Excellence in tobacco control: 10 High Impact Changes aims to achieve a sustainable and integrated approach to tobacco control at a local level. It clearly sets out the required actions for those charged with delivering tobacco control locally, and clearly identifies to senior stakeholders the need for high-level strategic support to achieve this.

The PCT Procurement Guide supports NHS commissioners in deciding whether and how to procure health services through formal tendering and market-testing exercises. The Guide sets out the policy and regulatory context for procurement, and issues to consider when developing a procurement strategy. The Guide should be read in conjunction with the Principles and rules for Cooperation and Competition, published as Annex D of the 2008/9 Operating Framework, and the Framework for Managing Choice Cooperation and Competition

The Framework for Managing Choice Cooperation and Competition supports SHAs and PCTs in understanding the roles, responsibilities, values and behaviours required for the effective management of choice and competition within the NHS. The Framework is the outcome of a series of workshops and seminars with senior SHA and PCT leaders. The Framework should be read in conjunction with the
Principles and rules for Cooperation and Competition (Annex D of the 2008/9 Operating Framework) and the PCT Procurement Guide (published 16 May 2008). Additionally, the Framework signals a further series of tools and guidance for system managers to be released throughout the year.

Delivering the National Programme for IT in the NHS is proving to be an enormous challenge. All elements of the Programme are advancing and some are complete, but the original timescales for the electronic Care Records Service, one of the central elements of the Programme, turned out to be unachievable, raised unrealistic expectations and put confidence in the Programme at risk.

• Executive Summary

• The National Programme for IT in the NHS: Progress since 2006: Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General: HC 484-I Session 2007-2008: Volume 1

• The National Programme for IT in the NHS: Progress since 2006: Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General: HC 484-I Session 2007-2008: Volume 2

The progress report on the Programme by the National Audit Office concludes that the original vision remains intact and still appears feasible. However, it is likely to take until 2014-15 before every NHS Trust in England has fully deployed the care records systems, four years later than planned. In the North, Midlands and East area, the software has taken much longer to develop than planned, so some Trusts have had to take an interim system. Completing the development of the system and introducing it in this area are significant challenges still to be addressed.

The year 2007/2008 - NHS Chief Executive’s annual report is NHS Chief Executive David Nicholson’s second annual report looks at the progress made across the NHS in the last 12 months, and the challenges for the year ahead. In addition to his annual report, David Nicholson has published a Framework for choice, cooperation and competition and a PCT procurement guide for health services.

Project: London is a clinic of Medecins Du Monde (UK) which aims to support migrants that need help accessing healthcare.  It has just  published its second annual report the Project: London report and recommendations 2007: Improving access to healthcare for the community’s most vulnerable.

The report finds no evidence of health tourism, with patients had been in the UK for an average of 3 years before accessing care from Project: London. Migrants are no more likely to have expensive, complicated medical needs than anyone else. It also identifies difficulties for pregnant women in accessing proper care. Although they were entitled, nearly 70% of the women had no access to care, a situation which puts both mother and child in jeopardy, and must be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Proposed changes to NHS access for migrants are unlikely to be cost effective because:

• Lack of GP access means no chance of preventing diseases
• Lack of GP access means no chance of early and affordable treatment of diseases – including those which are contagious
• Lack of GP access is likely to lead to increased pressure on already burdened A&E department.

The Heatwave Plan for England 2008 is published today on a day of blazing sunshine, so that should put paid to a summer in the UK. Its purpose is to enhance resilience in the event of a heatwave. It is an important component of overall emergency planning; and will become increasingly relevant in adapting to the impact of climate change.

Related documents:

Advice for health and social care professionals offers advice for individuals, or teams, engaged in primary care or social services, or for home care providers both on caring for people most at risk during a heatwave, and on organising others who provide care.

Heatwave: supporting vulnerable people before and during a heatwave - advice for care home managers and staff where people are especially at risk during a heatwave. The effects of heat occur rapidly, and to be effective, preparatory action has to be taken before the beginning of June. This factsheet details necessary preparations.

Heatwave: a guide to looking after yourself and others during hot weather providing useful information and advice on the hazards of a heatwave, how to recognise the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke, and how to deal with the effects of too much heat.

Public perceptions of privacy and dignity in hospitals is research, conducted by Ipsos MORI, involved 2,000 interviews with members of the public across the country. It was designed to explore perceptions towards privacy and dignity in hospitals, with particular emphasis on the importance of single-sex accommodation. Key findings are that cleanliness and staff attitudes are the most important factors for patients to feel they are treated with privacy and dignity in hospital.

When to share information has been developed as a cross-governmental initiative on behalf of Department of Health, Department for Children, Schools and Families, the Youth Justice Board and the Prison Service. It is set out in a pathway approach, with best practice case studies used to identify when, what, where and how information needs to be shared to ensure improved outcomes for children and young people, as outlined in Every Child Matters: Change for Children.

Five years on - are we half way there? from Diabetes UK suggests that half way through the ten-year plan, the NHS’s progress in achieving person-centred, co-ordinated care that aims to ensure fewer people develop diabetes and better care for those who have the condition will fail to deliver on the standards it set itself five years ago if it doesn’t refocus NHS efforts.

It finds that while some people with diabetes in some parts of the country receive excellent care, many are still not benefiting from the effective delivery of diabetes services that the NSF set out to achieve.  This puts almost 1.9 million people with diabetes in England at increased risk of serious complications including heart disease, stroke and blindness.

The NHS Next Stage Review has been led locally by clinicians in each NHS region. Seventy-four local clinical working groups, made up of some 2000 clinicians, have been looking at the clinical evidence and engaging with their local communities. They have developed improved models of care for their regions to ensure that the NHS is up to date with the latest clinical developments and is able to meet changing needs and expectations.

NHS Next Stage Review Leading Local Change sets the context for these local visions and the principles which will guide their implementation.

Changing for the Better provides best practice guidance on provide clear guidance for patients, the public and NHS staff on the processes underpinning changes to acute NHS services arising from the NHS Next Stage Review.

The Joint Committee on Human Rights (the Committee) published its report ‘A life like any other? human rights of adults with learning disabilities’ on 6 March 2008. This memorandum sets out the government response response to the conclusions and recommendations in that report.

The Evaluation of Early Medical Abortion (EMA) Pilot Sites - final report has been heavily reported in the mass media today.  It was commissioned by the Department of Health to assess the safety, effectiveness and acceptability of early medical abortions (EMAs) in non-traditional settings, and to help establish a protocol to cover the elements and processes required for the delivery of a safe EMA service in non-traditional settings.

Conclusions

• Subject to the fairly considerable limitations of the current study, and from a range of
  sources, including medical records, and staff and client views, there are no discernible
  differences between the pilot sites and their matched comparator sites in terms of the safety,
  effectiveness or acceptability of non-traditional sites for the administration of early medical
  abortions.

• Detailed protocols and guidelines should be developed to cover staffing requirements as well
  as clinical aspects of care.

• Given the importance of reassurance and support throughout the process, the centrality of
  suitably motivated and skilled nursing staff to any expansion of EMA provision cannot be
  overestimated.

The revised Code of Practice Mental Health Act has been prepared in accordance with section 118 of the Mental Health Act 1983 by the Secretary of State for Health after consulting such bodies as appeared to him to be concerned, and laid before Parliament. The Code will come into force in November 2008.

The House of Commons Health Committee: Modernising Medical Careers: Third Report of Session 2007–08: Volume I Report, together with formal minutes states the government had provided “inadequate leadership” however it also idenitfies that doctors were more concerned with factional interests than the common good.

This follows publication of the Tooke Report Aspiring to Excellence: Final report of the Independent Inquiry into Modernising Medical Careers which we posted about earlier in the year with the final report, the draft report and the government response.

Summary Care Record Early Adopter programme: An independent evaluation by University College London (Executive Summary) has found found that although the SCR offers real benefits for treating patients in emergency and unscheduled care settings, the ‘complicated’ technical system needs to be refined before being rolled out. NHS staff and patients are positive in regards to the programme, with most people valuing the benefits of instant access to medical records over the small risk of data loss or breach.

The addendum guidance sets out the process for assurance of the delivery of the capital development programme for inpatient and residential substance misuse (drug and alcohol) services 2007/08 and 2008/09, including guidance on the reallocation of funds. The National Treatment Agency (NTA) via Regional Forums is managing this process.

The Common core principles to support self care have been developed by Skills for Health and Skills for Care with key stakeholders, including service users and carers, to develop a set of common core principles to support self care. The principles capture best practice in order to enable service reform and encourage choice, control, independence and participation of those using health and social services.

Making the connections: using healthcare professionals to deliver organisational improvements aims to help the NHS understand how Non-Medical Prescribing can help to deliver services, the Department of Health commissioned Primary Care Contracting to produce 6 Nurse Prescribing and 6 Pharmacist Prescribing case studies.  Many nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers manage their own caseloads including in dedicated clinics - helping patients to manage long-term conditions’ or by treating one-off episodes of care in GP Practices or in Walk-in Centres and in Accident and Emergency Departments.