Evidence for leadership in health care

Evidence for leadership in health care The delivery of clinical care is based on careful research to determine the most effective way of providing care for patients. At the same time the NHS spends huge amounts on leadership development without a clear understanding of what kind of leadership and leadership development has most impact on patient outcomes.

I have spent the past two years undertaking a review of the evidence on leadership and outcomes, with a particular focus on what is known about leadership in health care. The findings are published today as Leadership and leadership development in health care: the evidence base.

Public attitudes to the NHS

Public attitudes to the NHS This report analyses the results of a series of questions about the NHS that were included in the 2014 British Social Attitudes Survey, undertaken by NatCen Social Research. The survey took place in late summer/early autumn 2014 and 2,878 adults from across Great Britain were surveyed. The Health Foundation

Guidance: NHS Energy Efficiency Fund report

Guidance: NHS Energy Efficiency Fund report The aim of the NHS Energy Efficiency Fund is to reduce NHS estate operating costs. This is done by investing in selected energy efficiency projects and then reinvesting any savings back into frontline care. Department of Health

NHS and Department of Health investigations into Jimmy Savile

NHS and Department of Health investigations into Jimmy Savile The reports into the activities of Jimmy Savile in relation to hospitals/hospice premises have been published by the relevant hospital trusts - 44 reports have been published: 28 in June 2014 and 16 in February 2015. Department of Health

See also:

• Savile 'abused 63 people at hospital' BBC News
• Hospital staff 'told of Savile abuse' BBC News
• In their own words: Jimmy Savile's victims 'badly let down' by the NHS 
• Jimmy Savile: Stoke Mandeville abuse report to be published The Guardian

Hospital inpatient care: almost 900 more admissions per day compared to previous year

Hospital inpatient care: almost 900 more admissions per day compared to previous year HSCIC releases new detailed data on Admitted Patient Care and Maternity. Health and Social Care Information Centre

'Game changer' HIV drug cuts infection risk by 86%

'Game changer' HIV drug cuts infection risk by 86% "Scientists hail discovery of 'game-changer' that cuts the risk of infection among gay men by 86%," The Independent reports. The drug, Truvada, has proved very successful in a "real-world" trial involving 545 participants.

Truvada is currently used as part of a treatment plan for people with HIV. It stops the virus from replicating, which helps protect the immune system.

Researchers wanted to see if it could also prevent the infection taking hold in the first place and have now presented initial results at a conference.

They recruited gay men, other men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women who were HIV negative and at high risk of HIV infection from 13 sexual health clinics in England. They randomly assigned them to either immediately start taking Truvada each day, or to wait and start taking it 12 months later.

The researchers also wanted to see if taking the medication made people more likely to increase their sexual risk-taking behaviour because they thought they were protected.

It is reported that both groups had the same rate of other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), an indication that sexual risk-taking did not change. The incidence of HIV infection in their first year of the study was much smaller in the Truvada group, at three people compared to 19 in the group who had to wait for a year before starting taking Truvada.

Exclusive: NHS England set to miss dementia diagnosis target

Exclusive: NHS England set to miss dementia diagnosis target NHS England is unlikely to meet its 67% target for diagnosing patients with dementia, analysis by GP has found. GP Online

Nearly one third of NHS staff would not feel safe whistleblowing over unsafe care

Nearly one third of NHS staff would not feel safe whistleblowing over unsafe care Meanwhile fewer staff were satisfied enough with standard of care to recommend it to a patient or friend. OnMedica

Strong support for proposals to improve patient protection and public confidence in doctors

Strong support for proposals to improve patient protection and public confidence in doctors A major consultation by the General Medical Council (GMC) has found strong support for proposals to deal with the small number of doctors who put patients at significant risk or cause them harm. General Medical Council

GP shortages don't need to be filled from outside EU, say migration experts

GP shortages don't need to be filled from outside EU, say migration experts Migration committee says medical students should get incentives to become GPs rather than consultants and denies there is shortage of nurses.

Shortages of GPs in Britain do not need to be met by further recruitment of overseas doctors from outside Europe, the government’s official migration advisers have said.

They also rejected claims there is a national shortage of nurses that needs to be met by further overseas recruitment. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• RCGP anger as overseas GP recruitment ruled out despite workforce crisis GP Online
• "Nursing shortage is very real", RCN tells Migration Advisory Committee Royal College of Nursing

How an overlooked workforce is key to rescuing the NHS

How an overlooked workforce is key to rescuing the NHS Allied health professionals are well primed to address key challenges facing health and social care.

Their numbers have grown by a third since 2002 and they now make up about 6% of the NHS workforce. They already deliver the prevention, public health services and integrated out-of-hospital care that NHS England’s Five Year Forward View and the health service financial sustainability agenda are crying out for.

They are the allied health professionals (AHPs): occupational therapists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, paramedics, prosthetists and others – who, according to a landmark investigation by the Nuffield Trust and the Health Foundation, are well primed to address the key challenges facing health and care. Yet, the same research also says, their contribution to the NHS is obscured. Continue reading... The Guardian

Manchester plan for 'joined-up' NHS and social care could go national

Manchester plan for 'joined-up' NHS and social care could go national A ground-breaking plan to devolve the £6bn NHS and social care budget in Greater Manchester to the region’s councils and health bodies could become the model for many parts of England. The Independent

See also:

• Discussions in Greater Manchester around a new partnership for health and social care are underway NHS England
• Our response to the proposed new partnership for health and social care in Greater Manchester The King's Fund
• RCN responds to discussions of devolved health and social care in Greater Manchester Royal College of Nursing
• Greater Manchester: The start of something big? BBC News
Can the city of Manchester save the NHS? The Daily Telegraph
• IT issues for Manchester NHS devolution E-Health Insider
• Council holding health budget for Manchester could mean further reorganisation, GPs warn GP Online
• Manchester CCGs back plans to devolve £6bn NHS budget GP Online 
• Greater Manchester councils to control £6bn of health spending - report The Guardian
• Q&A: NHS budget plans for Greater Manchester The Independent
• Devolution: Now Greater Manchester gets control of its entire £6bn NHS budget Manchester Evening News