RECENT NEWS

The period 2013/14 was another record year for organ donation and transplantation in the UK, with more than 4,600 transplants carried out. The figures show a 10% increase in the overall number of living and deceased donor transplants performed in the last financial year.

The number of people accepting the offer to attend an NHS Health Check has increased significantly, according to new figures from Public Health England (PHE). The figures show that, in the last year, over 1.3 million people have accepted the offer which aims to identify those at risk of serious, but potentially avoidable conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease.

University Hospital of North Durham, part of County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, has recently installed a multiaxis system from Siemens Healthcare as part of an endovascular hybrid theatre, which allows clinicians to treat patients with vascular problems in a minimally invasive way.

According to the latest quarterly monitoring report from The King’s Fund, financial confidence within the NHS is ‘ebbing away’, with a financial crisis looming in 2015/16.

Reaching globally-agreed targets for health risks, such as smoking and alcohol, could prevent more than 37 million deaths by 2025, according to an international study led by Imperial College London.

Draft guidance has been published by NICE recommending two viscoelastometric testing devices – the ROTEM system (TEM International) and the TEG system (Haemonetics) – to help detect, manage and monitor blood clotting (haemostasis) in people during and after cardiac surgery.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has identified that half of heart failure patients are not admitted to a specialist cardiology ward; that these patients often do not receive the specialist care they need; and that this is having an effect on their outcome.

A patient safety alert has been issued by NHS England on residual anaesthetic drugs in cannulae and intravenous lines leading to cardiac or respiratory arrest. The alert has been issued to all NHS services hospitals and community services in England that undertake surgery or other investigations and procedures using anaesthesia.

NHS England has approved an £18.7 million investment in a new drug for the treatment of hepatitis C. Around 500 patients with acute liver failure, and/or awaiting liver transplantation, are expected to benefit from the decision to fund Sofosbuvir.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) has announced its recommendation to screen every newborn baby in the UK for four new genetic disorders.

Bacteria with the New Delhi metallo-betalactamase or NDM enzyme remain susceptible to only one antibiotic known as colistin with only limited susceptibility to three others, a study by Public Health England (PHE) has found.

Nuclear to Health (N2H), a new project designed to match clinical unmet needs from the NHS with expertise and technology from the nuclear industry, is inviting healthcare professionals to be a part of the first project of its kind in the UK by submitting unmet clinical needs which might benefit from an innovative solution.

The BMA has issued a warning that more medical staff will be needed to tackle extreme pressures in emergency departments, following a critical report from watchdogs.

Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) caused by the streptococcus bacteria may have higher incidence than previously thought and is associated with higher mortality in children than staphylococcal infections, according to a new report.

Researchers have confirmed that urinary ethyl glucuronide (uEtG) tests are able to accurately detect alcohol consumption in liver transplant candidates and recipients.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has launched a consultation on a proposed increase to the annual registration fee. This will gather the views of nurses and midwives on a proposed increase in the registration fee from £100 to £120.

A survey by the Nuffield Trust and The King’s Fund has found that many GPs believe that new commissioning groups are an improvement on their predecessors; however, less than half said that the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) reflected their views.

The latest Census of consultant physicians in the UK, produced by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), suggests there is a move away from specialist working to more generalist roles treating acutely ill patients.

The confidential enquiry, the National Review of Asthma Deaths (NRAD), is calling for an end to complacency around asthma care to ensure that that more is done to save lives.

Incidence of kidney cancer, the eighth most common cancer in England, have risen over two decades although survival rates have improved, a new report by Public Health England’s National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) has revealed.