RECENT NEWS

Consultants and their secretaries have referred to the same MRI unit for over 13 years on average, a new study has revealed. Referrers were found to remain loyal to external medical units, with almost 8% saying that they had used the same MRI provider for over 25 years.

Cancer experts reported on developments of some promising radiosurgical techniques for treating lung and liver cancer using linear accelerator technology at the “Emerging Technologies Symposium” at the annual conference of the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ESTRO) in London.

A survey of more than 2,000 UNISON nurses and midwives concludes that 73% would take industrial action to protect their pensions.

A report from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and the Faculty of Occupational Medicine has revealed that only 15% of NHS Trusts have a policy or plan to help combat staff obesity.

People who leave education with fewer qualifications may age more quickly, according to research undertaken by scientists led by BHF Professor Andrew Steptoe.

Scientists from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) have found a link between the chemical dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and a person’s cognitive and mental status.

Despite being the 4th most common cancer in men and the 11th most common in women, over half the people surveyed across Great Britain have no idea of the risk factors for developing bladder cancer.

A major infectious problem after organ transplantation, cytomegalovirus (CMV), could potentially be targeted with a vaccine, according to results from a phase II clinical trial led by scientists from UCL and doctors at the Royal Free Hospital.

Research suggests that NICE guidance has helped to cut down on unnecessary antibiotic prescribing for the prevention of infective endocarditis. Antibiotics have been offered routinely for more than 50 years as a preventative measure to people at risk of infective endocarditis.

Researchers from the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine in London have said that everyone over the age of 55 should be offered drugs to lower cholesterol and blood pressure.

Doctors.net.uk has launched an online resource to keep doctors up to date with the latest developments regarding the Health and Social Care Bill.

At its annual conference this year, The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) launched NICE Pathways. This online tool for health and social care professionals is designed to bring together all connected NICE guidance on a particular topic in a user-friendly electronic flowchart.

A report published by the European Alliance For Access to Safe Medicines (EAASM) highlights the consequences for patient safety when healthcare decisions are made as a result of costcutting allowed by regulatory vagaries and loopholes.

Liverpool Community Health NHS Trust (LCH) has revealed that more than 1 in 10 outpatients do not turn up for appointments, costing the NHS in wasted resources.

New standards for emergency surgery care, published by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS), have identified that, although emergency patients account for half the NHS surgical workload, mortality and complication rates vary widely.

A UK study on complications of anaesthesia has shown that obese patients are twice as likely to develop serious airway problems during a general anaesthetic than non-obese patients.

Responding to reports stating that the number of patients having to wait more than four hours has risen 63%, a Department of Health spokesperson said: “It is misleading to look at A&E waiting times without taking into consideration the overall increase in A&E attendances.

Population-wide screening using the prostatespecific antigen (PSA) test would not help to reduce the number of deaths from prostate cancer, concludes a study by Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.

Monitor, the NHS Foundation Trust regulator has recently published its nine month review of NHS Foundation Trusts for 2010-11. The results have revealed that the majority of NHS foundation trusts continue to perform well in testing circumstances, but some longer-term challenges remain.

The College of Emergency Medicine (CEM) is urging all clinicians, managers and commissioners involved with the delivery of emergency care to be vigilant, and compliant, in the implementation of the new clinical quality indicators for emergency care that come into practice in April, following their launch in December, by Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley.