Impact of the level of sickness on higher mortality in emergency medical admissions to hospital at weekends 
Journal of Health Services Research & Policy 29 September 2017
Analysis of emergency medical admissions at the weekend linked with electronic National Early Warning Score (over 45,000 admissions during 2014) found that patients are sicker, have earlier clinical assessments, and after adjusting for the severity of their sickness, do not appear to have a higher mortality compared to weekday admissions.

Sustainability and transformation funding
NHS Providers has published Recovering provider deficits: has it worked and at what cost? This report sets out what control totals and sustainability and transformation funding have achieved. It finds that the use of control totals and sustainability and transformation funding (STF) has played a key role in helping the provider sector stabilise its financial position, reducing the sector deficit from £2.45 billion in 2015/16 to £791 million in 2016/17. However, the report argues that the STF and control total regime has not addressed the financial unsustainability of the sector; and has masked the underlying financial problems providers now face; and that the £1.8 billion STF has become a key part of provider sector finances.

Sustainability and transformation plans and partnerships
The House of Commons Library has published a briefing Sustainability and transformation plans and partnerships.  This briefing covers the context in which STPs have been developed, their funding and accountability arrangements as well as their progress so far. It explores how these plans were developed, as well as research and debate surrounding the content and implementation of these plans.

Warrington and Halton NHS Trust: Spinal surgery suspended – BBC News – Health
All spinal surgery has been suspended at an NHS trust after four serious “incidents” in which two people died.

Explaining and apologizing to patients after errors – BMJ 
Explaining and apologizing to patients after a medical error has resulted in injury does not result in an increase in lawsuits, a large US study has reported.

Entry requirements change for apprenticeships – NHS Employers
Changes announced to the minimum Maths and English entry requirements for apprentices who have special educational needs, learning difficulties or disabilities.

Flu vaccine: NHS patients wanted to test ‘universal’ jab – BBC News – Health
The experimental vaccine should work against most flu types and offer years of protection, research says.

NICE guidance

Medtech innovation briefing

• MIB122           Thora-3Di for assessing asthma in children
• MIB123           Memokath-028, 044 and 045 stents for urethral obstruction

Statistics

• Staff sick absence data for May 2017
• Hospital admitted patient care activity: 2016-17
• HIV: annual data tables (updated)

HSJ Roundup (contact the Library for further details)

• Teaching trust ‘on the verge’ of special measures 
  A teaching trust “on the verge” of financial special measures is applying for distress funding after predicting it will run out of cash next month.
• Worst performing A&E trust appoints new interim chair 
  The chair of a trust struggling with accident and emergency performance is stepping down, just weeks after the chief executive resigned.
• Consultant backlash over patient record system ‘disaster’ 
  Outcry from dozens of senior consultants has forced one of the country’s largest teaching hospitals to review its £14m digital patient record system amid fears over patient safety.
• Trust director promises action after ‘significant’ IT disruption 
  The medical director of Nottingham University Hospitals Trust has promised to act after the rollout of a digital record system caused widespread disruption.
• Trust warns controversial reconfiguration could mean £14m redundancy bill 
  A trust is warning of a potential redundancy bill of £13.5m if NHS England accepts proposals to close its congenital heart disease services.
• Trust bosses call on government to confirm sustainability cash beyond 2019 
  NHS trust leaders have called on the government to protect the £1.8bn sustainability fund beyond 2018-19, but say it should not be channelled into commissioning allocations until problems with the national tariff are addressed.
• Hunt plans 25pc increase in student nursing placements 
  Health secretary Jeremy Hunt will today outline plans to create an extra 5,000 training posts for student nurses from next year, an increase of 25 per cent.
• Government threatens to intervene over DTOCs performance 
  Ministers are set to issue a fresh warning to councils deemed to have made insufficient progress tackling delayed transfers of care, amid a bitter row over the withholding of funding.
• CQC issues list of A&E safety inspection targets 
  The Care Quality Commission has set out the eight major priority areas which will underpin its regulation of urgent and emergency care providers this winter
• CCGs ‘anticipate’ formal merger next year 
  Two Buckinghamshire clinical commissioning groups are expected to merge next year after seeking permission from NHS England.

Our Fabulous NHS – Academy of Fabulous Stuff
***Get involved*** –  share your fab stuff!

• PrimaryCareHome -Dr James Kingsland This is the third in the trilogy of articles on the Primary Care Home from co-creator, Dr James Kingsland OBE. It builds on the first two articles published in January and March of this year. The primary care home programme is still in the early stages of implementation and will evolve over time. Maturity and […]
• PATIENTS HANDED MORE CONTROL OVER THEIR CARE AS NEW RESPIRATORY SERVICE TO BE ROLLED OUT A service aimed at putting control back into the hands of patients Was rolled out for respiratory patients at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) on Monday 18 September. The ‘Patient Initiated Follow-Up Service’ was introduced as a pilot by the Trust in February 2017 in rheumatology. Almost 470 rheumatology patients have […]