Displaying items by tag: NHS

Thursday, 27 May 2021 22:13

Northern Ireland abortion discrimination

An open letter from ‘Don’t Screen Us Out’ has been sent to Arlene Foster, Edwin Poots, and other leading politicians. It was written on behalf of people with Down’s syndrome and their families, who are asking for their parties to support a bill which has been introduced to the NI Assembly. The bill seeks to amend the current abortion regulations, to no longer allow unborn babies with a ‘serious foetal impairment’ to be aborted to term. This bill would not amend the law in cases of ‘fatal foetal abnormality’. Currently NI abortion is legal up to birth if the foetus has Down’s syndrome, cleft palate, cleft lip, or club foot. This new bill proposes that non-fatal disabilities should not be grounds for abortion, and the current law is discriminatory against those with such disabilities. 90% of babies diagnosed with Down’s syndrome are aborted.

Published in British Isles

Lancashire NHS Trust is extending trials of an algorithm that creates music playlists to reduce suffering. They are offering it to staff who worked in critical care during Covid to ease anxiety and stress. It will also be offered to recovering critical care patients and outpatients with chronic pain, hoping to reduce opiate prescriptions. The technology is a musical ‘drip’, playing songs to patients and monitoring their heart rates as they listen. A 90-year-old might be prescribed big band music, while a 50-year old gets Paul McCartney. An algorithm allows the software, linked to a streaming service like Spotify, to change forthcoming tracks if the prescription doesn’t appear to be working. Its artificial intelligence assesses the tempo, timbre, key, time signatures, the amount of syncopation and the lowest notes. All these factors affect the heart rate and blood pressure response to the music. A trial of Alzheimer’s patients showed promising results.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 22 April 2021 22:16

Covid variant causing concern

Scientists are concerned that vaccines may be less effective against the Indian variant, which could become dominant in the UK by June. The double mutation Covid-19 variant is thought to be behind a sudden surge in cases in India which has overwhelmed hospitals. A total of 182 cases have been detected in the UK, 162 in the five weeks up to 16 April, forcing Boris Johnson to postpone his trip to India and the government to add India to its travel ‘red list’. Viruses regularly mutate but most are insignificant, however, some mutations can make the virus more infectious, deadly or resistant to vaccines. The Indian virus may be one of those - especially because two mutations have come together to help infect cells and evade the immune system.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 15 April 2021 21:58

Mental health

Around 6,000 mothers will receive support for mental health problems through 26 new dedicated hubs being set up across the country to bring together maternity services, reproductive health, and psychological therapy under one roof. They will receive care and treatment for a wide range of mental health issues, from post-traumatic stress disorder to a severe fear of childbirth. An NHS executive said, ‘Pregnancy and the birth of a new child are special times, but if things go wrong it can have a huge impact on women, their partners, and other children. NHS staff have dealt with over 393,000 patients requiring treatment for Covid-19 while keeping mental health services running. I am delighted that we are now expanding help for new, expectant and bereaved mums despite the continuing pandemic.’

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 25 March 2021 20:57

Over-50s to book jabs before supplies dip

The NHS said anyone who currently qualifies for their Covid-19 jab (aged over 50 or in at-risk categories) should book their first dose of Covid-19 jabs before 29th March when slots are set to dry up. Officials expect a slowdown in vaccine supplies in April and medics will be focusing on providing second doses. Ministers say the plan to offer a first dose to all adults by July is on track. However NHS England said no first appointments should be booked next month for people under the age of 50 unless they fall into a higher priority group (those who are clinically vulnerable). The reduction in the UK's Covid vaccine supply is partly due to delays in deliveries from India of five million Oxford-AstraZeneca doses. Indian foreign ministry sources said they have placed a temporary hold on all exports of vaccines amid a rising number of domestic cases.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 11 March 2021 20:51

NHS: waiting for surgery

The Covid surge hit key NHS services including cancer and routine surgery. Less than half the expected number of operations or scans were done, pushing the waiting list to a record high of 4.6 million. More than 300,000 of those have been waiting more than a year for treatment, compared to 1,600 before the pandemic began. Surgeons described a dire situation which would take a long time to turn around. One surgeon said, ‘Behind today's statistics are people waiting in limbo. Many will be in considerable pain; others will have restricted mobility and be at risk of isolation and loneliness. Dealing with this daunting backlog will take time, and sustained investment in the NHS.’ The true picture could be much worse with nearly 6 million fewer referrals made by GPs for routine treatments, including knee operations and hip replacements creating an additional hidden backlog.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 18 February 2021 21:01

NHS staff stress

Work-induced stress is a significant problem in the health service. Health and social care have some of the highest rates of self-reported illness due to stress, anxiety and depression. 1/3rd of ill health in the NHS is stress-related. Two of the many over-stretched UK hospitals are Guy’s and St Thomas’s, caring for hundreds of coronavirus patients, while rolling out the vaccination programme to thousands and continuing to run vital services in the hospitals and the community. Staff are re-deployed to other areas of work, to keep patients safe and support colleagues in the areas under greatest pressure. Everyone is working tirelessly - battling fear, anxiety, flashbacks and exhaustion to tackle this pandemic. A senior nurse on the intensive care unit said nothing could have prepared him and his colleagues for what they are facing. ‘You've been sent to a Covid-19 unit, then suddenly, you're on the front line. It’s just like shell shock. It hits you all of a sudden.’

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 11 February 2021 21:19

Vaccination for illegal migrants

When the coronavirus pandemic struck, the government announced that anyone seeking a test or treatment for coronavirus would not have their immigration status checked. It is now being made explicit that this principle applies to vaccinations also; people living in the UK unlawfully will not risk deportation by coming forward for inoculation. Ministers are urging illegal immigrants to come forward and register with a GP. The vaccine is free, regardless of their immigration status. However, this is not an amnesty for immigrants; no-one will be given leave to remain in the UK as a result of being vaccinated. The last official estimate, dating back to 2005, was that about 430,000 people were in the country with no legal right to remain; independent research since then has put the number at over a million.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 14 January 2021 21:15

Vaccination news

Hope is on the horizon. Health secretary Matt Hancock predicted that every adult would be offered a Covid vaccine by the autumn, as regular rapid testing for people without coronavirus symptoms started this week. Some high street pharmacies started vaccinating people from priority groups on 14 January, with 200 providing jabs in the following two weeks. The chemists will offer appointments to those invited by letter. Anyone who does not want to travel to these sites can still be vaccinated by their local GP or hospital service, but they may have to wait longer. Over 2.6 million people have now received their first dose.

Published in Praise Reports
Thursday, 07 January 2021 20:57

Concerns over changed Covid vaccine timeline

A survey of 1,318 doctors by Everydoctor found medics who have had their first dose of a Covid vaccine, but their appointments for the second dose have been cancelled as the Government's new policy attempts to give as many people as possible some immunisation. Now the two doses are separated by twelve weeks, not three. Dr Julia Patterson, the lead for Everydoctor, said doctors fear that delaying the second dose which they need to obtain full immunity could lead to them becoming ill or infecting colleagues or patients. In the survey, 13% said that they had received one vaccine dose but their second appointment for immunisation had been cancelled. Another 517 (39%) said they had still not been told when they would have their first dose. ‘The Covid-19 crisis is escalating, and we urgently need to protect frontline workers. If healthcare workers are left unprotected, they are at risk themselves, and they may also pass coronavirus on to vulnerable patients’, said Dr Patterson.

Published in British Isles