NHS – Page 20 – Lancashire & South Cumbria Library Blog

Covid 19

Current awareness updates

Vital to cut COVID-19 transmission to avoid more loss of life NHS Confederation (The NHS Confederation has responded to reports that a new national lockdown could be imposed.)

NHS response to the Prime Minister’s announcement NHS England 31 October 2020

HSIB report illustrates challenges of COVID-19 spread in hospitals NHS Confederation

Investigation into COVID-19 transmission in hospitals Kings Fund (This report charts a four-month patient safety investigation that was launched following concern that patients were contracting COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital. It presents the voices of those working across the health service, from strategic national planners to hospital porters. It also captured experiences of patients and families, providing further insight into the challenges of managing the transmission of COVID-19.)

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey: characteristics of people testing positive for COVID-19 in England, October 2020 – Office for National Statistics Office for National Statistics

(Data about the characteristics of people testing positive for COVID-19 from the COVID-19 Infection Survey. This survey is being delivered in partnership with University of Oxford, University of Manchester, Public Health England and Wellcome Trust.)

How coronavirus has affected equality and human rights.
Equality and Human Rights Commission; 2020.

(This report summarises evidence that helps in understanding the effects of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic on different groups in society. It highlights potential long-term risks to equality and human rights covering key issues in the areas of: work; poverty; education; social care; and justice and personal security. It makes targeted recommendations for the UK, Scottish and Welsh governments.)

Generation COVID: Emerging work and education inequalities.
London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE); 2020.

(The study found, since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, young workers to be twice as likely to have lost their jobs compared to older employees and that employment and earnings losses are more pronounced for women, the self-employed and those who grew up in a poor family. The survey provides further evidence that young people are suffering substantial and sustained losses, not only to their employment, but also their education.)

Country reports: COVID-19 and Long-Term Care.
London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE); 2020.

(These reports aim to document the impact of COVID-19 on people who use and provide Long-Term Care and the measures adopted by different countries to contain and mitigate the impact of the virus. They are updated regularly as new information becomes available.)

Access to new medicines in the English NHS

A briefing to describe the process

Source – The King’s Fund

All health systems must find ways to ration limited resources. The question is whether they do so with their eyes closed or with their eyes open. In 2018/19, the English NHS spent almost £19 billion on drugs, almost 15 per cent of total public spending on health. Should the NHS increase drugs spending to pay for the latest drugs for hepatitis or cancer, drugs that might prolong life for some patients but cost tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds per course of treatment? Or should it spend the money in other areas, for example, ensuring that people can see a GP when they need one, ensuring that vulnerable people get basic treatment for long term-conditions or tackling health inequalities? How health systems make these decisions determines, in large part, their effectiveness. The choices determine the quality of people’s lives and, in some cases, who lives or dies.

To find out more and understand the process click here.

Healthwatch

590 people’s stories of hospital during Covid-19

In partnership with British Red Cross, this report reviews the experiences of 590 people after being discharged from hospital. The research shows significant numbers of people are not receiving follow-up support under the new policy to switch to a ‘discharge to assess’ model introduced in March 2020 to cope with demand at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic), leading to unmet needs. It calls on the NHS to address these issues coming into the busy winter period amid growing pressures of a second Covid-19 wave.

To find out more click here.

Library Competition

Celebrating International Stress Awareness Week

Next week (2nd to 6th November) is International Stress Awareness Week. The Library Team wanted to focus on the positives, especially during these difficult times .

We are running a photograph competition throughout the week, asking people to send photographs of how you ‘de-stress’ after a hectic day. All you have to do to enter is tag us on Twitter @LscftL to be in with the chance of winning a goody bag of prizes.

The competition is open to all Trust staff and patients, along with friends and families. We’d love for as many people to get involved as possible and hope that it may bring some hope and joy throughout the week.

The winner will be announced on Monday 9th November. Happy snapping!

Mental Health

Current Awareness

Children and young people’s mental health review: findings from a questionnaire to health and wellbeing boards on local actions QCQ – October 2020

(This report contains an update on work carried out in 2018 looking at the quality of mental health services for children and young people, as well as the access to these services. It sets out the findings of a 2019 independent follow-up self-assessment questionnaire, to find out the extent to which health and wellbeing board areas in England had progressed with implementing the local recommendations made.)

NHS strengthens mental health support for staff NHS England -October 2020

(NHS staff will get rapid access to expanded mental health services that are being rolled out across the country as part of efforts to deal with the second wave of coronavirus. NHS England and NHS Improvement will invest an extra £15 million to strengthen mental health support for nurses, paramedics, therapists, pharmacists, and support staff.)

NHS encourages children and young people to seek help as new data shows rise in mental health problems NHS England – October 2020

(England’s top children and young people’s mental health doctor is encouraging youngsters to seek help if they need it, as NHS Digital’s new survey shows there has been a rise in mental health problems in children and young people during the pandemic.)

The impact of Covid-19 to date on older people’s mental and physical health Age UK- October 2020

(This research finds that some older people are coping with the pandemic, but a sizeable minority are finding life incredibly tough. Those who are not very well and have long term health conditions were particularly likely to report that this is an extremely challenging time for them.The research was made up of a survey of older people, their friends, families, and loved ones (promoted across the Age UK social media channels for two weeks in August 2020 and completed by 569 people) and representative online polling of 1,364 people over the age of 60, conducted by Kantar Polling in September 2020.)

Pushed from pillar to post: improving the availability and quality of support after self-harm in England.
Samaritans; 2020.

[This report finds that there is no consistently effective support available to people who self-harm. The research identified four key support needs for people who self-harm, which are seen as essential to providing effective care: distraction from immediate self-harm urges; emotional relief in times of stress; developing alternative coping strategies; and addressing the underlying reasons for self-harm.]

Commission for Equality in Mental Health: Briefing 3: Inequalities of experience and outcomes.
Centre for Mental Health; 2020.

[This third briefing from the Commission for Equality in Mental Health explores why communities with higher rates of mental ill health often get the least effective support. This is most dramatically evident for people from Black communities in the UK, who experience higher levels of coercion and poorer long-term outcomes. This briefing explores why these inequalities persist, and looks at what can be done to bring about more equal outcomes and experiences from mental health support.]

Mental health rehabilitation inpatient services – 2019 update.
Care Quality Commission (CQC); 2020.

[Based on the results of a request to providers to review progress, the CQC has made recommendations to improve care for people in mental health rehabilitation inpatient services, in line with the recent NICE guidance for the rehabilitation of adults with complex psychosis.]

Advancing mental health equalities strategy NHS England – September 2020

(This strategy summarises the core actions all mental health services need to take to better address inequalities in access, experience and outcomes across the sector. It is also an important element of the overall NHS plans to accelerate action to address health inequalities in the next stage of responding to Covid-19.)

NHS England

Delivering a ‘net zero’ NHS

This report provides an account of the NHS’s modelling and analytics underpinning the latest NHS carbon footprint, trajectories to net zero, and the interventions required to achieve that ambition. It lays out the direction, scale and pace of change. It describes an iterative and adaptive approach, which will periodically review progress and aims to increase the level of ambition over time. A greener NHS is on the way.

Greenhouse Gas Protocol scope for the NHS (NHS England)

To find out more click here.

‘Long Covid’ Sufferers

NHS to offer help at specialist centres

There is increasing evidence to suggest that 10% of Covid sufferers are still experiencing symptoms more than 3 weeks after infection and an estimated 60,0000 people suffering after 3 months of infection.

NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens announced that £10 million is to be invested this year in addition to local funding to help kick start and designate long covid clinics in every area across England, to complement existing primary, community and rehabilitation care.

He explained;
“While this is still a relatively new virus, we are learning more about covid with every passing week. It is now clear that long covid can have a major impact on the lives of a significant minority of patients weeks or months after they have contracted the virus. So just as the NHS quickly put in place specialist hospital care for acutely ill Covid patients at the start of the pandemic, now we must respond sensitively and effectively to these new patient needs.”

To read more about this, including the 5 part package of measure to boost NHS support for long covid patients click here.

Covid 19

Leaders warn of “full blown second surge” as hospital admissions rise

Healthcare leaders have warned that the NHS will face a full blown second suge of Covid without immediate action.

Yvonne Doyle, medical director for Public Health England, said, “We’re seeing a definite and sustained increase in cases and admissions to hospital. The trend is clear, and it is very concerning. Numbers of deaths from covid-19 are also rising so we must continue to act to reduce transmission of this virus.”

There are rising concerns that we could soon be back to where we were in April if we do not take action now. To find out more click here.

Creating the workforce of the future

A new collaborative approach for the NHS and colleges in England

This report follows a November 2019 roundtable held by the NHS Confederation and the Independent Commission on the College of the Future. It focused on the relationship between colleges and the NHS through the lens of integrated care systems. The report argues that by better embedding colleges into core NHS workforce development, and better using local recruitment and training power, a sustainable, agile and innovative future health and care workforce can be assured.

For more information click here.

Report of the independent review of NHS hospital food