RECENT NEWS

Babies born at night or at the weekend are at greater risk of dying due to lack of oxygen (anoxia) than those born during normal working hours, Cambridge researchers have found.

A new pain relief implant using Wii-style technology for people with chronic nerve pain has been used in Scotland for the first time. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s Dr Gordon McGinn fitted the new “neurostimulator implant” under local anaesthetic at Glasgow’s New Victoria Hospital.

A report has named the UK as one of the worst developed countries in the world in terms of access to MS drugs – prompting the MS Society to call for an urgent update of the clinical guidelines for MS.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published its report into the GP out-of-hours provider, Take Care Now (TCN). The regulator’s investigation was triggered by the case of Mr David Gray, a patient killed by an overdose of 100 mg diamorphine in February 2008.

David Furness, the author of the Social Market Foundation’s major health report, has described Government’s plans to transfer billions of pounds from Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) to GPs, to commission NHS services, as being “at best a waste of time, at worst a waste of money”.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has presented the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley with advice on new, national, evidence-based quality standards on the care and treatment of stroke,

Surgery for children faces a future skills crisis with sick children facing unnecessary delays for operations or travelling long distances for routine surgery unless co-ordinated action is taken now by the surgical profession and the NHS, the Royal College of Surgeons has warned.

The cervical cancer vaccine could prevent even more cases of the disease in England than previously thought, UK scientists have found. A study by scientists at the Health Protection Agency (HPA), the University of Manchester and the Manchester Royal Infirmary suggests that the vaccine could potentially reduce the number of cases each year from about 3,000 to less than 700.

An updated guide has been published by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) which describes steps junior doctors should follow in the event of a medical safety incident.

The numbers of patients who die following complex surgery to repair blocked or damaged blood vessels could be significantly reduced if the NHS recognised vascular surgery as a full specialty and organised care within hospitals accordingly.

GPs’ lack of involvement in maternity care is undermining the care of pregnant women and their families, according to a report published for The King’s Fund’s Inquiry into the Quality of General Practice in England.

Deaths from heart and circulatory disease have fallen dramatically in the last decade, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. Circulatory diseases, such as heart disease, remain the most common major cause of death.

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) has issued guidance to NHS organisations across England and Wales to ensure that a patient’s weight is known and documented before medication is given to treat blood clots. Doses of the injectable medicines, known as low molecular weight heparins (LMWH), are used to thin the blood to aid circulation.

The all-in-one BARD Comprehensive Care Foley Tray, that provides all the essential items required for a catheterisation or recatheterisation procedure, is now available with the Bardex I.C anti-infective Foley catheter. The catheter, with Bacti-Guard silver alloy coating, helps reduce CAUTIs by more than a third and its advantages are supported by a wide range of clinical studies.

More than 80 percent of visitors to the Medica stand at UKRC said they believe that teleradiology should be regulated. The poll was taken as part of a 'Join The Debate' theme on the stand which featured live panel discussions (broadcast to a large screen on the outside of the stand), themed 'pods' where people could vote on the big issues of the day and a live 'blogpoint' where visitors could make instant contributions.

There is a need to remove endoscope reprocessing from treatment areas and to ensure that it is performed in dedicated facilities by specialist staff, decontamination experts argue. The question of how the specification of facilities and equipment can be optimised, on a local basis, to ensure best practice is covered in a workshop and study day organised by Schulke UK and chaired by Paul Jenkins, Decontamination Manager, North Bristol NHS Trust.

Next month, the doors will open on the Infection Prevention Society (IPS) conference and exhibition. Following on from the successful 2009 conference in Harrogate, the event is moving to Bournemouth for two years

The 46th AfPP (Association for Perioperative Practice) Congress and Exhibition is now just weeks away and interest from both delegates and visitors is hotting up. Having listened closely to the needs of healthcare professionals, a thought-provoking programme of speakers and educational workshops has been organised – tackling the most topical issues affecting perioperative practitioners and assisting with important areas of skills development.

AfPP is aiming to further enhance the exhibitor and delegate experience at the event with the launch of the new Innovation Awards, which will celebrate innovation on the show floor.

Scientists have reported new findings in the development of anti-bacterial materials that could help in the fight against infections. A team at Nottingham Trent University has developed a method of making very small particles of gold with an antibiotic, which when tested, were shown to be extremely potent in neutralising dangerous bacteria, such as Escherichia Coli (E.Coli).