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Three more women have died while, or shortly after, giving birth at Northwick Park in London, the hospital which was investigated and placed in special measures after 10 deaths between 2002 and 2005. North West London Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Northwick Park, said it could not give details of the latest deaths because of patient confidentiality, but confirmed that three women had died between June 2007 and March this year. In the two previous years, said a spokeswoman, there had been no deaths.
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Probe into new maternity deaths - BBC Health News 14th April 2008
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Casualties of a changing NHS - The Guardian 15th April 2008
An ambulance driver explains to Blair McPherson why the modern NHS is leaving employees like him feeling disgruntled, stressed and undervalued A recent national survey found that many NHS staff are unhappy in their jobs, suffering from a combination of feeling undervalued, unsafe and underpaid. Some, particularly workers with many years service, have seen huge changes in the way the organisation operates and complain their experience and dedication is overlooked in the new, target-driven environment.
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Online gyms and 'exergames' such as Nintendo's Wii Fit, which is launched later this month, are flooding the fitness market. But how effective are they? We asked readers to give three of them a workout
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Britain's best-selling vitamin pill is dyed with artificial colours which can cause rashes and hyperactive behaviour in children. Two colours – sunset yellow and quinoline yellow – criticised in an official study which led to their censure by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) last week – are found in Sanatogen Gold, the country's leading multivitamin brand.
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Human sperm and eggs will be grown from stem cells within five to fifteen years but the technology will not allow gay and lesbian couples to conceive children with genes from each partner, an international panel of scientists predicted yesterday. While such artificial gametes (reproductive cells) could be used to treat infertility, the biological barriers to creating sperm from female cells and eggs from male ones will make same-sex conception impossible for the foreseeable future, according to the Hinxton group of leading stem-cell researchers.
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Statins, the drug taken by millions of people to lower cholesterol, may also reduce their blood pressure, new research has found. The drug is prescribed to more than three million people in Britain to prevent arteries furring up, saving about 7,000 lives a year.
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Patients taking statins for cholesterol may also find benefits for their blood pressure - Daily Mail 14th April 2008
A scientific technique that could allow same-sex couples to create their own biological child in a laboratory should be allowed under law, a group of influential scientists said on Monday. The experts, all international leaders in embryology research, called on ministers not to restrict such "important" research. The laboratory creation of eggs and sperm from other cells could offer hope to thousands of people unable to have children of their own.
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'Limit' to lab egg and sperm use - BBC Health News 14th April 2008
It seems that couples intent on marriage are always looking for inventive venues in which to experience the happiest day of their lives. Your average country hotel is often considered too normal, therefore we can now enjoy the spectacle of numerous happy couples attempting to exchange their vows while bungee jumping or encased in wetsuits at the bottom of the sea.
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Almost 100,000 Alzheimer's patients face being denied NHS treatment which could delay the onset of their disease, the Court of Appeal was told yesterday. Sufferers are being refused a potentially life changing drug because the Government's medicines watchdog has ruled that it is not "cost effective" in the early stages. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) ruled four years ago that the drug Aricept, which costs £2.50 a day, as well as two others, Reminyl and Exelon, were too expensive except for patients whose condition had deteriorated.
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Health workers may have their pay offer cut if they refuse to accept the three-year deal ministers are offering. Unions have warned that unrest among nurses and other NHS staff over the settlement could still lead to industrial action. The proposed increase is worth 8.1 per cent over three years and is part of a new set of public sector pay agreements Gordon Brown hailed as ground breaking and vital to ensure wage stability.
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Nearly half of communities have seen the loss of key local services in the past four years, a report reveals. Towns and villages across the country are losing basic amenities such as post offices, GP surgeries, shops and schools at a record rate. The Government-commissioned report found that 45 per cent of England's neighbourhoods - 14,493 out of 32,439 - are more 'geographically deprived' than they were in 2004.
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Just two large glasses of wine a day can raise the risk of breast cancer by more than half, research shows. A study of almost 185,000 women found even moderate drinking significantly increases the risk of the disease. A single large glass of wine a day raises the risk by almost a third.
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Hospital bosses who asked for unpaid volunteers to 'keep an eye' on patients and ease the pressure on staff have been accused of trying to provide nursing on the cheap. The volunteers were sought to watch patients during shift changes and help visitors. But patient and staff groups were appalled to hear that the sick may be left in the care of those who would not recognise life-threatening symptoms and would not be properly trained in areas such as infection control.
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High levels of pollution may have contributed to the deaths of thousands of people in England from pneumonia in recent years, a study suggests. A team at the University of Birmingham examined death rates from the disease and pollution levels in 352 local authorities between 1996 and 2004. Writing in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, they reported a "strong correlation" between the two.
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Minimum cleaning staff quotas should be imposed on hospitals to help in the fight against infections, unions say. Unison, which represents a range of staff including cleaners, nurses and porters, said hospitals should have two cleaners for every 30 patients. Hospitals should be cleaned from 8am to 9pm every day to tackle bugs such as MRSA, Unison's annual conference in Manchester was also told.
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A petition by gay rights campaigners against what they believe is discrimination over who can give blood is to be considered by MSPs. The LGBT Network said safe sex practices meant men who have had sex with other men could give blood. The group stressed that there were no restrictions on heterosexual people who have unprotected sex giving blood.
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A patient suffering chest pains is a common problem faced by GPs. It can be a sign of a serious, life-threatening heart attack. However, in many people, the symptoms will be caused by some other, less worrying, condition. The only way to get a proper diagnosis is with an Electrocardiograph (ECG) - a machine which monitors the patients heart rhythms, which means a time-consuming trip to hospital.
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A pioneering hospital treating people with complex mental health problems is to close next week. NHS bosses in charge of the Henderson Hospital in south west London said the closure was temporary and a public consultation will still take place. But some staff believe it will be impossible to re-open the unit, which treats patients from across the UK.
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International Health News
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Prostate cancer patients have been told to carry on exercising despite research in mice which appears to suggest it speeds the growth of tumours. The US study found tumours expanded twice as fast in mice given exercise wheels compared to those without. The researchers said improved blood flow to the tumour was a possible cause, but encouraged patients to remain active.
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Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
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UNIONS have formed a united front against the Royal Liverpool Hospital being rebuilt by a Private Finance Initiative (PFI). The North West Trade Union Conference on Saturday at Liverpool’s BT Conference centre, on Kings Dock, also registered its opposition to the British National Party which is fielding 31 candidates in May’s local council elections.
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Anger over trust snub for doctor in cash row - Liverpool Echo 14th April 2008
A DOCTOR has been suspended from a primary care trust group despite winning a string of awards. Rock Ferry GP Dr Mohammad Salahuddin was ejected from the Birkenhead Practice Based Commissioning (PBC) group which co-ordinates Wirral budgets. This is despite the respected GP receiving awards from the Royal College of General Practitioners for his work at Gladstone Medical Centre in Birkenhead.
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Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
CARLISLE dentist Ian Wingfield is the latest to announce he is pulling out of the NHS, blaming the pressure of target-driven new contracts. It is now two years since the payment change was brought in by the Government, causing widespread national controversy and prompting many NHS dentists to go private.
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A VULNERABLE patient wandered into the street after a care home nurse turned an alarm system off while he watched football on the TV, a disciplinary hearing was told. Peter Helps, 44, allegedly spent most of the weekend with his feet up enjoying live matches after switching off the emergency call buzzers at Mapleford Residential Nursing Home, Huncoat. But his actions also deactivated the sound on the door alarm and an elderly dementia patient was able to slip out of the Bolton Avenue, building unnoticed.
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ADVICE on bullying, drugs, health and wellbeing are being beamed into East Lancashire schools through a television network. Education bosses are introducing The Life Channel, with TV screens in foyers and classrooms broadcasting educational programming as well as films made by students and clips from school shows.
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Weighty issue gets PM’s attention - Lancashire Telegraph 14th April 2008
A CLITHEROE mum whose life was "turned around" by a Ribble Valley Borough Council health scheme has taken her praise straight to the top. Suzanne Hamnett, 41, wrote to Prime Minister Gordon Brown after the council's healthy lifestyle team helped her shed weight and gain confidence. And the Prime Minister has written back saying he is "immensely impressed" with the help she received.
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Greater Manchester Health News
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Mercy crews put in danger - Manchester Evening News 14th April 2008
MEDICAL staff are often in danger from drunken thugs when they are called to emergencies, without the support of police. Paramedics and ambulance crews were put in a `terrible dilemma' because they were trained to save lives but were often putting their own safety at risk, according to research by Unison.
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