Government pledges to put children at heart of new health and care system
Source: Department of Health (DH)
Area: News
According to the NHS Confederation, the Government has announced a new national pledge to reduce child mortality and a commitment to put children and young people at the heart of the new health and care system.
It forms part of a series of actions to improve children's health, in response to the recommendations from the Children and Young People's Health Outcomes (CYPHO) Forum. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Cold weather alert: level 2 issued
Source: Department of Health (DH)
Area: News
The Met Office has forecast that in at least the next two to three days there is a 60% chance of severe cold weather/icy conditions/heavy snow in the North West, South East, London and West Midlands regions which is low enough on at least two consecutive days to give rise to significant health risks, and a 70% chance of the same occurring in the North East, East Midlands, East of England and Yorkshire and the Humber regions. The Cold Weather Plan defines this as a Level 2 Alert.
Health and social care providers are advised to consult the Public Health Cold Weather Pl...
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Online training and brochure for stroke care teams launched
Source: Wessex HIEC Partnership
Area: News
Wessex HIEC in collaboration with the University of Central Lancashire has launched an online training package for professionals involved in stroke care. The clinical leads forum has also developed a brochure for patients and their families to understand more about the condition and information specific to their own care.
Please see link for details. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Allied Health Professionals Bulletin published - February 2013
Source: NHS Networks
Area: News
The February edition of the Allied Health Professionals Bulletin has been published. This edition has information on NHS Change Day 2013, NICE guidance on local formularies, training opportunities and service redesign and improvement.
Please see link for details. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Prescribing tool launched
Source: E-Health Insider
Area: News
According to a report by E-Health Insider, the University of Nottingham has developed the PINCER Query Library which is now available for all GP practices in England. The programme is a prescribing safety audit tool based on the outcomes of the PINCER Trial (a pharmacist led, IT based, intervention aimed at improving the safety of prescribing in general practice).
Please see link for details on acquiring the programme. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Aston University research gives insights into medicines adherence problems
Source: Aston University
Area: News
The Medicines Research Unit at Aston University has announced the results of a study aimed at establishing the extent of non-adherence to prescribed medication within the adult population of the Heart of Birmingham teaching Primary Care Trust (HoBtPCT) within four treatment groups - dyslipidaemia, type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism, and prophylaxis of thrombosis.
For the study, more than one million anonymised individual prescription issues were analysed, and just over 7,000 patient questionnaires were administered, in two mailings. Seven focus groups were conducted and a full ...
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
RCT: Acupuncture in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis
Source: Ann Intern Med
Area: News
The Annals of Internal Medicine has featured the results of a randomised controlled trial evaluating the efficacy of acupuncture in the management of seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR).
The multicentre trial involved patients seen at 6 hospital clinics and 32 private outpatient clinics. A total of 422 persons with SAR and IgE sensitisation to birch and grass pollen were recruited, and patients were randomised to receive one of the following three treatment arms:
. Acupuncture plus rescue medication (RM) (cetirizine) (n = 212)
. Placebo acupuncture with RM ...
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Systematic Review: Comparative effectiveness of treatments for open-angle glaucoma
In conclusion, the researchers report that medical and surgical treatments for open-angle glaucoma ... (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 19, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Information resource for care workers on infection prevention and control in care homes
Source: Department of Health
Area: News
The Department of Health has published an information resource and summary for care workers on the prevention and control of infection in care homes. The aim of these documents is to assist staff in taking all reasonable steps to protect residents and staff from acquiring infections and cross infection; and provide information and guidance on infection prevention and control that will assist managers undertaking risk assessments and in developing policies.
Please see the links below for details. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Study investigates minocycline pleurodesis for primary spontaneous pneumothorax
Source: Lancet
Area: News
According to the results of an open-label RCT conducted in Taiwan, the use of minocycline pleurodesis after simple aspiration is safe and more effective than simple aspiration and drainage only in the treatment for primary spontaneous pneumothorax.
The authors note that simple aspiration and drainage is a standard initial treatment for primary spontaneous pneumothorax. However there is a high rate of recurrence, and they therefore sought to investigate the adjunctive use of minocycline pleurodesis in this setting. The study, conducted at two hospitals in Taiwan, included 214 pat...
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Therapeutics: Newer non-oral hormonal contraception
This article forms one of a series of occasional articles published in the BMJ on therapeutics for common or serious conditions, covering new drugs and old drugs with important new indications or concerns. The current article focuses on newer non-oral hormonal contraception and the following topics are discussed:
. What newer non-oral hormonal contraceptive methods are available? . How well do these methods work? . How safe are these methods? . What are the precautions? . How are they taken and monitored? . How do these methods compare with other methods? . How cost effective a...
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Systematic review and meta-analysis finds newer hydroxyethyl starch to be of no overall clinical benefit in sepsis
Source: British Medical Journal (BMJ)
Area: News
According to the results of a systematic review and meta-analysis, treatment of sepsis with newer hydroxyethyl starches increases the risk of having renal replacement therapy, red blood cell transfusion, and severe adverse reactions when compared to crystalloids or human albumin, and is therefore unlikely to be of benefit for this patient group.
The authors note that colloids are used more often than crystalloids for resuscitation in the intensive care unit (ICU). Although the choice of colloid varies between countries, hydroxyethyl starch is most commonly used ...
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Draft NICE guidance recommends use of Oncotype DX to guide early breast cancer treatment decisions
Source: NICE
Area: News
NICE has issued its third diagnostics consultation on gene expression profiling and expanded immunohistochemistry (protein expression profiling) tests to guide the use of adjuvant chemotherapy in early breast cancer management (MammaPrint, Oncotype DX, IHC4 and Mammostrat). These tests measure multiple markers within the tumour that may indicate how the tumour is likely to develop. This third consultation follows consultations on previous drafts and the submission of a confidential access proposal by the manufacturer of Oncotype DX.
The draft guidance recommends the use of Oncotype DX i...
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Independent review invites public to share their experiences of the Liverpool Care Pathway
Source: Department of Health
Area: News
Members of the public are being invited to share their experiences of the Liverpool Care Pathway for Dying Patients (LCP). This will form part of the independent review of the pathway, which is due to report to ministers and to the NHS Commissioning Board in the summer.
For further information about the review, please see the links below. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
Local Authorities - Health and Wellbeing Boards and Health Scrutiny Regulations
Source: Department of Health
Area: News
The Local Authority (Public Health, Health and Wellbeing Boards and Health Scrutiny) Regulations 2013 have now been published, providing a step forward in enabling local authorities to finalise local preparations for health and wellbeing boards and health scrutiny arrangements.
Please see the link below for details. (Source: NeLM - News)
Source: NeLM - News - February 18, 2013 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news
