Welcome to the Podcast of Another 15 Minutes, Health News from the Fade Library. Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www (dot) fade the blog 2 (dot) blogspot (dot)com
New Section
UK Health News
Pill 'stopped 100,000 UK deaths' BBC Health News 25th January 2007
At least 100,000 deaths from ovarian cancer have been prevented in the UK by the contraceptive pill over 50 years, research has concluded. The Oxford University team said the pill's rising popularity meant 30,000 new cases will soon be avoided each year, the Lancet reported.
Link to article
Additional stories
Taking the Pill cuts long-term risk of cancer - Independent.co.uk 25th January 2008
Contraceptive pill cuts ovarian cancer risk, study says - The Guardian 25th January 2008
NHS maternity care varies widely - BBC Health News 25th January 2008
An independent review of maternity services in England has highlighted huge variations in the quality of care. Around 70% of NHS trusts in London were classed as "least well performing", whereas most trusts in the north were ranked fairly high. The Healthcare Commission report also highlighted problems with staffing and inadequate screening checks
Link to article
Additional stories
One in four hospitals letting down pregnant women by not scanning foetuses properly for birth defects | Daily Mail 25th January 2008
Best and worst NHS trusts for maternity care - Telegraph 25th January 2008
New mothers failed by NHS, says watchdog - Telegraph 25th January 2008
NHS trusts' maternity care ratings in full - Telegraph 25th January 2008
Maternity units failing to meet guidelines - Times Online 25th January 2008
One in five hospital trusts found to be putting mothers and babies at risk - Independent.co.uk 25th January 2008
300,000 drivers 'at risk from sleep disorder' | Daily Mail 25th January 2008
More than 300,000 drivers are at risk of falling asleep at the wheel because they have a rare medical condition, it has been claimed. The disorder - obstructive sleep apnoeahypopnoea syndrome - leaves sufferers exhausted because they struggle to breathe properly at night. Overweight men between the ages of 30 and 65 are most at danger, as are those who drink heavily.
Link to article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
Cutting Costs To Save Lives (from This Is Lancashire) 25th January 2008
EAST Lancashire doctors are among the best in the North West for prescribing low-cost life-saving drugs. New figures from the NHS put Blackburn with Darwen Primary Care Trust top in the region and 14th best in the country for prescribing cholestrol busting drugs statins which prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Link to article
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.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Welcome to the Podcast of Another 15 Minutes, Health News from the Fade Library. Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www (dot) fade the blog 2 (dot) blogspot (dot)com
New Section
UK Health News
Link to article
New Section
International Health News
Link to article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
High Blood Pressure In Northwest (from This Is Lancashire) 24th January 2008
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
Plight of the NHS 'victims' - News - Manchester Evening News 24th January 2008
Patient dies after superbug battle - News - Manchester Evening News 24th January 2008
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.
New Section
UK Health News
Millions lost in NHS private fees NHS trusts are writing off millions of pounds in unpaid debts from private and overseas patients, a report suggests. An investigation into the finances of four trusts found by the end of the last financial year, they had written off more than £4.8m of private bills.
Link to article
Link to articleLink to article
Dementia 'must be key priority' Dementia must be viewed as an urgent priority after years of woeful neglect by the NHS, says the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The disease deserves the same attention accorded to cancer and heart disease, given that so many of us are now set to develop the condition, the MPs said.
Link to article
Link to article
Family doctors are threatening to desert the NHS and charge patients £25 for an appointment. Union officials said Britain's 30,000 GPs - among the best-paid in Europe - should consider resigning en masse if the Government persists in trying to get them to work longer hours in the evening and at weekends.
Obese and overweight adults in England could be paid to lose weight under plans being considered by the Government. The new strategy to tackle poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyles includes the suggestion that people should receive financial rewards or shopping vouchers for achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.
Link to article
Additional Stories
Obese people will be paid to lose weight - Health News, Health & Wellbeing - Independent.co.uk 24th January 2008
Obesity crisis: get paid to lose weight - The Telegraph 24th January 2008
Sweetness and blight - Times Online 24th January 2008 Link to article
Additional Stories
Obese people will be paid to lose weight - Health News, Health & Wellbeing - Independent.co.uk 24th January 2008
Obesity crisis: get paid to lose weight - The Telegraph 24th January 2008
Supermarkets will be forced to use the same food labelling scheme to make it easier for consumers to know which options are the healthiest. They currently use three different schemes, such as a traffic light system or labels that show the percentage of the recommended daily intake of fat, salt and sugar.
Link to article
Link to article
Almost exactly two centuries before Tutankhamun died in 1352BC, Hesy-Ra, an Egyptian physician, had described diabetes and had understood its symptoms, if not the pathology that caused them. About one in 20 of the UK population, but a much higher percentage of older, plumper people, have diabetes. But a third of those with the condition, presumably including many attending the current Tutankhamun exhibition at the O2, London, won’t know that they have it.
Link to article
New Section
International Health News
Global rise in breast cancer due to 'Western lifestyles' - Health News, Health & Wellbeing - Independent.co.uk 24th January 2008
Vitamin E 'helps older people move' - The Telegraph 24th January 2008
A diet rich in olive oil, nuts and green leafy vegetables could help to slow physical decline in the elderly, scientists say. Researchers monitoring the health of almost 700 people over the age of 65 found that those who consumed low levels of vitamin E struggled more with moving. The lead researcher, Dr Benedetta Bartali of Yale University School of Medicine, said: "Our results suggest that an appropriate dietary intake of vitamin E may help to reduce the decline in physical function among older persons."Of all the exports from our modern world, breast cancer ranks as among the most dubious. Once thought to be a disease of the rich, it is now a global epidemic. The rise of the cancer in Europe and America – cases have jumped 80 per cent in the UK since the 1970s – is being mirrored across the world. And scientists say increasing prosperity and the “Westernisation” of traditional lifestyles is to blame.
Link to articleVitamin E 'helps older people move' - The Telegraph 24th January 2008
Link to article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
High Blood Pressure In Northwest (from This Is Lancashire) 24th January 2008
THE proportion of people with high blood pressure in the North-west is above the national average, according to a new survey. A study by the Blood Pressure Association discovered that 41 per cent of North-west people had high blood pressure, while the English national rate was 40 per cent.
Link to articleNew Section
Greater Manchester Health News
Plight of the NHS 'victims' - News - Manchester Evening News 24th January 2008
NEARLY 30,000 people in Greater Manchester suffering from dementia are being neglected by the NHS, MPs have revealed. They are among 560,000 sufferers in England and, according to the Commons public accounts committee, the number of cases will soar over the next 15 years. It costs £14 billion to deal with the problem nationally - that is more than cancer, heart disease and strokes combined.
Link to articlePatient dies after superbug battle - News - Manchester Evening News 24th January 2008
A PENSIONER has died after battling against a superbug when he was admitted to hospital for a routine operation. Stan Whitehead, 77, from Sale, went into Trafford General for an operation to replace his knee. Just a couple of days after surgery, the former teacher appeared to be making a speedy recovery and was planning to return home.
Link to articleFull 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.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Welcome to the Podcast of Another 15 Minutes, Health News from the Fade Library. Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www (dot) fade the blog 2 (dot) blogspot (dot)com
New Section
UK Health News
Presumed consent for organ donation, backed by Gordon Brown at the weekend, was put on the back burner yesterday as a government taskforce unveiled measures it claimed would increase donations by 50% without it. The Organ Donation Taskforce, whose report was immediately accepted in full by the government, wants a body set up to promote donation throughout the UK instead of it being a matter for individual hospitals or regions. It said the move, for which the government pledged £11m, would transform organ donation and boost transplants by 1,200 a year.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
Letters: A gift of life or a denial of choice? - The Guardian 17th January 2008
Organ supply ‘can be boosted without new law’ - The Times 17th January 2008
In a small way, we made history. Last Saturday, an ad hoc group of citizens interested in improving an aspect of public policy sat down informally with the civil servants responsible and designed a web service to do the job. In all, it took less than five hours. The event was a barcamp held by the National Archives as part of its response to the Cabinet Office's "government 2.0" report, the Power of Information (PDF at tinyurl.com/2umfpb). What's a barcamp? Dude, you've obviously been out of the loop for the past, ooh, seven weeks. It's the buzzword for a self-organising meeting to tackle an issue of interest. Everyone welcome, no timetable, no rules, no speakers' podium; lots of laptops, flipcharts and Post-It notes. You get the idea.
Link to Article
A below-inflation pay cap risks undoing the advances Labour has made in the past decade, says Gail Cartmail As the Guardian reported, the government has continued to insist on a pay cap for public sector workers as part of its "determined effort to contain inflationary pressures" (Three-year pay deals planned for public sector, January 9). Union opposition is not to multi-year pay deals in principle, but instead to the notion that public sector pay is the prime culprit for rising inflation, and to Gordon Brown's argument that awarding a pay cut in real terms last year "helped to break the back of inflation".
Link to Article
The worth of the NHS flu jab programme was called into question yesterday as a quarter of GPs said they believe the vaccination is unnecessary. A survey of family doctors found that three quarters are against plans to extend the vaccination programme.
Link to Article
Ministers are threatening to change the law to stop supermarkets advertising beer and wine at bargain prices in a bid to tackle the epidemic of binge drinking sweeping Britain. The news comes after three teenagers were found guilty at Chester Crown Court of murdering Garry Newlove, a father of three.
Link to Article
Scientists say they have hard evidence foods containing "friendly bacteria" do have a tangible effect on the body. The journal Molecular Systems Biology reports that mice fed probiotic drinks had different levels of key chemicals in their blood and urine.
Link to Article
Restaurants and cafes should take steps to warn diners about possible allergens in food, a watchdog has said. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said products made with ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction should have them listed on a card, label or menu.
Link to Article
Heart transplant service resumes - BBC Health News 16th January 2008
Heart transplants in Scotland have resumed following a review into a number of recent patient deaths. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde revealed last month that four of the 11 patients who had transplants in 2007 had died within 30 days.
Link to Article
New Section
International Health News
Taking calcium supplements to improve bone strength in middle age could put women at higher risk of a heart attack, claim researchers. Extra calcium could do more harm than good, even though broken bones account for thousands of deaths each year.
Boys who are short at birth have double the risk of attempting suicide as adults even if their growth "catches up" in childhood, a study suggests. Those under 47cm (18.5 inches) were found to be at highest risk.
Link to Article
Poor diets 'kill 3.5m children' - BBC Health News 17th January 2008
A third of child deaths globally are caused by poor nutrition, experts warn. Around 3.5 million children die every year because of lack of food or poor quality food, a problem which starts in the womb, studies show.
Link to Article
New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
SHOCKING Government figures have revealed that Halton has some of the highest rates of lung disease in the country. Statistics released by the Department of Health show that the borough has the sixth highest level of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in the whole of the UK.
HALTON’S most vulnerable patients are being prescribed antiviral drugs under a scheme to combat seasonal flu outbreaks. The recommendation has been made to North West doctors following a rise in the number of influenza related illnesses being reported across the region.
Care homes vigilant over norovirus spread risk - Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News 17th January 2008
HALTON’S nursing homes have so far stopped short of turning away visitors to stem the current outbreak of the “vomiting bug”. Some UK care homes have been forced to take drastic action, including asking the relatives of elderly people in care to avoid visits for fear of spreading norovirus.
Link to Article
RESIDENTS in Windmill Hill are to benefit from a major boost to the area’s healthcare services. Halton and St Helens PCT has responded to a request by patients by running an enhanced drop-in service for patients at the Windmill Hill surgery, on Eastwood.
Hospital’s bid for independence - Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News 17th January 2008
A MAJOR consultation drive has been launched by North Cheshire Hospitals Trust over proposals to become independently controlled. The organisation has been given the all-clear to apply to become NHS foundation trust, meaning Halton and Warrington Hospitals would no longer be Government led. The status could be in place by autumn.
Link to Article
MID-CHESHIRE College has been encouraging its students to select the healthy option when purchasing lunches and snacks. The Catering team came up with the idea of involving their vending suppliers, Bensons and global Coca Cola in assisting the campaign with a daily draw.
Link to Article
A WIDNES company is ready to lead the NHS’ war against deadly hospital superbugs. Widnesian Paul Ward’s company Paragon PE manufactures cleaning products called “Germ Warfare” which target potentially lethal bacteria such as C Diff and MRSA.
Link to Article
A FREE information evening is being held at Fazakerley hospital for anyone affected by arthritis. The evening is being held by medical research charity the Arthritis Research Campaign. The information event will be held at the Clinical Sciences Centre for Research and Education at the hospital.
Link to Article
HEALTH chiefs say it’s not too late to get a flu jab. During the first week of the new year, the average number of cases reported in Cheshire and Merseyside increased to more than 20 from 13 the previous week. Their advice comes as seasonal flu levels reach the point at which doctors are being advised to prescribe anti-viral drugs to vulnerable patients.
Link to Article
CARERS who offer help and companionship for elderly people in the borough have been thanked for their hard work and dedication. Home Instead care service recognised the efforts of its 60-plus staff over the past year during a gathering at its headquarters on Chester Gates Business Park at Dunkirk.
Link to Article
HOSPITAL trusts across the country will recruit teams of new “bug battlers” to combat killer infections on their wards. As part of a package of measures announced by the Government, every in England will be able to take on two infection control nurses, two isolation nurses and an antimicrobial pharmacist.
Link to Article
Additional Story
NEW yoga-inspired classes in South Cheshire aim to have children bending and stretching their way to a healthier future. Heather Hassall, of Denver Way in Crewe, has launched the classes which weave together stories, songs and fun yoga moves designed for children.
Link to Article
THE team at Alchemy Dental Practice in Edleston Road, Crewe, was proud to host a group of dignitaries at its official opening on Friday. It followed a successful bid to tender for expansion of the NHS dental services provided locally. This means the practice can take on more NHS patients for treatment.
Link to Article
PLANNING chiefs are expected to give the go-ahead to controversial plans for a health centre and housing estate at Scholar Green which have divided public opinion. Congleton Borough Council has received 239 letters of objection from residents and a petition of support signed by 2,162 patients on the plans to build a new healthcare centre and 56 houses, 17 of which will be “affordable”, at Portland Drive.
Link to Article
Hospital says sorry for dirty toilets - Warrington Guardian 16th January 2008
SORRY, it should never have happened, admitted the boss of Warrington Hospital after revelations of putrid smelling toilets, stained with faeces and left uncleaned for a week. Outraged patients have inundated the Guardian with further complaints of ward B16 being disgustingly filthy' since we highlighted problems last week.
Link to Article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
Plans to build a state-of-the-art health care centre on the site of South Shore Hospital have been given the green light. Full planning permission has been granted for the proposals which form part of a multi-million pound blueprint to revolutionise healthcare across the resort. The Primary Care Trust and local GP's plan to develop three purpose-built centres serving the north, central and south localities of the town.
Link to Article
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
One-in-five with long term health problems - The Bolton News 16th January 2008
MORE than one in five people in Bolton have serious long-term health problems. Meanwhile, in the borough's poorest neighbourhoods, almost half of all people are out of work. The figures are included in a report which identifies the links between ill-health and a lack of prosperity.
Link to Article
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.
New Section
UK Health News
GPs should be made to declare the gifts they receive from drug firms, following revelations that one in five is more influenced by drug reps than official advisers when prescribing, MPs say today. A report from the public accounts committee says the NHS spends about £200m a year more than it should on expensive medicines when there are cheaper generic versions available.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
MPs want NHS drugs to show prices - The Telegraph 17th January 2008
Call to curb rising NHS drug bill - BBC Health News 17th January 2008
Link to Article
Additional Stories
MPs want NHS drugs to show prices - The Telegraph 17th January 2008
Call to curb rising NHS drug bill - BBC Health News 17th January 2008
Presumed consent for organ donation, backed by Gordon Brown at the weekend, was put on the back burner yesterday as a government taskforce unveiled measures it claimed would increase donations by 50% without it. The Organ Donation Taskforce, whose report was immediately accepted in full by the government, wants a body set up to promote donation throughout the UK instead of it being a matter for individual hospitals or regions. It said the move, for which the government pledged £11m, would transform organ donation and boost transplants by 1,200 a year.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
Letters: A gift of life or a denial of choice? - The Guardian 17th January 2008
Organ supply ‘can be boosted without new law’ - The Times 17th January 2008
In a small way, we made history. Last Saturday, an ad hoc group of citizens interested in improving an aspect of public policy sat down informally with the civil servants responsible and designed a web service to do the job. In all, it took less than five hours. The event was a barcamp held by the National Archives as part of its response to the Cabinet Office's "government 2.0" report, the Power of Information (PDF at tinyurl.com/2umfpb). What's a barcamp? Dude, you've obviously been out of the loop for the past, ooh, seven weeks. It's the buzzword for a self-organising meeting to tackle an issue of interest. Everyone welcome, no timetable, no rules, no speakers' podium; lots of laptops, flipcharts and Post-It notes. You get the idea.
Link to Article
Millions of pounds of taxpayers' money is being wasted by officials who overpay private firms to do the simplest tasks like installing a new electric socket or replacing a lock, the National Audit Office reveals today.
Link to Article
Link to Article
A below-inflation pay cap risks undoing the advances Labour has made in the past decade, says Gail Cartmail As the Guardian reported, the government has continued to insist on a pay cap for public sector workers as part of its "determined effort to contain inflationary pressures" (Three-year pay deals planned for public sector, January 9). Union opposition is not to multi-year pay deals in principle, but instead to the notion that public sector pay is the prime culprit for rising inflation, and to Gordon Brown's argument that awarding a pay cut in real terms last year "helped to break the back of inflation".
Link to Article
Leslie Ash, the actress who contracted an infection similar to MRSA in hospital, has been awarded a record-breaking compensation package after suffering years of paralysis in her lower body. The Chelsea and Westminster Hospital agreed yesterday to pay Ms Ash 5 million for the “shortcomings in her care” while she was a patient.
Link to Article
Link to Article
The worth of the NHS flu jab programme was called into question yesterday as a quarter of GPs said they believe the vaccination is unnecessary. A survey of family doctors found that three quarters are against plans to extend the vaccination programme.
Link to Article
Two people have died and thousands of others will have to undergo repeat cancer tests after a pathologist gave them the all-clear by mistake. Around 4,500 patients are being contacted after Dr Roger Williams was found to have misread biopsy slides at a hospital in North Wales.
Link to Article
Additional Story
Urgent checks as 4,500 may have wrongly been given cancer all-clear by blundering doctor - Daily Mail 16th January 2008
Link to Article
Additional Story
Urgent checks as 4,500 may have wrongly been given cancer all-clear by blundering doctor - Daily Mail 16th January 2008
Ministers are threatening to change the law to stop supermarkets advertising beer and wine at bargain prices in a bid to tackle the epidemic of binge drinking sweeping Britain. The news comes after three teenagers were found guilty at Chester Crown Court of murdering Garry Newlove, a father of three.
Link to Article
More than 1,000 dentists have stopped providing NHS care since the introduction of a controversial contract, the British Dental Association claimed. The figure is twice as high as official estimates from the Health Department and it is thought many other dentists are no longer accepting new NHS patients.
Link to Article
Link to Article
Scientists say they have hard evidence foods containing "friendly bacteria" do have a tangible effect on the body. The journal Molecular Systems Biology reports that mice fed probiotic drinks had different levels of key chemicals in their blood and urine.
Link to Article
Restaurants and cafes should take steps to warn diners about possible allergens in food, a watchdog has said. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said products made with ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction should have them listed on a card, label or menu.
Link to Article
Heart transplant service resumes - BBC Health News 16th January 2008
Heart transplants in Scotland have resumed following a review into a number of recent patient deaths. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde revealed last month that four of the 11 patients who had transplants in 2007 had died within 30 days.
Link to Article
New Section
International Health News
Doctors fear calcium supplements may raise the risk of a heart attack - Daily Mail 16th January 2008
Taking calcium supplements to improve bone strength in middle age could put women at higher risk of a heart attack, claim researchers. Extra calcium could do more harm than good, even though broken bones account for thousands of deaths each year.
Boys who are short at birth have double the risk of attempting suicide as adults even if their growth "catches up" in childhood, a study suggests. Those under 47cm (18.5 inches) were found to be at highest risk.
Link to Article
Poor diets 'kill 3.5m children' - BBC Health News 17th January 2008
A third of child deaths globally are caused by poor nutrition, experts warn. Around 3.5 million children die every year because of lack of food or poor quality food, a problem which starts in the womb, studies show.
Link to Article
New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
SHOCKING Government figures have revealed that Halton has some of the highest rates of lung disease in the country. Statistics released by the Department of Health show that the borough has the sixth highest level of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in the whole of the UK.
HALTON’S most vulnerable patients are being prescribed antiviral drugs under a scheme to combat seasonal flu outbreaks. The recommendation has been made to North West doctors following a rise in the number of influenza related illnesses being reported across the region.
Care homes vigilant over norovirus spread risk - Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News 17th January 2008
HALTON’S nursing homes have so far stopped short of turning away visitors to stem the current outbreak of the “vomiting bug”. Some UK care homes have been forced to take drastic action, including asking the relatives of elderly people in care to avoid visits for fear of spreading norovirus.
Link to Article
RESIDENTS in Windmill Hill are to benefit from a major boost to the area’s healthcare services. Halton and St Helens PCT has responded to a request by patients by running an enhanced drop-in service for patients at the Windmill Hill surgery, on Eastwood.
Hospital’s bid for independence - Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News 17th January 2008
A MAJOR consultation drive has been launched by North Cheshire Hospitals Trust over proposals to become independently controlled. The organisation has been given the all-clear to apply to become NHS foundation trust, meaning Halton and Warrington Hospitals would no longer be Government led. The status could be in place by autumn.
Link to Article
MID-CHESHIRE College has been encouraging its students to select the healthy option when purchasing lunches and snacks. The Catering team came up with the idea of involving their vending suppliers, Bensons and global Coca Cola in assisting the campaign with a daily draw.
Link to Article
A WIDNES company is ready to lead the NHS’ war against deadly hospital superbugs. Widnesian Paul Ward’s company Paragon PE manufactures cleaning products called “Germ Warfare” which target potentially lethal bacteria such as C Diff and MRSA.
Link to Article
A CANCER screening strategy is being launched today in Merseyside to reduce the amount of people dying from the disease in the region. The plan, to be launched at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Warrington this morning by the Government’s cancer tsar Professor Mike Richards, aims to reduce the inequalities existing within communities by promoting screening in Merseyside and Cheshire.
Link to Article
Arthritis advice at hospital - Liverpool Echo 16th January 2008
Link to Article
Arthritis advice at hospital - Liverpool Echo 16th January 2008
A FREE information evening is being held at Fazakerley hospital for anyone affected by arthritis. The evening is being held by medical research charity the Arthritis Research Campaign. The information event will be held at the Clinical Sciences Centre for Research and Education at the hospital.
Link to Article
HEALTH chiefs say it’s not too late to get a flu jab. During the first week of the new year, the average number of cases reported in Cheshire and Merseyside increased to more than 20 from 13 the previous week. Their advice comes as seasonal flu levels reach the point at which doctors are being advised to prescribe anti-viral drugs to vulnerable patients.
Link to Article
CARERS who offer help and companionship for elderly people in the borough have been thanked for their hard work and dedication. Home Instead care service recognised the efforts of its 60-plus staff over the past year during a gathering at its headquarters on Chester Gates Business Park at Dunkirk.
Link to Article
HOSPITAL trusts across the country will recruit teams of new “bug battlers” to combat killer infections on their wards. As part of a package of measures announced by the Government, every in England will be able to take on two infection control nurses, two isolation nurses and an antimicrobial pharmacist.
Link to Article
Additional Story
NEW yoga-inspired classes in South Cheshire aim to have children bending and stretching their way to a healthier future. Heather Hassall, of Denver Way in Crewe, has launched the classes which weave together stories, songs and fun yoga moves designed for children.
Link to Article
THE team at Alchemy Dental Practice in Edleston Road, Crewe, was proud to host a group of dignitaries at its official opening on Friday. It followed a successful bid to tender for expansion of the NHS dental services provided locally. This means the practice can take on more NHS patients for treatment.
Link to Article
PLANNING chiefs are expected to give the go-ahead to controversial plans for a health centre and housing estate at Scholar Green which have divided public opinion. Congleton Borough Council has received 239 letters of objection from residents and a petition of support signed by 2,162 patients on the plans to build a new healthcare centre and 56 houses, 17 of which will be “affordable”, at Portland Drive.
Link to Article
Hospital says sorry for dirty toilets - Warrington Guardian 16th January 2008
SORRY, it should never have happened, admitted the boss of Warrington Hospital after revelations of putrid smelling toilets, stained with faeces and left uncleaned for a week. Outraged patients have inundated the Guardian with further complaints of ward B16 being disgustingly filthy' since we highlighted problems last week.
Link to Article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
Staff at Blackpool's drug and alcohol services are celebrating after winning a share of almost £1million of lottery cash. The Big Lottery yesterday announced £967,000 of grants as part of its scheme targeting vulnerable people across the North West.
Primary care centre given go ahead - Blackpool Citizen 16th January 2008Plans to build a state-of-the-art health care centre on the site of South Shore Hospital have been given the green light. Full planning permission has been granted for the proposals which form part of a multi-million pound blueprint to revolutionise healthcare across the resort. The Primary Care Trust and local GP's plan to develop three purpose-built centres serving the north, central and south localities of the town.
Link to Article
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
A CHILD-carer murdered a baby after first torturing him with a hot hairdryer, a court was told. Agnes Wong, 28, fatally injured 16-month-old Hugo Wang after disciplining him because he had been naughty and wouldn't stop crying, it is claimed.
Link to Article
Link to Article
One-in-five with long term health problems - The Bolton News 16th January 2008
MORE than one in five people in Bolton have serious long-term health problems. Meanwhile, in the borough's poorest neighbourhoods, almost half of all people are out of work. The figures are included in a report which identifies the links between ill-health and a lack of prosperity.
Link to Article
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.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Welcome to the Podcast of Another 15 Minutes, Health News from the Fade Library. Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www (dot) fade the blog 2 (dot) blogspot (dot)com
New Section
UK Health News
The European commission yesterday postponed publishing a plan to give NHS patients access to free treatment in any EU member country. The proposal sparked a row in Westminster where it was welcomed by the Conservatives as an extension of patient choice but Labour MPs and health unions feared it might subvert the NHS by allowing wealthy patients to jump the queue for treatment.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
A common market for health - The Independent 20th December 2007
AstraZeneca pushes on with distribution deal - The Guardian 20th December 2007
AstraZeneca is to go ahead with its controversial new drug distribution deal, a week after the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) warned that such a scheme could cost the NHS an extra £500m a year. The group has chosen two wholesale partners - AAH Pharmaceuticals and UniChem, Alliance Boots' wholesale division - to distribute its products to pharmacies, dispensing doctors and hospitals. It will deal directly with its customers, and pay the wholesalers a set fee for their services, in what is known as a direct-to-pharmacy scheme.
Link to Article
Private health clinics should immediately stop offering whole body scans to the "worried well", because they carry too high a radiation risk, the government's advisory committee on the medical aspects of radiation (Comare) said in a report yesterday. CT scanning machines were contributing significantly to the radiation exposure of the population, Comare said. Some 15% of our exposure in the UK comes from medical sources, almost half of that from CT (X-ray computed tomography) scans.
Link to Article
Additional Story
Protect 'worried well' by regulating CT scans, say experts - Daily Mail 19th December 2007
Look on the bright side, as the directors of the White Star shipping line might have said in April 1912: at least people are talking about us now. In the continuing fallout from the child benefit disc disaster, the government's IT chiefs can draw one small consolation: the "transformational government" programme to join up public services through IT is now on the chattering classes' agenda.
Link to Article
Charity in all its forms is at the heart of the hospice movement Luke Bryant was 10 when his father died of cancer. He wanted “to carry on as normal”, and so, three days later, he went back to school. He told only his two closest friends about his loss, but when the hospice that had cared for his father invited him to come and meet other bereaved children of his age, he accepted. There, during the summer holidays, he made a mask with the happy face he wanted to show the world on the outside, and the words “tears”, “sad” and “angry” on the inside. It was, he said, “easier just to put it on paper”.
Festive cheer on breast cancer - The Times 20th December 2007
A new study gives hope that the early use of aromatase inhibitors in breast cancer treatment may save many more lives Even Christmas can’t drive breast cancer out of the headlines. Desmond Morris, the biologist and author on human behaviour, has written about the importance of breasts in Madonna and Child paintings, and how the Virgin Mary is usually depicted cradling Christ against her left breast, as in the picture by the early Flemish artist Robert Campin. Had it not been for Mary’s healthy and efficient breasts, Jesus might not have thrived after an impoverished entry into that grubby stable. Thus Christianity might never have become an established religion.
Link to Article
Computer security failures that allowed sensitive personal details of junior doctors applying for training posts to be viewed by others were an "unacceptable breach of security" by the Department of Health, the Information Commissioner has found. The sensitive details of thousands of doctors, including religious beliefs and sexual orientation, could be seen by anyone logging on to the Medical Training Application Service site.
Link to Article
When strangers meet 21-year- old Rachael Leyman with her baby daughter, they assume it must be her first child. In fact, she has four more at home. She has had a child every year since first giving birth at 16. None of them was planned, but she and her partner Lee Beckinsale say they love having such a big family - and receive no state handouts apart from normal child benefits.
Link to Article
Traditionally, it is a grainy scan picture brought home from the hospital that proves a newborn is on the way. But new technology is making the experience much clearer for expectant mothers. They can now download highdefinition video pictures of their unborn baby to their mobile phone or iPod - and send them to friends and family in seconds.
Link to Article
Traumatic home birth for mum told to drive 30 miles to next hospital - Daily Mail 19th December 2007
A desperate mum was forced to have her little boy at home after her local flagship maternity hospital turned her away. Rebecca Register, 32, has spoken out about her traumatic ordeal and fears it has triggered her acute post-natal depression (PND). The solicitor and mother-of-two is now set to take further action aginst hospital bosses after it emerged that Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital's maternity unit was closed to new admissions 12 times in the last year.
Link to Article
Image-conscious Britons are spending more than ever on being nipped, tucked and pumped with Botox, a report has found. The number of cosmetic operations and treatments has risen by 92 per cent in just two years, and is set to break the £1billion barrier next year, according to market analysts Mintel.
Link to Article
People in their 30s and 40s are worse than those in their 20s at knowing when to stop drinking, a poll has suggested. Once past the age of 30 the body loses muscle and water and gains fat - making the effects of alcohol more pronounced.
Link to Article
Pensioner Moira Wigglesworth has osteoporosis and is in almost constant pain. She is dosed up with pain killers, but finds sitting and lying down to sleep excrutiating. She now has a curvature of the spine and broke three vertebrae and cracked three ribs following a fall at home.
Link to Article
There is little evidence that fall prevention programmes used throughout the NHS work, research suggests. Falls are a major cause of injury among older people with one in three aged over 65 suffering a fall once a year. However, a review of 19 trials involving 6,397 participants found little evidence that the schemes cut falls, or fall-related injuries.
Link to Article
A doctor charged with killing a patient in the UK was about to take part in surgery when she was arrested. Anaesthetist Priya Ramnath, 39, was arrested at Woodland Hills Hospital in Lufkin, Texas, after the UK sought her extradition over manslaughter charges.
Children have a stronger relationship with grandparents on their mother's side, a new study suggests. Researchers asked grandparents how often they had face-to-face contact with their grandchildren. More than a quarter of maternal relatives questioned said they had contact several times a week, while the paternal figure was only about 15%.
Link to Article
Cancer patient hits out over care - BBC Health News 19th December 2007
A terminally ill Cornish woman claims she is being cheated out of care for cancer on the NHS while others are getting treatment. Debbie Hirst, 56, from Carbis Bay, wants to pay privately for the breast cancer drug Avastin. But she has been told that if she starts taking it privately her free treatment on the NHS will end.
Link to Article
New Section
International Health News
Aids is ravaging Kenya, but one of the greatest problems is getting help to isolated victims. Riders for Health is a charity which does the job on motorcycles
Link to Article
An American health insurance company has launched a prepaid medical gift card that can be used to pay bills ranging from doctors' visits and prescriptions to plastic surgery. The Healthcare Visa Gift Card is designed to be bought as a present for a friend or relative and is promoted as a way to "let friends and loved ones know just how much you care". Just like a book token or gift voucher, the medical card can be topped up with any amount the buyer chooses up to a maximum of $5,000.
Link to Article
Most children with an allergy to cow's milk will not have grown out of it by the age of eight, a study suggests. "The old data saying that most milk allergy will be easily outgrown, usually by the age of 3 years, is most likely wrong," Dr Robert Wood, at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said.
Nerve system link to PMS misery - BBC Health News 20th December 2007
Women with severe premenstrual syndrome (PMS) may have a permanently depressed nervous system, research suggests. A Japanese team found that PMS was tied to decreased activity in the autonomic nervous system - which controls the body's equilibrium - each month.
Link to Article
Gene therapy 'corrects fragile X' - BBC Health News 20th December 2007
Gene therapy has been used to alleviate symptoms of a condition which is a leading cause of inherited learning difficulties and autism. There is currently no treatment for fragile X syndrome, also linked to epilepsy and abnormal body growth, but the new work raises hopes of progress.
Link to Article
New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
A ROYAL Liverpool Hospital nurse is planning legal action against health service officials who are re- fusing to pay for her anti-cancer drug. Mother-of-two Jane Humphreys, a 43-year-old specialist cancer nurse, has bowel cancer which has spread to her liver and lungs.
Link to Article
Donna Phelan tells David Higgerson about her desire to pass on her remarkable story WHEN Donna Phelan stands at the front of a class of would-be speech therapists, she is more than just another visiting lecturer.
Link to Article
LIVERPOOL’S Cardiothoracic Centre will enter a new stage in its history next year, with a different name and new chief executive. The centre will be renamed Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, to avoid confusion with Broadgreen Hospital as both are situated on the same site.
Region has high rate of baby mortality - Liverpool Daily Post 19th December 2007
MERSEYSIDE and Cheshire have some of the highest baby mortality rates in the country, a report reveals today. The two areas were among eight in the country in which death rates were significantly higher than the national average of 3 per 1,000 in 2005, according to the National Audit Office.
Link to Article
PEOPLE in Wirral will be given the chance to have a say about their health services. Wirral Primary Care Trust is launching a wide-reaching listening exercise - Health for all, Have your say - that will give local people the opportunity the chance to speak on proposed plans for health and healthcare in Wirral over the next five years. The plans will show how the PCT will work to reduce the gap between those who experience the best and the poorest of health, offer people greater choice about how and where they are treated and provide quality, personalised care.
Link to Article
Ex-TV star now jobless midwife - BBC Health News 17th December 2007
A Northern Ireland actress who turned her back on a £100,000 a year role on teen soap Hollyoaks to become a midwife has now found herself out of work. Lesley Crawford, who played Laura Burns, left the Channel Four show in 2002 to go to Liverpool John Moores University.
Link to Article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
The 1,500 pupils and 200 staff at a Stockport comprehensive school have been given emergency medication after two girls were rushed to hospital with meningitis. The girls, aged 15 and 13, attend The Kingsway School on Foxland Road, Cheadle. One became ill at home on Friday, the second on Sunday.
1,500 kids in meningitis scare - Manchester Evening News 19th December 2007
HEALTH chiefs are spreading the word about the wide range of NHS services available to help residents in Bury stay fit and well in the winter. With accident and emergency departments expected to be busier than normal over the festive period, people are being alerted to the best and quickest ways to receive treatment.
Link to Article
WHILE the festive period is traditionally a time for over-indulgence, the New Year is a time for self-improvement and good intentions. It is estimated that around seven million people in the UK will vow to improve an aspect of their health this New Year, with the most popular resolutions being, to: Eat more fruit and vegetables Do more exercise Stop smoking Drink less
Link to Article
North West cancer deaths 'higher' - BBC Health News 17th December 2007
More than 1,300 more people die each year from cancer in the North West of England than elsewhere in the country, according to a new report. The findings have been published in a report by the North West Cancer Intelligence Service at the Christie Hospital in Withington, Manchester.
Link to Article
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.
New Section
UK Health News
GPs in England will today be offered a £150m sweetener to persuade them to back Gordon Brown's plan for extending surgery opening hours into evenings and weekends, the Guardian has learned. The Department of Health is understood to have approved a package of rewards for doctors who are prepared to provide a more flexible service.
Link to Article
Link to Article
The European commission yesterday postponed publishing a plan to give NHS patients access to free treatment in any EU member country. The proposal sparked a row in Westminster where it was welcomed by the Conservatives as an extension of patient choice but Labour MPs and health unions feared it might subvert the NHS by allowing wealthy patients to jump the queue for treatment.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
A common market for health - The Independent 20th December 2007
AstraZeneca pushes on with distribution deal - The Guardian 20th December 2007
AstraZeneca is to go ahead with its controversial new drug distribution deal, a week after the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) warned that such a scheme could cost the NHS an extra £500m a year. The group has chosen two wholesale partners - AAH Pharmaceuticals and UniChem, Alliance Boots' wholesale division - to distribute its products to pharmacies, dispensing doctors and hospitals. It will deal directly with its customers, and pay the wholesalers a set fee for their services, in what is known as a direct-to-pharmacy scheme.
Link to Article
Private health clinics should immediately stop offering whole body scans to the "worried well", because they carry too high a radiation risk, the government's advisory committee on the medical aspects of radiation (Comare) said in a report yesterday. CT scanning machines were contributing significantly to the radiation exposure of the population, Comare said. Some 15% of our exposure in the UK comes from medical sources, almost half of that from CT (X-ray computed tomography) scans.
Link to Article
Additional Story
Protect 'worried well' by regulating CT scans, say experts - Daily Mail 19th December 2007
Look on the bright side, as the directors of the White Star shipping line might have said in April 1912: at least people are talking about us now. In the continuing fallout from the child benefit disc disaster, the government's IT chiefs can draw one small consolation: the "transformational government" programme to join up public services through IT is now on the chattering classes' agenda.
Link to Article
Charity in all its forms is at the heart of the hospice movement Luke Bryant was 10 when his father died of cancer. He wanted “to carry on as normal”, and so, three days later, he went back to school. He told only his two closest friends about his loss, but when the hospice that had cared for his father invited him to come and meet other bereaved children of his age, he accepted. There, during the summer holidays, he made a mask with the happy face he wanted to show the world on the outside, and the words “tears”, “sad” and “angry” on the inside. It was, he said, “easier just to put it on paper”.
Festive cheer on breast cancer - The Times 20th December 2007
A new study gives hope that the early use of aromatase inhibitors in breast cancer treatment may save many more lives Even Christmas can’t drive breast cancer out of the headlines. Desmond Morris, the biologist and author on human behaviour, has written about the importance of breasts in Madonna and Child paintings, and how the Virgin Mary is usually depicted cradling Christ against her left breast, as in the picture by the early Flemish artist Robert Campin. Had it not been for Mary’s healthy and efficient breasts, Jesus might not have thrived after an impoverished entry into that grubby stable. Thus Christianity might never have become an established religion.
Link to Article
Computer security failures that allowed sensitive personal details of junior doctors applying for training posts to be viewed by others were an "unacceptable breach of security" by the Department of Health, the Information Commissioner has found. The sensitive details of thousands of doctors, including religious beliefs and sexual orientation, could be seen by anyone logging on to the Medical Training Application Service site.
Link to Article
When strangers meet 21-year- old Rachael Leyman with her baby daughter, they assume it must be her first child. In fact, she has four more at home. She has had a child every year since first giving birth at 16. None of them was planned, but she and her partner Lee Beckinsale say they love having such a big family - and receive no state handouts apart from normal child benefits.
Link to Article
Traditionally, it is a grainy scan picture brought home from the hospital that proves a newborn is on the way. But new technology is making the experience much clearer for expectant mothers. They can now download highdefinition video pictures of their unborn baby to their mobile phone or iPod - and send them to friends and family in seconds.
Link to Article
Traumatic home birth for mum told to drive 30 miles to next hospital - Daily Mail 19th December 2007
A desperate mum was forced to have her little boy at home after her local flagship maternity hospital turned her away. Rebecca Register, 32, has spoken out about her traumatic ordeal and fears it has triggered her acute post-natal depression (PND). The solicitor and mother-of-two is now set to take further action aginst hospital bosses after it emerged that Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital's maternity unit was closed to new admissions 12 times in the last year.
Link to Article
Image-conscious Britons are spending more than ever on being nipped, tucked and pumped with Botox, a report has found. The number of cosmetic operations and treatments has risen by 92 per cent in just two years, and is set to break the £1billion barrier next year, according to market analysts Mintel.
Link to Article
People in their 30s and 40s are worse than those in their 20s at knowing when to stop drinking, a poll has suggested. Once past the age of 30 the body loses muscle and water and gains fat - making the effects of alcohol more pronounced.
Link to Article
Pensioner Moira Wigglesworth has osteoporosis and is in almost constant pain. She is dosed up with pain killers, but finds sitting and lying down to sleep excrutiating. She now has a curvature of the spine and broke three vertebrae and cracked three ribs following a fall at home.
Link to Article
There is little evidence that fall prevention programmes used throughout the NHS work, research suggests. Falls are a major cause of injury among older people with one in three aged over 65 suffering a fall once a year. However, a review of 19 trials involving 6,397 participants found little evidence that the schemes cut falls, or fall-related injuries.
Link to Article
A doctor charged with killing a patient in the UK was about to take part in surgery when she was arrested. Anaesthetist Priya Ramnath, 39, was arrested at Woodland Hills Hospital in Lufkin, Texas, after the UK sought her extradition over manslaughter charges.
Children have a stronger relationship with grandparents on their mother's side, a new study suggests. Researchers asked grandparents how often they had face-to-face contact with their grandchildren. More than a quarter of maternal relatives questioned said they had contact several times a week, while the paternal figure was only about 15%.
Link to Article
Cancer patient hits out over care - BBC Health News 19th December 2007
A terminally ill Cornish woman claims she is being cheated out of care for cancer on the NHS while others are getting treatment. Debbie Hirst, 56, from Carbis Bay, wants to pay privately for the breast cancer drug Avastin. But she has been told that if she starts taking it privately her free treatment on the NHS will end.
Link to Article
New Section
International Health News
Aids is ravaging Kenya, but one of the greatest problems is getting help to isolated victims. Riders for Health is a charity which does the job on motorcycles
Link to Article
An American health insurance company has launched a prepaid medical gift card that can be used to pay bills ranging from doctors' visits and prescriptions to plastic surgery. The Healthcare Visa Gift Card is designed to be bought as a present for a friend or relative and is promoted as a way to "let friends and loved ones know just how much you care". Just like a book token or gift voucher, the medical card can be topped up with any amount the buyer chooses up to a maximum of $5,000.
Link to Article
Most children with an allergy to cow's milk will not have grown out of it by the age of eight, a study suggests. "The old data saying that most milk allergy will be easily outgrown, usually by the age of 3 years, is most likely wrong," Dr Robert Wood, at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said.
Nerve system link to PMS misery - BBC Health News 20th December 2007
Women with severe premenstrual syndrome (PMS) may have a permanently depressed nervous system, research suggests. A Japanese team found that PMS was tied to decreased activity in the autonomic nervous system - which controls the body's equilibrium - each month.
Link to Article
Gene therapy 'corrects fragile X' - BBC Health News 20th December 2007
Gene therapy has been used to alleviate symptoms of a condition which is a leading cause of inherited learning difficulties and autism. There is currently no treatment for fragile X syndrome, also linked to epilepsy and abnormal body growth, but the new work raises hopes of progress.
Link to Article
New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
A ROYAL Liverpool Hospital nurse is planning legal action against health service officials who are re- fusing to pay for her anti-cancer drug. Mother-of-two Jane Humphreys, a 43-year-old specialist cancer nurse, has bowel cancer which has spread to her liver and lungs.
Link to Article
Donna Phelan tells David Higgerson about her desire to pass on her remarkable story WHEN Donna Phelan stands at the front of a class of would-be speech therapists, she is more than just another visiting lecturer.
Link to Article
LIVERPOOL’S Cardiothoracic Centre will enter a new stage in its history next year, with a different name and new chief executive. The centre will be renamed Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, to avoid confusion with Broadgreen Hospital as both are situated on the same site.
Region has high rate of baby mortality - Liverpool Daily Post 19th December 2007
MERSEYSIDE and Cheshire have some of the highest baby mortality rates in the country, a report reveals today. The two areas were among eight in the country in which death rates were significantly higher than the national average of 3 per 1,000 in 2005, according to the National Audit Office.
Link to Article
PEOPLE in Wirral will be given the chance to have a say about their health services. Wirral Primary Care Trust is launching a wide-reaching listening exercise - Health for all, Have your say - that will give local people the opportunity the chance to speak on proposed plans for health and healthcare in Wirral over the next five years. The plans will show how the PCT will work to reduce the gap between those who experience the best and the poorest of health, offer people greater choice about how and where they are treated and provide quality, personalised care.
Link to Article
Ex-TV star now jobless midwife - BBC Health News 17th December 2007
A Northern Ireland actress who turned her back on a £100,000 a year role on teen soap Hollyoaks to become a midwife has now found herself out of work. Lesley Crawford, who played Laura Burns, left the Channel Four show in 2002 to go to Liverpool John Moores University.
Link to Article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
The 1,500 pupils and 200 staff at a Stockport comprehensive school have been given emergency medication after two girls were rushed to hospital with meningitis. The girls, aged 15 and 13, attend The Kingsway School on Foxland Road, Cheadle. One became ill at home on Friday, the second on Sunday.
1,500 kids in meningitis scare - Manchester Evening News 19th December 2007
HEALTH chiefs are spreading the word about the wide range of NHS services available to help residents in Bury stay fit and well in the winter. With accident and emergency departments expected to be busier than normal over the festive period, people are being alerted to the best and quickest ways to receive treatment.
Link to Article
WHILE the festive period is traditionally a time for over-indulgence, the New Year is a time for self-improvement and good intentions. It is estimated that around seven million people in the UK will vow to improve an aspect of their health this New Year, with the most popular resolutions being, to: Eat more fruit and vegetables Do more exercise Stop smoking Drink less
Link to Article
North West cancer deaths 'higher' - BBC Health News 17th December 2007
More than 1,300 more people die each year from cancer in the North West of England than elsewhere in the country, according to a new report. The findings have been published in a report by the North West Cancer Intelligence Service at the Christie Hospital in Withington, Manchester.
Link to Article
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.
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Welcome to the Podcast of Another 15 Minutes, Health News from the Fade Library. Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www (dot) fade the blog 2 (dot) blogspot (dot)com
New Section
UK Health News
Obesity raises risk of 10 types of cancer in women, study confirms - The Independent 7th November 2007
Obesity 'fuels cancer in women' - BBC Health News 7th November 2007
Patrick Barkham on colds and influenza - The Guardian 7th November 2007
If you haven't already spent the past week snuffling and sweating, you can probably feel an ominous tickle in your throat just reading this sentence. Anecdotally, there seem to be a lot of unusually nasty viruses floating around buses, pubs and playgrounds this autumn but, according to the experts, it is business as usual. "Everyone's sick. It's that time of year," says Professor Ron Eccles, director of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University.
Link to Article
Women who are overweight are at a greater risk of contracting a wide range of cancers, a study has shown. The authors calculate that 6,000 cancers a year – 5 per cent of all cancers in women – can be attributed to being overweight or obese.
A life, stolen - The Times 7th November 2007
A Health and Social Care Bill will give tough powers to a new regulator, the Care Quality Commission, with the aim of driving up the standard of health care and social services. The regulator will be equipped with tough powers, backed by fines, "to inspect, investigate and intervene where hospitals are failing to meet hygiene standards".
Link to Article
Link to Article
'Gaps' in elderly falls services - BBC Health News 7th November 2007
The government plans to establish a new super-regulator to oversee health and social care in England with powers to fine hospitals and shut down wards. The Care Quality Commission will have a beefed up remit to inspect and intervene at failing hospitals.
Link to Article
A boy has been born healthy and well even though at one point doctors thought it would be better to end his life to save that of his twin brother. Gabriel Jones was not growing in his mother's womb so parents Rebecca and Mark of Staffordshire decided to take the medical staff's advice.
Link to Article
In a packed-out auditorium, the audience waited with anticipation for the "show" to begin. But this wasn't a typical night's entertainment - they were there to watch live heart surgery being performed. With the help of cameras and a satellite link, surgeon Francis Wells was able to open up open heart surgery to more than 200 members of the public.
Link to Article
Post-op patients infected by bugs - BBC Health News 6th November 2007
All planned orthopaedic surgery at a Glasgow hospital has been suspended after six patients who were operated on became infected with a number of bugs. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said the decision was taken after the number of wound infections at the Southern General Hospital had increased.
Link to Article
New Section
International Health News
A two-year-old girl born with four arms and four legs was yesterday undergoing surgery by a team of 40 doctors in an operation that the hospital hopes will leave her with a normal body. The girl, named Lakshmi after the four-armed Hindu goddess of wealth, suffers from ischiopagus, a rare condition which means that she is joined to a "parasitic twin" who stopped developing in the womb. In the womb the surviving foetus absorbs the limbs, kidneys and other organs. In Lakshmi's case, the "twins" are joined at the pelvis and have one head and two pairs of arms and legs. The operation, paid for by one of India's new hi-tech multi-speciality hospitals in Bangalore, is a 40-hour ordeal. Doctors said last night that Lakshmi's condition was stable.
Link to Article
Additional Stories
Doctors begin life-saving surgery on toddler with eight limbs - Daily Mail 7th November 2007
Many-limbed India girl in surgery - BBC Health News 6th November 2007
People with high blood pressure or heart disease should avoid energy drinks such as Red Bull as they could make their conditions worse, scientists have warned. Researchers claimed energy drinks - a £1.5billion worldwide market - cause changes in the body which could put those with existing heart and circulation problems at risk. Healthy volunteers given two energy drinks per day for a week experienced significant increases in both heart rate and blood pressure, the study found.
Link to Article
New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
LIVERPOOL Women’s hospital has set up an helpline for parents who are worried about MRSA. The ECHO yesterday revealed how a baby had been brought in carrying the killer superbug. Three other babies were then found to carrying MRSA, although none actually contracted the disease.
Link to Article
Additional Story
A life, stolen - The Times 7th November 2007
How many elderly people are lost in the bureaucracy of our care system? Our correspondent meets the family of Jean Gambell, who was wrongly locked up as a lunatic for 70 years and reunited with her relatives just weeks before she died this year
Link to Article
New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
BED BLOCKING, where patients stay in hospital only because they have nowhere else to go, has fallen sharply in north and west Cumbria. New figures from the Department of Health show 880 hospital bed days were lost by “delayed discharges” in 2006, barely half the total of 1,754 days lost the year before.
Link to Article
A new secure unit will be built for mentally ill young people in Preston. The unit which is the first of it's kind in the city was given the go-ahead after the Royal Preston Hospital was awarded the grant by the Department of Health's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). Work on the new unit which cost in the region of £290,000 will begin at the beginning of the new year.
Link to Article
Mum takes legal advice over MRSA - Lancashire Telegraph 6th November 2007
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
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.
New Section
UK Health News
Around 6,000 cancers a year in women are the result of putting on weight, according to an authoritative study published today. The findings of the Million Women Study, run from Oxford University, follow an expert report last week which found that a third of cancers across the population are related to diet and lack of exercise. About 23% of all women in England are obese and 34% are overweight. The results from the Million Women Study say gaining weight is a particular risk for women after the menopause, which kicks in on average soon after the age of 50.
Link to Story
Additional Stories
Link to Story
Additional Stories
Obesity raises risk of 10 types of cancer in women, study confirms - The Independent 7th November 2007
Obesity 'fuels cancer in women' - BBC Health News 7th November 2007
Patrick Barkham on colds and influenza - The Guardian 7th November 2007
If you haven't already spent the past week snuffling and sweating, you can probably feel an ominous tickle in your throat just reading this sentence. Anecdotally, there seem to be a lot of unusually nasty viruses floating around buses, pubs and playgrounds this autumn but, according to the experts, it is business as usual. "Everyone's sick. It's that time of year," says Professor Ron Eccles, director of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University.
Link to Article
People who balance work with caring for old or disabled relatives, providing help with activities including house repairs and gardening, should be entitled to tax breaks, a group of leading employers will today tell the prime minister. The companies, which include BT, John Lewis and IBM, say employees with caring responsibilities should be able to receive part of their salary as tax-free care vouchers, which they could then spend on services to help with the care.
For decades, commentators anticipated the demise of the welfare state, but the true failure has been in the struggle with inequalities Who would want to forecast the future of western welfare states? The task is as perilous as predicting the weather, with stains on reputations lasting even longer. The rash of such forecasts in the wake of the oil crisis in the 1970s continued into the 1980s, and were filled with doom and gloom. A succession of books said the end was nigh. Left and right concluded that the welfare state had run out of gas and turned their attention to "what comes next".
Link to Article
Link to Article
Slowly but surely, the health reform tide in England is turning. Gordon Brown and health ministers have signalled their intention to place much greater emphasis on public health than their predecessors, alongside a continuing commitment to improve the performance of the NHS. Lord Darzi's interim report on the NHS specifically highlighted the need to make more progress in tackling health inequalities. With a boy born in Manchester likely to die almost 10 years earlier than a boy born in Kensington and Chelsea, a concerted drive to improve health by focusing on people most in need seems certain to loom large in the next stage of health reform.
Link to Article
Link to Article
Its role is to champion a new model for service delivery, integrating health, housing and social care in the most deprived areas in England and Wales. Who is setting up the centre and when is it being launched? The centre of excellence is being officially launched this week but connected care has already started in Hartlepool and Bolton. It has been designed to help commissioners such as primary care trusts to develop new ways of engaging with their community, design new models for integrated provision of services and engage people rarely consulted and often marginalised.
Link to Article
Link to Article
The Food Standards Agency has launched an investigation into the reasons for a sharp increase in the number of cases of the potentially fatal food poisoning bug listeria, it reveals today. It warns of a 67% year-on-year increase in provisional reported cases in England and Wales in the first five months of this year, with most of the 70 cases reported among older people aged 60 and over.
Link to Article
Link to Article
A simple genetic test can predict your risk of getting cancer, heart disease or Alzheimer's. But do you really want to be told? Virginia Ironside took the plunge
Link to Article
Link to Article
Women who are overweight are at a greater risk of contracting a wide range of cancers, a study has shown. The authors calculate that 6,000 cancers a year – 5 per cent of all cancers in women – can be attributed to being overweight or obese.
A life, stolen - The Times 7th November 2007
How many elderly people are lost in the bureaucracy of our care system? Our correspondent meets the family of Jean Gambell, who was wrongly locked up as a lunatic for 70 years and reunited with her relatives just weeks before she died this year
Link to Article
Link to Article
They are better known for making jam, selling cakes and stripping off to make calendars for charity. Now the Women’s Institute has started a campaign to license brothels to protect women who work as prostitutes. The village of Holybourne in Hampshire is the unlikely birthplace of this crusade. Members of the WI branch there were deeply moved by the events last December when five street prostitutes were murdered in Ipswich.
A Health and Social Care Bill will give tough powers to a new regulator, the Care Quality Commission, with the aim of driving up the standard of health care and social services. The regulator will be equipped with tough powers, backed by fines, "to inspect, investigate and intervene where hospitals are failing to meet hygiene standards".
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The future looks grim for my three-year-old son. He can't speak Mandarin and he's rubbish at The Daily Telegraph cryptic crossword. It's weeks since we last listened to Bach's fugues together - although I'll never forget how he creased his little face earnestly, and said to me: "Mummy, this is sooo boring; I want Dumbo." Worse still, it's all my fault. When the health police break down my door, I will confess my crime: my son was denied the ambrosia of my breast milk and given beastly formula instead.
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Children as young as 12 can buy up to 17 units of alcohol - four times the daily limit for adult men - with their weekly pocket money, a conference will hear today. Delegates at the Alcohol Concern conference, Cheap at Twice the Price, will hear how teenagers can binge-drink with their average weekly pocket money of £9.53. A report for the group found that at a Co-Op supermarket £10 would buy three large bottles of Budweiser, and two big bottles of WKD Vodka Blue coming to a total of 17 units of alcohol. It also said that Sainsbury's sells 10 207ml bottles of Budweiser for £6.59, the equivalent of 10.35 units.
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The increasing number of women giving birth in later life is putting pressure on maternity units because they do not have enough specialists to deal with complications associated with older mothers. Older women are more likely to require a caesarean delivery or suffer a major haemorrhage than younger women during birth and so require consultants to be available.
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Breastfeeding does not make the bust sag, according to scientists. A study has shown that smoking and ageing both affect how pert the breast remains - as does pregnancy itself. But feeding a baby for around nine months will not add to the droop.
We all know the mantra - to live longer we need to eat more fruit and veg, take regular exercise, drink in moderation and cut out cigarettes. Then last week the World Cancer Research Fund declared that we also need to give up bacon, pork chops and salt. Thankfully, there are other, less tedious ways to add years to your life. Here, the Mail shows you how...
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Britons spend millions on screenings and testing kits for peace of mind about their health. But experts fear there's a hidden cost... Charlotte Dorman is, she says, a typical 28-year-old. 'I love buying clothes, going out with friends and enjoying a few glasses of wine at the weekend.' But given the choice between the latest designer handbag or a £200 health check-up, the screening would win every time.
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Last week, the Mail told the horrifying story of one man's death from neglect in hospital. Here, horse trainer Jenny Pitman recalls her own father's shocking ordeal - and launches a personal crusade to put dignity back into our health system...
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When Debbie Grice left the Royal College of Art, she had three London galleries interested in her work. Such was the demand, she'd sold all the pictures at her graduation show, so that she returned to her native Yorkshire full of enthusiasm to build up a new portfolio. 'It was going to be the idyllic artist's life, living on my own, brooding over hilltops and painting,' she says.
Millions of Britons suffer from lower back pain and sciatica. Removing problem spinal discs is major surgery, but Jane Day, 48, a practice nurse from Newbury, underwent a less invasive procedure. Here the mother-of-three talks to CAROL DAVIS, and her surgeon explains the technique...
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Superbug fears have made them a huge hit - but do 'antibacterial' washes and gels really work? Our expert put them to the test... Fear of hospital superbugs and a desire to protect ourselves against common viruses has led to a boom in antibacterial hand products - sales have risen by 80 per cent in the past year alone.
A camera that sits by the bedside can help detect the dangerous snoring condition sleep apnoea. The infra-red device monitors breathing patterns by tracking the flow of hot air coming out of the nose and mouth.
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'Gaps' in elderly falls services - BBC Health News 7th November 2007
There are gaps in care given to elderly people in England who have fallen and fractured bones, a Royal College of Physicians report says. It says figures from 157 of the 173 hospital trusts showed nearly a third of hip fracture patients were not treated within the 48-hour target.
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People's health will be rated as red, amber or green under a traffic light system to appear on an NHS website. Users can already use the NHS Choices website to establish what the principle diseases are in their neighbourhood.
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The government plans to establish a new super-regulator to oversee health and social care in England with powers to fine hospitals and shut down wards. The Care Quality Commission will have a beefed up remit to inspect and intervene at failing hospitals.
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A boy has been born healthy and well even though at one point doctors thought it would be better to end his life to save that of his twin brother. Gabriel Jones was not growing in his mother's womb so parents Rebecca and Mark of Staffordshire decided to take the medical staff's advice.
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In a packed-out auditorium, the audience waited with anticipation for the "show" to begin. But this wasn't a typical night's entertainment - they were there to watch live heart surgery being performed. With the help of cameras and a satellite link, surgeon Francis Wells was able to open up open heart surgery to more than 200 members of the public.
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Post-op patients infected by bugs - BBC Health News 6th November 2007
All planned orthopaedic surgery at a Glasgow hospital has been suspended after six patients who were operated on became infected with a number of bugs. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said the decision was taken after the number of wound infections at the Southern General Hospital had increased.
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New Section
International Health News
A two-year-old girl born with four arms and four legs was yesterday undergoing surgery by a team of 40 doctors in an operation that the hospital hopes will leave her with a normal body. The girl, named Lakshmi after the four-armed Hindu goddess of wealth, suffers from ischiopagus, a rare condition which means that she is joined to a "parasitic twin" who stopped developing in the womb. In the womb the surviving foetus absorbs the limbs, kidneys and other organs. In Lakshmi's case, the "twins" are joined at the pelvis and have one head and two pairs of arms and legs. The operation, paid for by one of India's new hi-tech multi-speciality hospitals in Bangalore, is a 40-hour ordeal. Doctors said last night that Lakshmi's condition was stable.
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Additional Stories
Doctors begin life-saving surgery on toddler with eight limbs - Daily Mail 7th November 2007
Many-limbed India girl in surgery - BBC Health News 6th November 2007
Why are we asking this now? Just when you thought scientists had made their minds up on a topic – from life on Mars to the health dangers of bacon butties – another study comes along to upset the consensus. This week researchers reported that breastfeeding babies boosted their IQs by seven points. However, this only occurs in those babies who have inherited a particular gene called FADS2, they found. Fortunately nine out of 10 children have the necessary gene. For the one in 10 who don't, breast feeding makes no difference to intelligence. Bottle feeding, in this regard, is equally good.
People with high blood pressure or heart disease should avoid energy drinks such as Red Bull as they could make their conditions worse, scientists have warned. Researchers claimed energy drinks - a £1.5billion worldwide market - cause changes in the body which could put those with existing heart and circulation problems at risk. Healthy volunteers given two energy drinks per day for a week experienced significant increases in both heart rate and blood pressure, the study found.
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Taking two doses a week of over-the-counter painkillers such as ibuprofen could slash the risk of Parkinson's disease by as much as 60 per cent, scientists claimed last night. The anti-inflammatory drugs could slow the onset of the disease by reducing the swelling of the brain, say the researchers.
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Skipping meals for one day a month could reduce the risk of heart disease, researchers said today. They found that people who routinely fasted - most of whom were Mormons - had reduced rates of coronary artery disease.
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Women who drink during pregnancy are more likely to have badly behaved children, warn researchers. A study of thousands of mothers found the risk of anti-social behaviour even among young children increased as the frequency of alcohol consumption went up. U.S. academics claim the research shows alcohol's effect on the unborn baby has consequences for the child's behaviour several years later, even after genetic and parenting factors are taken into account.
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Novelist Lia Mills put off seeing a dentist about a sore tooth for months. Even then, the true nature of her condition was missed and it took a year before she was diagnosed with oral cancer. Here, Lia - who is 50 and lives in Dublin with her husband, Simon - tells her harrowing story... The receptionist at the Dental Hospital looks about 12. She is completely indifferent to me and to the painful open sore in my mouth. She takes my referral letter and says it could be seven months before I get an appointment.
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A good night's sleep may reduce a child's risk of becoming obese, according to a US study. The latest research adds to a growing body of evidence that links a lack of adequate sleep to weight gain in both adults and children.
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Lasers could be used to combat viruses and infections like HIV and MRSA without side effects, researchers say. Current ultraviolet light laser treatments can kill micro-organisms - but cannot be used in humans as they would also damage cells in the body.
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New Section
Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
LIVERPOOL Women’s hospital has set up an helpline for parents who are worried about MRSA. The ECHO yesterday revealed how a baby had been brought in carrying the killer superbug. Three other babies were then found to carrying MRSA, although none actually contracted the disease.
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PLANS to build a secure mental hospital next door to an exclusive Merseyside school have sparked outrage. The proposal would see a secure unit for about 70 female patients created in the grounds of Briars Hey, a derelict Grade II-listed house in Rainhill. The seven-acre site is next to Tower College, a £1,670-a-term independent school off Mill Lane, and close to people’s homes.
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MORE beds should be guaranteed in the planned rebuild of the Royal Liverpool hospital, an influential patients’ group has claimed. About 300 beds could be lost when the city centre complex is completely rebuilt and its sister hospital at Broadgreen is modernised.
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PUPILS and teachers at a Merseyside school were being given antibiotics today after a meningitis scare. A girl, 16, and boy, 17, who attend Calday Grange grammar school, were struck down by the meningococcal infection on Friday.
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THE number of cases of superbug MRSA at Leighton Hospital has halved, new statistics show. The Health Protection Agency's findings show there were just eight cases between October 2006 and March 2007 compared to 20 between April 2004 and September 2004 - a drop of more than 50 per cent.
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A life, stolen - The Times 7th November 2007
How many elderly people are lost in the bureaucracy of our care system? Our correspondent meets the family of Jean Gambell, who was wrongly locked up as a lunatic for 70 years and reunited with her relatives just weeks before she died this year
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New Section
Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
BED BLOCKING, where patients stay in hospital only because they have nowhere else to go, has fallen sharply in north and west Cumbria. New figures from the Department of Health show 880 hospital bed days were lost by “delayed discharges” in 2006, barely half the total of 1,754 days lost the year before.
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A new secure unit will be built for mentally ill young people in Preston. The unit which is the first of it's kind in the city was given the go-ahead after the Royal Preston Hospital was awarded the grant by the Department of Health's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). Work on the new unit which cost in the region of £290,000 will begin at the beginning of the new year.
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Mum takes legal advice over MRSA - Lancashire Telegraph 6th November 2007
New Section
Greater Manchester Health News
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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