic effect.

Dr TOM SMITH, chief executive of the British Society of Gastroenterology, discusses the campaigning priorities for the BSG in 2011.

How can you tell whether an outbreak of Pseudomonas aeruginosa is due to cross contamination between patients and staff or to the contamination of a hospital’s systemic water supply? How can you protect the most vulnerable patients from infection from pathogenic organisms lurking in hospitals?

From the huge range of published information and research reports that spring to life on a regular basis on healthcare websites, KATE WOODHEAD RGN DMS, technical editor of The Clinical Services Journal, highlights a few which may have particular interest for practitioners and readers struggling with the volume.

A patient safety campaign, implemented across Wales, has successfully achieved its target of saving lives and reducing harm – reporting major steps forward in infection prevention, hand hygiene compliance, safer surgery, medicines management and antibiotic prescribing. The Clinical Services Journal reports.

Children can make challenging patients – they are vulnerable, prone to rapid deterioration, and often difficult to diagnose. If your job brings you into contact with sick children, some basic additional training can help, explains Dr FFION DAVIES MRCP, FRCPCH, FCEM, consultant in paediatric emergency medicine at Leicester Royal Infirmary.*

Serious concerns about the provision of parenteral nutrition in UK hospitals were raised by a national enquiry, which found that poor standards of care are leading to avoidable complications. The Clinical Services Journal reports.

As rates of Caesarean section continue to rise, the numbers of mothers experiencing surgical site infection (SSI) are also set to increase, warns Claire Banks, a senior specialist registrar in obstetrics and gynaecology. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

A skilled endoscopy support team is essential for a high-quality, patient-centred service. Moreover, JAG visits have identified a need to improve access to relevant education. The gastrointestinal endoscopy for nurses (GIN) training programme has been implemented to address such demand.

New evidence has emerged which suggests that patients with “mini stroke” are missing out on life-saving surgery and are routinely treated as low priority cases in the NHS. Short falls in community rehabilitation services are also undermining advances in acute medicine for stroke. The Clinical Services Journal reports.

Studies have shown that education, the use of positive role models, surveillance and feedback are all important factors in driving improvements in hand hygiene. However, new technologies may also have a significant role in raising compliance rates in the future. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

The seventh international conference of the Hospital Infection Society recently took place in Liverpool – covering topics ranging from infection control and epidemiology, to surveillance and decontamination. High on the agenda was the subject of C. difficile. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

Extending the range of day case surgery is a declared aim of the new coalition Government. There are significant benefits to both hospitals and patients, from reducing healthcare-acquired infection to shorter waiting times for operations, so what is preventing day surgery? What are the barriers that need to be addressed and how can patient selection be expanded? LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

KATE WOODHEAD RGN DMS examines the issue of blood borne infection – reviewing the latest guidance aimed at protecting healthcare workers.

A newly adopted directive from Europe will strengthen the future protection for all workers at risk of sharps injuries.

Empirical data on safety, clinician efficiency, as well as patient and family considerations, have often been lacking when procuring bedhead panels and pendants for theatres and ICUs. In recent years, there have been calls for clinical teams to have greater input and control over the specification of such systems.

Returning to the AfPP’s annual Congress as a popular keynote speaker, Martin Bromiley, chair of the Clinical Human Factors Group, gave a compelling presentation on the issue of patient safety and provided an insight into the reasons why people fail to speak up, or act, to prevent disaster – even when the dangers are obvious. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

Leadership, poor hand hygiene compliance, and rising levels of drug-resistance were among the key topics of discussion at the Infection Prevention Society’s conference, held in Bournemouth. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

Working in conjunction with the NHS Technology Adoption Hub, the urology team at Musgrove Park Hospital has improved patient safety through the implementation of an ultrasound-guided catheterisation technique.

Last year saw the inaugural Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Week in the UK, the first collaboration of its kind in the pancreatic cancer community. This year, it will be repeated from 22-28 November with a view to reducing mortality through earlier recognition and intervention.

JAMES PARSONS argues that the current framework for procurement of temporary staff needs to be reassessed to ensure that gaps in current staff provision, particularly in specialist areas, are addressed.