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GP surgeries across England will face competition from health centres run by private companies, including Sir Richard Branson's Virgin group, under plans to be presented to the cabinet today. The health minister, Sir Ara Darzi, a leading cancer surgeon who was asked by Gordon Brown to provide a new vision for the NHS, will propose radical changes to give patients more choice of family doctor services.
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Homa Khaleeli: Is fasting for Ramadan healthy? - The Guardian 18th September 2007
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Homa Khaleeli: Is fasting for Ramadan healthy? - The Guardian 18th September 2007
Muslims everywhere are fasting for Ramadan - and looking forward to the bigger than usual evening meal that ends each day. But can veering between such extremes be healthy?
The Commission for Racial Equality, which is to be wound up later this month, is to make a final plea to the government this week to make an explicit commitment to the creation of an integrated Britain where inequality is rooted out and active civic participation by people from all backgrounds is encouraged.
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15 Whitehall departments named and shamed for race equality failures - The Guardian 18th September 2007
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Kids' exercise levels are even more abysmal than we feared. And, says Peta Bee the repercussions are not just physical - they extend to academic achievement and social behaviour. So what can we do to get them off the sofa?
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A British businessman has been jailed for four-and-a- half years for organising a conspiracy to supply counterfeit drugs for treating conditions such as impotence and baldness. Ashish Halai, 31, of Borehamwood, Essex, was described by prosecutors as the "lynchpin" of the British side of a multimillion-pound operation to smuggle fake Viagra and other counterfeit medicines made illegally in China, Pakistan and other parts of Asia.
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Fake world of the Viagra plotters - The Times 18th September 2007
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A British businessman has been jailed for four-and-a- half years for organising a conspiracy to supply counterfeit drugs for treating conditions such as impotence and baldness. Ashish Halai, 31, of Borehamwood, Essex, was described by prosecutors as the "lynchpin" of the British side of a multimillion-pound operation to smuggle fake Viagra and other counterfeit medicines made illegally in China, Pakistan and other parts of Asia.
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Fake world of the Viagra plotters - The Times 18th September 2007
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Laurence Buckman, the straight-talking chairman of the British Medical Association GPs committee, tells Jennifer Taylor that improving doctors’ morale is top of his agenda
PLAYING doctors and nurses has taken on a new meaning with the news that children could soon train as nurses. OK, not really titchy children, but Nursing Standard (Sept 12) reports that age-discrimination laws mean that 15-year-olds might soon be mopping your fevered brow.
IF YOU want something done in general practice, do it yourself. That’s the advice of Dr Declan Fox, who has decided that rather than adding patients to long waiting lists for psychological therapies, he will treat them himself.
DESPITE the life-affirming benefits of daytime TV, being out of work can be bad for your health. Doctor (Sept 11) reports that mental health charities have applauded a government initiative to inform GPs about the health benefits of work.
Children born to mothers who have a history of epilepsy have an increased risk of lower IQs, says a study by Bergen University, Norway. The study, in the journal Epilepsia (Sept), found that 19-year-old boys born to women with epilepsy had clinically significantly lower IQ scores. The researchers say this may be a result of exposure to epilepsy medicines in the womb.
LOOK north for lessons in legislation. The compulsory detention of mental health patients in Scotland has led to a two-tier system of care, Community Care (Sept 13) reports.
Among Private Eye’s regular cartoon strips (It’s Grim Up North London, Dave Snooty and His Pals, Celeb, etc) there was always one which I thought let the magazine down. The strip which satirised the behaviour of models and the world of fashion seemed to rely on just two rather graceless jokes. Fashion types were self-obsessed bimbos who saw everything through the prism of their own fabulousness. And they were obsessed with their weight to the exclusion of practically all else.
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A muslim dentist made a woman wear Islamic dress as the price of accepting her as an NHS patient, it is alleged. Omer Butt is said to have told the patient that unless she wore a headscarf she would have to find another practice.
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NHS staff, patients and members of the public will discuss the future of the NHS in England when "citizens' juries" meet for the first time later. Meetings will take place in nine regions and involve about 1,000 people as part of the review led by Sir Ara Darzi, a minister and surgeon.
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For three years it has been a simple way for hospital visitors to make a difference while they wait. Patients and relatives - indeed anyone handy with a pair of needles - have been asked to knit a small square to be turned into blankets for local charities.
Thousands of men and women at risk of heart disease could soon be given a pioneering drug to lower their cholesterol after it was approved by the Government's rationing body. Ezetimibe can be taken by those who cannot tolerate statins - the most commonly prescribed drugs - or in combination with them.
Six out of 10 Britons would not be motivated to do more exercise even if their lives depended on it, a poll has found. This is despite one person dying every 15 minutes as a result of physical inactivity, according to British Heart Foundation figures.
A father of two was almost killed after he was nipped by his daughter's pet hamster. Ashley Green, 51, suffered an extreme allergic reaction to the bite after he tried to stop pet rodent Sydney from falling through a crack in the floor.
If dire health warnings and pub bans were not enough to put smokers off the habit, they may think again after scientists revealed it causes acne. The spotty skin disorder particularly affects female smokers according to The British Journal of Dermatology. This 'smokers' acne' is characterised by blocked pores and large blackheads but less inflamed spots than normal acne.
The entrepreneur who relaunched Pizza Express has been asked to run a chain of NHS cancer clinics. Luke Johnson is in talks with one of Britain's leading cancer specialists to set up a string of "cancer express" centres that will offer patients every aspect of care from initial screening to chemotherapy.
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The traditional doctor's white coat is to be changed as part of government plans to tackle hospital infections. The new style clothing will have short sleeves under guidance to come into effect at the start of next year.
Since graduating over a decade ago, Drs Paul and Claudia Turner had been steadily climbing up the NHS ladder in hospitals around London. This time last year, they were both on the senior registrar rung - Paul in microbiology and Claudia in paediatrics - when they began to get itchy feet.
About 40% of employers feel that alcohol misuse is a major cause of absenteeism and poor productivity in the workplace, a survey suggests. And the research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that a third of firms believe drugs had a similar impact.
Scientists say a new DNA test may help prove if people have had their health damaged by exposure to chemicals. Samples of DNA are taken from a healthy person and exposed to the chemicals to see which genes are affected. This is then compared to the claimants' DNA.
A teenager who suffered irreversible brain damage after being struck down by a virus when just three weeks old has been awarded £2.75m compensation. Gethin Davies, 13, of Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, will be dependent on others for life, the High Court heard.
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Tight socks may scar babies' legs - BBC Health News 17th September 2007
Tiny socks may finish off a baby's outfit, but specialists have identified a new condition on infants' legs which can be caused by tight elastic bands. "Sock-line bands" are raised, reddish markings around the ankle or leg which can develop after wearing a tight pair of socks on just one occasion.
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International Health News
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Hillary Clinton yesterday set out an ambitious $110bn (£55bn) plan to introduce universal healthcare in the US more than 10 years after her earlier failed attempt. Ms Clinton, who is one of the frontrunners to win the Democratic nomination for next year's presidential race, proposed a package that would open the way for health insurance for 47 million Americans at present without cover.
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Hillary Clinton plays safe with new health plans - The Telegraph 18th September 2007
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Yes, Cuba's healthcare is first world - and it's despite the blockade - The Guardian 18th September 2007
The shortage of life-saving drugs makes the island's achievements all the more impressive Rory Carroll does an excellent job in describing Cuba's prioritising of health provision (First world results on a third world budget, September 12). He sums it up well as a "unique blend of third-world conditions with a progressive ethos and first-world results". Yet he fails to mention the 46-year-old United States blockade of the island, against which Cuba's achievements in health must be put into context and are even more impressive for doing so.
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Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
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SMOKERS may be refused home visits by council workers if they smoke in certain rooms of their own homes in Wirral. The borough is considering allowing its staff, like social services and education welfare workers, to refuse to visit people’s homes if anyone has smoked there 30 minutes before.
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Hospital removes 'hazardous' knitting needles - The Telegraph 17th September 2007
A hospital has removed a box of wool and knitting needles from public access, claiming it was a safety hazard. For three years, the Congleton War Memorial Hospital in Cheshire had provided a "knitting box" in its main waiting area, containing wool and needles and inviting patients and visitors to knit a square while they waited.
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Safety police outlaw NHS knitters over fears of accidents with needles - Daily Mail 17th September 2007
Last year Labour MP Peter Kilfoyle came close to death. This year he's trekking 140 miles across Nicaragua. Anushka Asthana reports
An optician has agreed to pay a £700,000 out-of-court settlement to the NHS after being convicted of fraud. John Walsby-Tickle, 55, of Caldy, Wirral, who ran 12 shops in the North West, admitted stealing £600 from the Liverpool NHS Trust at Liverpool Crown Court in 2003. The NHS pursued him through the civil courts after discovering that he had stolen “hundreds of thousands of pounds” by falsifying spectacle repair bills and claims for glasses.
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Widow organised her own death - Liverpool Daily Post 14th September 2007
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Hospital removes 'hazardous' knitting needles - The Telegraph 17th September 2007
A hospital has removed a box of wool and knitting needles from public access, claiming it was a safety hazard. For three years, the Congleton War Memorial Hospital in Cheshire had provided a "knitting box" in its main waiting area, containing wool and needles and inviting patients and visitors to knit a square while they waited.
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Safety police outlaw NHS knitters over fears of accidents with needles - Daily Mail 17th September 2007
Last year Labour MP Peter Kilfoyle came close to death. This year he's trekking 140 miles across Nicaragua. Anushka Asthana reports
An optician has agreed to pay a £700,000 out-of-court settlement to the NHS after being convicted of fraud. John Walsby-Tickle, 55, of Caldy, Wirral, who ran 12 shops in the North West, admitted stealing £600 from the Liverpool NHS Trust at Liverpool Crown Court in 2003. The NHS pursued him through the civil courts after discovering that he had stolen “hundreds of thousands of pounds” by falsifying spectacle repair bills and claims for glasses.
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Widow organised her own death - Liverpool Daily Post 14th September 2007
POLICE used a key sent anonymously to them to discover the body of an elderly woman from Wirral who took her own life, an inquest heard yesterday. Retired university lecturer Barbara Wakeham, 79, is believed to have sent the key with a note to Hoylake police station informing them the key would shortly be required.
A WOMAN turned herself into a fireball in front of patients outside a Merseyside hospital. Horrified onlookers ran to help the 50- year-old woman, who doused herself in petrol and set herself alight in the car park of Whiston hospital at 5pm yesterday.
BRITISH medics from 208 (Liverpool) Field Hospital (Volunteers) treated civilians and Afghan police after they were targeted by a suicide bomber in an attack in southern Gereshk, Afghanistan. The bomber blew himself up next to the bus station where people were shopping before the Ramadan festival.
OVERWEIGHT Frodsham schoolchildren are being excused from normal lessons to tackle their own weighty subject. Frodsham College PE teacher Martin Smiddy has been given the go-ahead to put more sport on the lesson plans of half a dozen teenagers.
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Doomed park will live on in song for sick children - Liverpool Daily Post 14th Spetember 2007
A DAWN chorus of birds recorded in a doomed public park is destined to provide a therapeutic legacy for thousands of Liverpool hospital and health centre patients.
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Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
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MORE than 200 people visiting markets in Rossendale received information and advice about being healthy.
PATIENTS are settling in at a newly-opened rehabilitation unit on the Cumberland Infirmary site. Reiver House will act like a cottage hospital, providing step-down care for patients who are not yet fit enough to go home but no longer need a surgical bed.
A FREE programme for obese and overweight children and their families has been set up in Maryport. The nine-week, £100,000 programme, called MEND, will be offered at Netherhall Community Sports Centre.
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Hospital chief's ward name pledge - Lancashire Telegraph 14th September 2007
THE legacy of a leading children's doctor in Burnley will be safeguarded during East Lancashire's NHS reorganisation, hospital chiefs have pledged. Work has commenced at Burnley General Hospital to create a new paediatric unit as part of the Meeting Patients Needs programme.
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Greater Manchester Health News
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TRANSPORT secretary Ruth Kelly is considering allowing smokers to light up on railway stations. The Bolton West MP has asked officials to put forward plans for limited smoking areas on station platforms.
A GROUNDBREAKING new breast cancer research unit is to be set up in Manchester. Breakthrough Breast Cancer will dedicate around £4.7 million over five years to establish the unit, highlighting its commitment to creating a future free from the fear of breast cancer.
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TRAFFORD Healthcare NHS Trust's Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held between 6pm and 7pm on September 25 in the conference room at Trafford General Hospital.
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Suburban case studies - The Sunday Telegraph 16th September 2007
Mothers face trip as baby unit is shut Trafford, Greater Manchester Population: 210,000. Average house price: £233,698 Problem: Maternity ward at local hospital earmarked for closure
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£2m to be pumped into mental health services - The Bolton News 16th September 2007
MORE than £2 million is to be pumped into improving services for people with mental health problems in Bolton. Health chiefs and council bosses are working together to drive down waiting times for patients waiting for psychological treatment.
Hundreds of people flocked to Victoria Square to a huge two day exhibition designed to help local residents make lifestyle changes. The Making Changes To Your Lifestyle exhibition filled the square between 10am and 3pm on Friday and Saturday.
Just 43 per cent of people in Bolton would be motivated to do more exercise if their life depended on it, according to a survey carried out by the British Heart Foundation. The results come as the charity launches a dramatic new advertising campaign, aimed at encouraging people to be more physically active.
The body which runs the Royal Bolton Hospital has been given permission to change its name when it is granted permission to become a Foundation Trust. The organisation which runs the hospital and is made up of directors, is currently known as the Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust.
A PATIENT is on the road to recovery after being treated with a pioneering mechanical heart' at Wythenshawe Hospital. Doctors used the VAD (Ventricular Assist Device), or mechanical heart', to keep patient Derek Wright alive while he was awaiting a transplant.
WYTHENSHAWE Hospital will now open its doors for an open day from 11am to 4pm on September 22. Everyone is welcome to go behind the scenes at the hospital's third open day.
Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www(dot) fade the blog 2 (dot)blogspot (dot)com, This has been a Podcast of Another 15 Minutes ... Health News from the Fade Library.
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