BMA warning over law limiting junior doctors’ hours – The Guardian 30th December 2008
The NHS faces serious problems in the coming year when a European law comes into effect limiting the working hours of junior doctors, the British Medical Association has warned.
It says hospitals are not ready and money from the government to help primary care trusts prepare for the change appears to have disappeared, and has probably been spent on other priorities. Hospitals could find themselves short staffed, which would threaten the quality of care patients receive.
Additional Story
Privacy fears may slow big genome project to tackle killer diseases – The Guardian 30th December 2008
Fears that sensitive genetic and health data will not be kept securely may be slowing recruitment to a medical research project designed to help further understanding of how to tackle deadly medical conditions.
Only one in 10 are signing up after receiving a letter inviting them to take part in the UK Biobank project. A report seen by the Guardian suggests that “security is likely to be a key decisive consideration for potential participants”.
The five-year-old’s guide to drinking safely – The Independent 30th December 2008
Parents are to be given guidance in the new year for the first time as to how much alcohol their children can drink safely from the ages of five to 18.
The Government is also reviewing whether the current age at which it is legal to drink should remain at five.
Medical fitness of drivers to be tested – The Independent 30th December 2008
Drivers may have to declare that they are medically fit to be on the road every ten years, according to proposals from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
Motorists would be able to choose to take the test but risked a criminal record if they were later found to fall short of standards, it was reported.
Wife of dead man queries hospital trust over delay in A&E – The Times 30th December 2008
A hospital trust is facing questions after a man died having waited more than six hours to be seen in an accident and emergency department.
Medway NHS Foundation Trust said it was saddened to hear of the death of Stewart Fleming but said that its emergency ward was experiencing long waits because of a high number of admissions.
Additional Story
‘Miracle’ recovery after arm severed by chainsaw is reattached – The Times 30th December 2008
Most people are less than happy to be working at Christmas, but John Stirling was thrilled to be back at his desk just ten weeks after cutting off his arm with a chainsaw in a gardening accident.
Mr Stirling, 59, who described his swift recovery as a miracle, has surprised doctors with the speed at which his arm has healed, allowing him to get back to work as manager of New-haven marina in time for the Christmas party season.
Additional Story
Couple die from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning on Christmas Day – The Telegraph 29th December 2008
A teacher and her partner died side-by-side in bed from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning on Christmas Day.
Size 14 women ‘happiest with life and looks’ – The Telegraph 29th December 2008
Size 14 women are the happiest with their life and looks, according to a new study
Additional Story
Lack of sleep really can affect a person’s sanity, research shows – The Telegraph 29th December 2008
Insomnia has been linked to feelings of paranoia – just as Shakespeare depicted in the play Macbeth – scientists have found.
Flu and winter bugs cause three-fold rise in visits to GPs – The Telegraph 29th December 2008
GPs are seeing a three fold increase in patients and are putting on extra surgeries to cope with the surge in flu and winter bugs.
NHS trust members ‘enjoyed food and wine tours and Harley rides’ during Australian conference – The Telegraph 29th December 2008
A National Health Service Trust spent almost £9,000 sending three members of staff to a conference in Australia where delegates could indulge in food and wines tours and Harley Davidson rides.
NHS spends £45m on special equipment for obese patients – Daily Mail 30th December 2008
Hospitals are having to spend millions on specialist equipment to treat and transport obese patients.
Figures released under freedom of information laws show the NHS has spent almost £45million on reinforced beds, heavy-duty ambulances and hoists.
The figures will heighten concern about the financial pressure on the Health Service as a result of the obesity epidemic.
Anne Diamond admits for the first time how little she knew about gastric bands and how her operation went horribly wrong – Daily Mail 30th December 2008
Millions of overweight Britons are at risk of life-threatening disease. As a last resort, many are turning to gastric band surgery – on the NHS and, more often, privately. But do they understand what’s involved?
Born at just 23 weeks, the baby who defied our abortion laws – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
When Lexie Slater-Folksman was born at 23 weeks – an age at which babies can still be aborted – she weighed just 1lb 8oz.
She was put on a life support machine and her parents were warned their daughter might not pull through.
She was so premature her eyes hadn’t even developed properly. At a month old she underwent laser surgery on her eyes and then spent week after week on ventilator machines after she suffered collapsed lungs.
Surgeons used the space shuttle’s nose to cure my arthritis – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
Many thousands of Britons suffer from arthritis in the hands. Roy Carter, 69, a volunteer ambulance driver from Hampshire, became one of the first to have new knuckles made from material used in the NASA space shuttle.
Here, Roy tells his story to Thea Jourdan, while his surgeon explains the procedure.
Dreaming of a good night’s sleep: Unravelling the insomnia ‘cures’ to find the best way to nod off – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
Millions of Britons are missing out on a good night’s sleep as a result of insomnia – an estimated one-third of all adults suffer from it at some point in their lives. Desperate for rest, they face a bewildering choice of treatments, from talking therapies, to pills and herbs.
But what really works – or are sleeping pills the only solution?
Not getting any better? You may need medicines made just for you – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
Why do some people respond better to their medicine than others? It’s a question that has long vexed doctors – and their frustrated patients.
With nearly all conditions there are many patients who show little or no response to medication.
Health news: Inhalers could replace jabs, an implant for Parkinson’s and how talking helps hip patients recover – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
In our pick of top health stories this week, an asthma-style inhaler could signal the end of painful injections, tiny capsules implanted in the brain could combat Parkinson’s disease and a ‘rapid recovery’ service after hip and knee replacements.
Ask the doctor: Housemaid’s knee? Don’t let your GP go near it! – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
I’m 47 and have always been fit and healthy, but a few months ago I developed a large swelling on my right knee. The doctor diagnosed bursitis (or housemaid’s knee). Resting it didn’t help, so she drained it and gave me a steroid injection.
I’ve now had this done three times, but the swelling remains. I then saw an orthopaedic specialist who suggested surgery. Both the doctor and specialist said the swelling is not harmful and it doesn’t hurt, although it tingles when I’ve been walking a lot. Is an operation absolutely necessary
The TV set that keeps an eye on Alzheimer’s sufferers – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
A box that sits on top of a TV set is being used to keep a round-the-clock eye on the elderly in their own homes.
It is expected to help the frail, infirm, or those in the early stages of dementia live independently for longer.
It is connected to sensors placed around the house that monitor the person’s movements, the air temperature and whether front doors are open or closed.
Why are so many hospital doctors sending their patients home too early? – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
Two weeks after undergoing a triple heart bypass, hospital staff said Brian was ready to go home.
Though the 70-year-old was suffering bouts of severe breathlessness, he was told he’d be able to manage on his own.
Yet once he was at home, Brian found breathing so difficult he wasn’t able to lie down in bed, and two days after being discharged from hospital, he had to be readmitted. He was put on oxygen immediately and spent a week in hospital.
He thought he’d avoided the disease that killed his father. But then Neil’s joy at his son’s birth turned to painful anguish – Daily Mail 29th December 2008
This time last year, Neil Platt should have been at home with his wife Louise, celebrating his four-month-old baby’s first Christmas.
Instead, he sat in a consulting room at a nearby London hospital, filled with dread. Two months before, he’d lost the ability to lift his right foot properly. Although a raft of tests had come back clear, he knew something was wrong.
NHS ‘fast losing its compassion’ – BBC Health News 29th December 2008
There has been a deterioration in the level of compassion in the NHS in recent years, the head of a leading health think-tank has told the BBC.
The King’s Fund is running a special project to try to get nurses and other staff to focus on being compassionate.
Cyberknife boost to cancer care – BBC Health News 29th December 2008
A robot radiotherapy machine to treat cancer is to be available in the UK for the first time from February.
Called the Cyberknife, it moves with a patient’s breathing so tumours can be targeted with greater accuracy, and damage to healthy tissue is reduced.
The machine will be at the private Harley Street Clinic in London.
Warning of ‘tough year’ for NHS – BBC Health News 29th December 2008
The leader of Scotland’s doctors has warned of a tough year ahead for the NHS due to increasing demands on the service and falls in funding.
Dr Peter Terry, chairman of the British Medical Association Scotland, said rules on hours worked by junior doctors would also leave a gap in provision.
Soaps ‘miss out health messages’ – BBC Health News 29th December 2008
Soap characters with unhealthy lifestyles should be shown reaping the consequences, say doctors.
Private healthcare firm Bupa has released its “top ten” unhealthiest characters, arguing they could be used to hammer home health messages.
‘Morning after’ drink-drive alert – BBC Health News 29th December 2008
Four out of five motorists suspect they have driven while over the alcohol limit on the morning after a night out or party, according to the AA.
Almost half of more than 11,000 respondents in an online Populus poll said they knew people who drink-drive.
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