Royal Colleges continuing reform discussion

The medical royal colleges will continue to engage with discussion on the NHS reforms, rather than adopt a stance of outright opposition. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AOMRC) was preparing to release a statement saying that it could not...<<Read More>>

NHS Direct jobs at risk – RCN

Frontline staff could lose their jobs at NHS Direct due to changes in working patterns, the Royal College of Nursing claims. The union has opposed the changes to working patterns which will see new shift arrangements created, with workers unable to join the shift pattern at risk of losing...<<Read More>>

A&E attendances on the rise

Over half of A&E attendees stay for over two hours, statistics from the NHS Information Centre show. The figures are from A&E attendances in England during 2010/11. The report shows that stays of over two hours rose from 50.6%, or 7.6 million in the previous year, to 53.7%, 8.5...<<Read More>>

Support for accessing patient records

A new project has been launched to develop clear and easy to follow guidance for patients on the publishing, storing and sharing of health and social care records. This will support the increasing number of patients who are accessing their records online Dr Justin Whatling, vice...<<Read More>>

Inspection only a ‘snapshot’ – NHS Confederation

Effective regulation can be achieved without radical reform of the inspection process, the NHS Confederation suggests. Giving evidence to the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, which is holding an inquiry into the CQC, the NHS...<<Read More>>

Calls for genetic technology national strategy

The NHS is set to prioritise genetic medicine following a new report by the Government’s Human Genomics Strategy Group. Advances in technology mean that genetic testing can identify whether people will respond to particular drugs, thus improving...<<Read More>>

Need to engage CCGs with NHS 111 service

The new NHS 111 number could be in danger of getting ‘lost in translation’, the NHS Alliance has warned in a report published today. A survey suggested that clinical commissioners have a lack of engagement with the service and feel that it...<<Read More>>

Campaigners call for ring-fenced Alzheimer’s funding

Alzheimer’s Research UK is calling on the Government to commit to a national dementia research strategy as a new report is launched today. There are 820,000 people living with dementia in the UK, costing the economy over £23bn. The...<<Read More>>

Foreign debt written off in NHS

Hospitals are writing off over 90% of money owed by foreign patients, who are not entitled to free NHS care, freedom of information requests show. Newham Hospital Trust has written off 96% of what it invoiced last year and Basildon and Thurrock wrote off 97%. The total amount written off by...<<Read More>>

CCGs ready for commissioning budgets

Almost 95% of CCGs are ready to take on commissioning budgets in April. BMJ Careers reports that 94.2% passed the strategic health authority SHA risk assessment of their configuration. This risk rating system measures four areas relating to group size, shape and practice...<<Read More>>