RECENT NEWS

The cost of hiring locum or temporary doctors for NHS hospitals in England has increased to more than £ ¾ billion a year since the introduction of EU regulations to reduce doctors’ hours, the Royal College of Surgeons has reported.

Women who have had the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine could need only two HPV screening tests for the rest of their lives, according to new calculations being presented at the NCRI Cancer Conference in Liverpool. In addition, HPV testing could provide a more accurate cervical screening method than the current smear test, which looks for abnormal cells.

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) has issued a series of recommendations to all NHS organisations across England and Wales aimed at improving care and minimising risk associated with anti-cancer medicines. A themed review of patient safety incidents involving anti-cancer medicines, was produced following 4,829 patient safety incidents reported to the NPSA between 1 November 2003 and 30 June 2008.

The NHS Apprenticeship Programme will receive £10 million to create new NHS apprenticeships, Health Minister Simon Burns has revealed.

NHS heart surgery patients in England and Wales have a greater chance of survival and recover more quickly than almost anywhere in Europe according to the first ever comparative study of cardiac operations data from across the continent.

A study conducted in the Netherlands and published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) confirms an earlier report from the US, that the use of a surgical safety checklist significantly reduces surgical morbidity and mortality.

Scotland’s acute hospitals are “generally clean and improving”, according to the first annual report of the Healthcare Environment Inspectorate (HEI). However, more work needs to be done in key areas, most notably in the cleaning of hospital equipment (including commodes and mattresses) and infection control policies being up to date on wards.

Almost 27,000 NHS posts in the UK are already earmarked for cuts, with almost 18,000 in England alone, the Royal College of Nursing has revealed. This is more than three times the number of posts identified by the RCN in England in April, and could leave patients vulnerable and services at risk. The loss of 26,841 staff is the equivalent of closing almost six hospitals the size of the Royal Free in London, or nine hospitals the size of Alder Hey in Liverpool.

Perioperative practitioners are now being invited to submit their applications for this year’s Hilda Winifred Mears Award to be in with a chance of winning £1,000 towards a trip overseas as a medical volunteer. Hilda Winifred Mears was a former member of AfPP, who held many perioperative posts both within the UK and abroad. Hilda died in 2008 and has left a legacy to the Association which is used to fund the Hilda Winifred Mears Award.

This year, the central theme of 'Speaking up and Speaking Out' was addressed throughout the AfPP Congress as part of a sustained campaign to improve patient safety.

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.

At the opening session of AfPP’s annual Congress, TV personality, comedian and qualified doctor, Phil Hammond, provided a thought-provoking presentation on the subject of 'difficult discussions', and gave an insight into his own whistleblowing role in breaking the story of the Bristol heart scandal in Private Eye.

The Association for Perioperative Practice (AfPP) presented a range of pioneering medical device manufacturers and service providers with prestigious innovation awards at this year’s Congress and exhibition.

Rates of Clostridium difficile infection and MRSA in Scotland’s hospitals have fallen to their lowest ever level. The latest statistics, from Health Protection Scotland, show rates of C. difficile have fallen by over 42%, compared with the same period last year, while MRSA rates are down nearly 45 %.

The pioneer of robotic surgery and former health minister Professor Lord Ara Darzi is taking the helm of an institute at Imperial College London that aims to develop innovative approaches to global health challenges.

NICE has published final draft guidance recommending the wider use of clopidogrel for the prevention of occlusive vascular events (ischaemic stroke, transient ischaemic attack or heart attack) in people who have previously had an ischaemic stroke, or who have been diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Long-term daily use of 75 mg aspirin may reduce the long-term incidence of bowel cancer by a quarter, and deaths by a third, according to research published in The Lancet.

Researchers at Kaiser Permanente have found that patients with a very early form of breast cancer (ductal carcinoma in situ or DCIS) who have higher mammographic density may be at increased risk for subsequent breast cancer, especially in the breast opposite to the one with the initial cancer.

Draft NICE guidance, recently published, has shown that a well-validated technology could save the NHS £850 million per year in England alone.

The NHS Confederation has warned that even with protection of its budget, the health service will still be hard hit by spending cuts and called for political leaders to be frank and realistic about the impact on the public.