A link between eating processed meat, such as bacon or sausages, and pancreatic cancer has been suggested by researchers in Sweden.
via BBC News – Processed meat ‘linked to pancreatic cancer’.
The abstract can be viewed by clicking here. If you require the fullt ext – please contact the library.
via Most senior leaders failing to create ‘strong work climates’ | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Three quarters of the most senior NHS leaders are “not creating strong work climates”, according to an analysis seen by HSJ.
via RCN chief: NHS facing ‘toughest year’ | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
The Royal College of Nursing’s chief executive and general secretary has warned the NHS faces its “toughest year”, with specialist nurses losing their jobs and vulnerable patients “in the firing line”.
via DH advertises for future leader of Public Health England | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
The Department of Health has begun advertising for a chief executive designate for its new executive agency Public Health England.
The post can be viewed by clicking here
via Criticism as under pressure CQC reveals 14 per cent underspend | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
The Care Quality Commission is set to underspend its 2011-12 budget by 14 per cent, the troubled regulator has revealed to HSJ.
via Blears: Salford Royal to cut 400 posts over three years | HSJ Local | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
WORKFORCE: Salford Royal Foundation Trust has cut 200 nursing posts this year, and will cut the same number again over the coming two years, Salford and Eccles MP Hazel Blears told parliament yesterday.
Mothers should expect breastfed babies to cry more – Health News – NHS Choices.
This cross sectional assessment, taken within part of a large cohort, asked mothers of three-month-old babies to report how their babies were fed and to complete a questionnaire which assessed their babies’ temperament. Most importantly, this assessment cannot prove causation, and does not mean that breastfeeding results in unhappier babies or that formula feeding is better.
There are several additional points to make:
Nevertheless, the study provides some useful information about the possible differences in temperament between breastfed and formula-fed babies, and the researchers make suggestions as to why these might occur.
As one midwife reportedly pointed out, new mothers may be unconfident about breastfeeding and reach for formula to “settle” an apparently unhappy baby. Learning more about babies’ temperaments and the signals they are giving could help allay maternal anxieties and boost breastfeeding rates.
This research does not alter current advice from the Department of Health, which recommends that mothers exclusively breastfeed for the first six months after birth.
Is breast really best? Study finds babies fed on formula milk cry less and are easier to get to sleep. Daily Mail, January 11 2012
Breastfed babies show more challenging temperaments, study finds. The Guardian, January 11 2012
Breastfeeding makes babies cry more and laugh less. Metro, January 11 2012
Breastfed babies ‘are more cranky and cry more’. BBC News, January 11 2012
de Lauzon-Guilain B, Wijndaele K, Clark, et al. Breastfeeding and infant temperament at age three months. Public Library of Sciences One 2012;7:e29326.
via Lansley vows to enforce drugs access rules | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Legislation meant to end the variable access to drugs in NHS hospitals will be enforced, the health secretary has told the Commons.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Only half of clinical commissioning groups will be given full permission to take on budgets by April 2013 – creating a two-tier NHS – one of the most senior leaders of the movement has predicted.
via Commercialisation is bad for public health | BMJ.
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The Health and Social Care Bill 2011 is yet to be passed into legislation, but the NHS is already going through a process of considerable transformation. Such is the scale of change that I’m reminded of the time I spent working in the new, democratic South Africa.
via Hospitals spending less than £3 on patient meals | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
NHS hospitals are spending as little as £2.57 to feed and water patients each day – or 86 pence a meal, new figures reveal today.
Nicotine patches ‘may ease Alzheimer’s symptoms’ – Health News – NHS Choices.
NHS Choices examines the science behind the newspaper headlines.
This small randomised controlled trial showed that six-month nicotine replacement for non-smoking older people with mild cognitive impairment was safe and improved scores on some memory tests compared to people who had a placebo treatment. The treatment did not improve scores on all the memory tests and an overall clinical assessment stated that there was no difference between the two groups.
The study had some limitations:
Nevertheless, this study has shown that nicotine patches were well tolerated and will be followed up with larger and longer trials to see whether they have any protective effect for dementias.
Nicotine patches ‘can slow mental decline’ and improve the memory of elderly people, study shows. Daily Mail, January 10 2012
Nicotine ‘may aid memory in early dementia’. BBC News, January 10 2012
Could a 90p nicotine patch keep dementia away? Daily Express, January 10 2012
Newhouse P, Kellar K, Aisen P et al. Nicotine treatment of mild cognitive impairment A 6-month double-blind pilot clinical trial. Neurology, January 10, 2012. Vol. 78 no. 2 91-101
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The right to integrated care should be enshrined in the NHS constitution if it is to become an integral part of the new NHS landscape and deliver much needed improvements in the quality of primary care provision, experts have claimed.
via Biggest health and social care link-up set to win approval | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Plans for the biggest joint health and social care provider in England to date are being considered by the Department of Health, HSJ understands.
Does ‘internet addiction’ change the brain? – Health News – NHS Choices.
NHS Choices examines the science behind the newspaper headlines.
This was a small study that examined the association between brain structure and the diagnosis of internet addiction disorder. The results of the study should be interpreted cautiously, as the small number of participants increases the likelihood that the findings were due to chance. Additionally, the study cannot tell us anything about whether obsessive internet use causes changes to the brain, as some headlines have suggested. From this study we cannot rule out the possibility that the participants’ brains were structured this way before their heavy internet usage. If this were the case it would raise the possibility that their brain structure was responsible for their actions rather than their actions altering their brain structure.
Of course, there is also the question of whether the participants’ behaviour actually constitutes a medical condition. Internet addiction disorder is not included in the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which outlines criteria for classifying and diagnosing mental disorders. That said, there is considerable debate surrounding whether or not to include it in the next edition of the manual. This means that this study could be improved if it were repeated once the definition and diagnostic criteria of IAD were to become established.
The researchers say that the identified brain regions are involved in emotional processing and addiction features, such as craving, compulsivity and maladaptive decision making. They also say that previous research has shown that abnormal white matter integrity in these regions is seen in people exposed to addictive substances such as alcohol, cocaine, heroin, marijuana and methamphetamines. However, this study did not assess a group of people who had other forms of addiction and it is not possible to say whether the white matter differences seen in the adolescents actually correlated with the pattern seen in people with other addictions.
Further limitations of the study include its reliance on self-report questionnaires for the diagnosis of IAD, and potential confounding by existing substance abuse or psychiatric disorders. The researchers say that while they attempted to control for these factors, such attempts may not have detected all cases.
This study has shown white matter differences in a small group of adolescents who reported internet addiction compared with those who did not. The causes of these differences were not determined in this study and a link to the brain changes seen in other addictions has not yet been established.
Internet addiction affects the brain ‘like a drink or drug problem’. The Daily Telegraph, January 12 2012
Web addicts have brain changes, research suggests. BBC News, January 12 2012
Addicted! Scientists show how internet dependency alters the human brain. The Independent, January 12 2012
Internet addiction can cause physical damage to the brain, just like drugs, say researchers. Daily Mail, January 12 2012
Internet addiction can be as harmful to teenagers’ brains as cocaine and cannabis. Daily Mail, January 12 2012
Lin F, Zhou Y, Du Y, Qin L, Zhao Z, et al. (2012) Abnormal White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with Internet Addiction Disorder: A Tract-Based Spatial Statistics Study. PLoS ONE 7(1): e30253
Hormone injection ‘may help fight obesity’ – Health News – NHS Choices.
NHS Choices examines the science behind the newspaper headlines.
This was a large, well-conducted systematic review that combined the results of trials investigating whether glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists produce weight loss in overweight or obese people with or without type 2 diabetes. As the researchers described, a particular strength of their review was that they were able to obtain additional data on weight loss and other outcomes that had not been included in the original trial publications. They say that since outcomes are less likely to be described if they are less significant, this reduces the risk of reporting bias.
The review found that GLP-1R agonists were associated with weight loss in both people with and without diabetes. However, it is most important to note that these drugs are currently licensed only for the purposes of controlling blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes that has not responded to other standard treatments. They cannot be prescribed for people without type 2 diabetes, and even in people with type 2 diabetes they have very restricted eligibility criteria.
Additional points worth noting:
In conclusion, as an accompanying editorial points out, further trials are needed to investigate the benefits as well as the risks of these new drugs – both in people with diabetes and without – before they could be considered as possible treatments for weight loss in wider population groups.
Gut hormone ‘could cure obesity crisis by suppressing appetite’. Daily Mail, January 12 2011
Simple jab that could cure Britain’s obesity crisis. Daily Express, January 12 2011
Vilsbøll T, Christensen M, Junker AE et al. Effects of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists on weight loss: systematic review and meta-analyses of randomised controlled trials. BMJ 2012; 344
This article is available freely via Open Access. Please click on the above link to view it fully.
Objectives To determine the prevalence and health outcomes of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonisation in elderly care home residents. To measure the effectiveness of improving infection prevention knowledge and practice on MRSA prevalence.
Setting Care homes for elderly residents in Leeds, UK.
Participants Residents able to give informed consent.
Design A controlled intervention study, using a stepped wedge design, comprising 65 homes divided into three groups. Baseline MRSA prevalence was determined by screening the nares of residents (n=2492). An intervention based upon staff education and training on hand hygiene was delivered at three different times according to group number. Scores for three assessment methods, an audit of hand hygiene facilities, staff hand hygiene observations and an educational questionnaire, were collected before and after the intervention. After each group of homes received the intervention, all participants were screened for MRSA nasal colonisation. In total, four surveys took place between November 2006 and February 2009.
Results MRSA prevalence was 20%, 19%, 22% and 21% in each survey, respectively. There was a significant improvement in scores for all three assessment methods post-intervention (p≤0.001). The intervention was associated with a small but significant increase in MRSA prevalence (p=0.023). MRSA colonisation was associated with previous and subsequent MRSA infection but was not significantly associated with subsequent hospitalisation or mortality.
Conclusions The intervention did not result in a decrease in the prevalence of MRSA colonisation in care home residents. Additional measures will be required to reduce endemic MRSA colonisation in care homes.
via ‘Warm words’ insufficient to drive integration, ministers warned | News | Health Service Journal.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
One of the leading proponents of integrated care has called for the government to go further than its “warm words” made in response to the NHS Future Forum.
This article is available freely via Open Access. Please click on the above link to view it fully.
Self-rated Health (SRH) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) are used to evaluate health disparities. Like all subjective measures of health, they are dependent on health expectations that are associated with socioeconomic characteristics. It is thus needed to analyse the influence played by socioeconomic position (SEP) on the relationship between these two indicators and health conditions if we aim to use them to study health disparities. Our objective is to assess the influence of SEP on the relationship between physical health status and subjective health status, measured by SRH and HRQoL using the SF-36 scale.
We used data from the French National Health Survey. SEP was assessed by years of education and household annual income. Physical health status was measured by functional limitations and chronic low back pain.
Regardless of their health status, people with lower SEP were more likely than their more socially advantaged counterparts to report poor SRH and poorer HRQoL, using any of the indicators of SEP. The negative impact of chronic low back pain on SRH was relatively greater in people with a high SEP than in those with a low SEP. In contrast, chronic low back pain and functional limitations had less impact on physical and mental component scores of quality of life for socially advantaged men and women.
Both SRH and HRQoL were lower among those reporting functional limitations or chronic low back pain. However, the change varied according SEP and the measure. In relative term, the negative impact of a given health condition seems to be greater on SRH and lower on HRQoL for people with higher SEP in comparison with people with low SEP. Using SRH could thus decrease socioeconomic differences. In contrast using HRQoL could increase these differences, suggesting being cautious when using these indicators for analyzing health disparities.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Commissioners should be able to override current payment rules and share budgets with local authorities in order to accelerate service integration, according to the NHS Future Forum.
This article is available freely via Open Access. Please click on the above link to view it fully.
Given limited research evidence for community-based alcohol interventions, this study examines the intervention preferences of rural communities and alcohol professionals, and factors that influence their choices.
Community preferences were identified by a survey of randomly selected individuals across 20 regional Australian communities. The preferences of alcohol professionals were identified by a survey of randomly selected members of the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and Other Drugs. To identify preferred interventions and the extent of support for them, a budget allocation exercise was embedded in both surveys, asking respondents to allocate a given budget to different interventions. Tobit regression models were estimated to identify the characteristics that explain differences in intervention preferences.
Community respondents selected school programs most often (88.0%) and allocated it the largest proportion of funds, followed by promotion of safer drinking (71.3%), community programs (61.4%) and police enforcement of alcohol laws (60.4%). Professionals selected GP training most often (61.0%) and allocated it the largest proportion of funds, followed by school programs (36.6%), community programs (33.8%) and promotion of safer drinking (31.7%). Community views were susceptible to response bias. There were no significant predictors of professionals’ preferences.
In the absence of sufficient research evidence for effective community-based alcohol interventions, rural communities and professionals both strongly support school programs, promotion of safer drinking and community programs. Rural communities also supported police enforcement of alcohol laws and professionals supported GP training. The impact of a combination of these strategies needs to be rigorously evaluated.
This article is solely the work of the HSJ. For a full copy of the article please contact the library.
Senior managers should be held to account for improving the health and wellbeing of their workforce, the NHS Future Forum has recommended.
The newly bereaved are at greatly increased risk of heart attack after the death of a close loved one, US researchers say.
via BBC News – Bereavement raises heart attack risk, says study.
NHS staff in England must adapt their roles to ensure they promote good health under plans being published.
An independent panel of government advisers says health professionals should take every opportunity to discuss diet, exercise, smoking and drinking habits.
via BBC News – Ministers back call to quiz patients on lifestyles.
Performance indicators for participation in organized mammography screening.
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Background A population’s acceptance of a screening programme is reflected by its participation. Participation can be measured by cross-section, in an individual screening round, or by cumulative examination rate, which covers participation in numerous rounds at a pre-specified frequency. To establish an informed overview of programme performance, the relationship between these measures was analysed.
Methods The Central Population Register (CPR) of Denmark was used to define the total population. The data sources were mammography screening programmes in Copenhagen (1991–2008) and Funen (1993–2008) and participation and coverage rates were calculated according to European guidelines. Long-term adherence was defined as the cumulative examination rate.
Results The participation rates were 71% in Copenhagen and 91% in Funen. The cumulative examination rates across all invitation rounds were between 21 and 24% lower than the average participation rates.
Conclusions If the cumulative examination rate across all, or the majority of, invitation rounds is substantially lower than the average participation rate it may suggest that standard cross-sectional performance indicators overestimate the level of protection provided to the women targeted by the programme. Consequently, it may prove valuable to include cumulative examination rate as a performance indicator of mammography screening.
via Legal aid cuts threaten added cost to NHS | News | Health Service Journal.
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The government’s planned cuts to legal aid in clinical negligence cases could cost the NHS almost three times more than is saved by the Ministry of Justice, a report has claimed
The NHS needs a culture change to drag itself out of the “information dark ages” and avoid reputational damage, the NHS Future Forum has said.
via NHS stuck in ‘information dark ages’, says Future Forum | News | Health Service Journal.
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via Risks of aspirin outweigh benefits in people without cardiovascular disease, shows analysis | BMJ.
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Prophylactic aspirin reduces the risk of non-fatal myocardial infarction in people without cardiovascular disease but does not reduce cardiovascular or cancer mortality, and any benefit is offset by the raised risk of bleeding events, shows a large meta-analysis looking at aspirin in primary prevention.
via Doctors told to collaborate with community pharmacists to improve pain management | BMJ.
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GP surgeries should work with community pharmacists to provide better pain management for their patients because it could cut GP workload, take pressure off hospital services, and reduce the financial burden on the UK economy, a report says.
Doctors are told to “make every contact count” to reduce costs of poor lifestyles | BMJ.
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Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals in England will be asked to question patients about their lifestyle, including smoking, diet, exercise, and alcohol consumption, at every meeting, under new plans backed by the government.
