RECENT NEWS

Europe’s Largest Infection Prevention and Control two-Day Conference took place this week in Birmingham, at the National Conference Centre. The conference and exhibition proved to be particularly well attended this year, as infection prevention and control professionals were eager to focus once again on core IP&C issues and gain an insight into the latest research and expert guidance on a wide range of infection challenges.

Written communications about radiology appointments are routinely sent in English only from NHS Trusts, not accounting for the needs of the patient’s first language, warns a new report from the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB).

Members of the RCM in England have voted to accept the latest NHS pay offer, following a consultation. In a turnout of 48% of eligible RCM midwife and maternity support worker (MSW) members working in the NHS in England, 57% voted to accept the deal, with 43% rejecting.

Big data and analytics, digital apps, and remote monitoring rank among the most important areas for future healthcare innovation, say NHS Scotland staff in newly published survey results.

Medical Protection Society (MPS) has called for radical reform to how the General Medical Council (GMC) investigates doctors, as new research reveals significant numbers are experiencing suicidal thoughts or quitting medicine as a result of their investigation.

The International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders (IDGD) estimates that 5-10% of the world’s population has IBS. According to the Foundation, women have the condition more often than men; most patients are under the age of 50; and many are diagnosed only years after their symptoms begin.

Nuffield Health’s teams across the UK are helping to fight climate change by switching to lower carbon alternatives. Desflurane is one of the most common anaesthetic gases used, in NHS and independent sector hospitals. However, it is also one of the most environmentally-harmful.

Just 4% of patients with obesity who underwent bariatric surgery developed obesity-associated cancer in a 10-year follow up, compared to 8.9% among those who did not have a weight-loss procedure, according to a study to be presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2023.

People in deprived areas are now more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer at an earlier stage, thanks to the success of NHS lung trucks.

Hospitals are being asked to work towards a 10-day turnaround when delivering diagnostic test results to patients who have received an urgent referral for suspected cancer, as part of new plans to see and treat people for cancer as early as possible.

The NHS will save £7 billion by the end of 2023 thanks to a five-year agreement with the pharmaceutical industry, which ensures the NHS can continue to be one of the fastest health systems in the world to roll out innovative medicines.

A series of new measures will be introduced by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) with support from partners to make it faster and easier to gain approval and to run clinical trials in the UK. These changes represent the biggest overhaul in UK clinical trials regulation in over 20 years and will help to make the UK one of the best countries in the world to conduct clinical research for patients and researchers.

A region-wide study in more than 50,000 patients with atrial fibrillation has found reduced risks of stroke and transient ischaemic attack in those who started statins within a year of diagnosis compared with those who did not. The findings were presented at EHRA 2023, the annual congress of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) – a branch of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

COVID-19 case rates decreased in week 15 in all age groups, regions, and most ethnic groups. Data from Respiratory Datamart suggests that SARS-CoV-2 positivity remains stable at 7.8% compared to 8.3% in the previous week. The highest positivity was seen in the group of those aged 65 years and over at 11.1%.

Chronic wounds are a major health problem for diabetic patients and the elderly – in extreme cases they can even lead to amputation. Using electric stimulation, researchers in a project at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, and the University of Freiburg, Germany, have developed a method that speeds up the healing process, making wounds heal three times faster.

RCN Congress offers an opportunity to network with peers, hear from exceptional keynote speakers and take part in hot-topic debates about the issues affecting the nursing workforce.

A novel software tool set to improve the management of elderly atrial fibrillation patients with multiple conditions is being designed by the EU-funded and ESC-coordinated EHRA-PATHS consortium. The latest updates on this clinical innovation were presented at EHRA 2023, the annual congress of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) – a branch of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

The Personalised Care Institute (PCI), commissioned by NHS England, has launched lifelike virtual reality training on shared decision making (SDM) for healthcare professionals, after research by the Patients Association found that nearly half (46%) report gaps in their knowledge and most (70%) would like to learn more.

Owen Mumford has been awarded a distinction in the prestigious Red Dot awards for innovative product design for its Aidaptus single-use auto-injector launched in 2021. Aidaptus wins the Red Dot award for the category Product Design 2023.

Effective management of depression through psychological therapy is associated with a lower likelihood of heart disease and stroke, according to research published today in European Heart Journal, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).