FEATURE ARTICLES

KATE WOODHEAD RGN DMS, technical editor of The Clinical Services Journal, reviews significant items of healthcare sector news.

ZOË ELKINS, head of care at The Good Care Group, argues that fresh thought must be given to caring for individuals with dementia admitted to hospital.

A symposium, sponsored by Welch Allyn, recently discussed the latest developments in medical device technology, affecting the biomedical engineering sector, while celebrating the important contribution that biomedical engineers have to offer in improving efficiency, ensuring patient safety and delivering savings for Trusts. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

An audience of clinicians, anaesthetists, surgeons, biomedical scientists and transfusion practitioners recently assembled at the SHOT Symposium, held in Manchester, to hear the eagerly awaited findings and recommendations of the latest report on serious hazards in transfusion.

Some 3,000 neurologists recently gathered at the annual meeting of the European Neurological Society, held in Berlin, to discuss the latest research and advances in the field of neurology – including the development of a “brain-computer interface” to enable coma patients to communicate with the outside world. The Clinical Services Journal reports.

The results of the Care Quality Commission’s 2009 NHS Inpatient Survey show that significant progress has been achieved in a number of areas, with an increase in the number of people who rated their care as “excellent”.

The financial burden of SSIs on the health service could be greater than expected, as rigorous surveillance uncovers a much higher rate of infection. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

Dr DANIEL IVENS, FRCP, consultant at the Marlborough Genitourinary Medicine Clinic, Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust, discusses the importance of forming strategic planning to encourage increased screening of young adults.

High on the agenda at the Association for Perioperative Practice’s annual Congress will be some challenging topics for discussion – including the lessons learned from Mid-Staffordshire, eradicating bullying in the workplace and empowering staff to speak up when safety is compromised.

A discernible shift of emphasis towards greater use of imaging for the early management of prostate cancer, along with a drive to reduce over-treatment, was highlighted at a recent meeting of leading researchers and clinical practitioners. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

KATE WOODHEAD RGN DMS highlights the importance of maintaining normothermia, in patients undergoing surgery, in order to improve outcomes.

Perhaps one of the most contentious issues facing the medical profession today is that of end of life care. With recent high-profile assisted suicide cases, the General Medical Council (GMC) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have both sought to clarify the legal and professional position of doctors in this ethical minefield. MATTHEW BAILEY reports.

Increased demand for endoscopy services, coupled with heightened awareness of infection prevention, has prompted new standards for washer-disinfectors and a drive to ensure tighter process control during reprocessing. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

Experts recently highlighted the importance of assessing both technical and non-technical skills in colonoscopy, at the British Society of Gastroenterology’s annual conference, held in Liverpool. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

What can cardiovascular monitoring contribute to delivering optimum critical care and what is the current evidence available? THE CLINICAL SERVICES JOURNAL reports.

Experts from a range of specialties recently gathered at a symposium in Birmingham to discuss the costly burden of surgical site infection in the UK. Among the many topics on the agenda included the risks associated with orthopaedic surgery and the challenges of treating patients with infected implants. LOUISE FRAMPTON reports.

As part of the HCAIs Technology Innovation Programme, the Imperial College Healthcare Trust took part in the Department of Health (DH) Showcase Hospitals programme, to evaluate the use of silver alloy-coated catheters. Showcase lead, ANTHONY SEWELL, offers an insight into the Trust’s experience.

GWAM RAJIAH provides an insight into how intraoperative monitoring, using electrical potentials from the nervous system, can reduce risk of injury during surgery.

A novel blood filter, which removes the infectious prions that cause variant Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease (vCJD), has been recommended for use in the UK by the National Blood Service. However, for blood safety campaigners, families of vCJD victims and the filter’s manufacturers, the journey is far from over according to IWONA WALICKA.

Speaking at an Oxoid Infection Control Seminar, GUNNAR KAHLMETER provided an overview of the impact of multiresistant bacteria, the current situation in Europe and prospects for the future.