Issue 8: 20 November 2014
Quality and Safety eBulletin
Welcome to the Quality and Safety eBulletin
This eBulletin brings you the latest news from key national agencies and initiatives across
the UK, under themed headings.
We welcome your feedback on the eBulletin. Please contact us at
qualityandsafety@rcn.org.uk.
Claire Constable, Sarah Raybone and Ross Scrivener
RCN Nursing Department
RCN highlights
Good practice for handling feedback. The RCN has published new guidance to help health care
workers deal with feedback, concerns, complaints and compliments. The pamphlet has been
developed following discussion with RCN members about their own experiences. It is part of the
RCN’s commitment to help improve the way the NHS handles feedback and complaints following
the Clwyd-Hart review into the NHS complaints system. Consultation with RCN members revealed
that many feel there is a lack of information in their workplace from their employers on what the
process is for dealing with complaints, and what is expected of them.
RCN launches new guidance for handling feedback
The RCN's History of Nursing Society is looking for two members to join the steering committee.
Committee members support and promote the work of the society and lead on specialist projects
and initiatives within their skill set. The deadline for applications is Wednesday 26 November 2014.
For more information, see: RCN History of Nursing Society Steering Committee member.
Nursing staff are key to meeting the challenge of antibiotic resistance. As European Antibiotic
Awareness Day takes place on 18 November, the RCN and the European Federation of Nurses
Associations (EFN) are highlighting the key contribution that nursing staff across Europe make in
meeting the challenge of antibiotic resistance.
Loss of senior nursing posts means NHS is losing vital skills and experience – when it needs it the
most. The number of senior nurses in the NHS has fallen by almost 3400, according to new
figures. In May 2010, there were 66,832 senior nurses – now there are 63,458. “Cutting senior
nursing posts means that the NHS has lost vital experience and knowledge, built up over many
years, at a time when it needs it more than ever."
RCN Ceremony of Remembrance. The RCN is hosting its 2014 Ceremony of Remembrance on
Wednesday 26 November 2014 at 5.30pm to remember nurses and medical staff who have died in
wars and conflicts. Held at the RCN headquarters at 20 Cavendish Square, London W1G 0RN, the
RCN will also honour the sacrifices made by nurses and other defence medical services personnel
killed or wounded caring for victims.
Latest updates from This is nursing include:

Why we need to talk about dying. The RCN has published details of our member survey
that has seen nurses raise profound concerns about dying in the UK. Amanda Cheesley,
RCN lead on end of life care, explores the issue of talking about dying.

The NICE way to stop the pressure- blog. As part of Stop the Pressure Month, a NHS
England led campaign that raises awareness of preventing and managing pressure ulcers,
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and NICE have teamed up to tell us about a joint
guidance published on the topic.
RCN Principles of Nursing Practice. The Principles of Nursing Practice are used by the RCN to
describe what everyone can expect from nursing. The website has been revamped and is designed
to bring you up to speed with all aspects of the RCN's work relating to the Principles. We show how
you can make connections between the Principles and local and national statements defining the
quality of nursing care, and help you find ways to demonstrate how these values translate into
practice. We have drawn on relevant RCN publications to identify how the Principles underpin
nursing care. We also show how nursing staff animate the Principles and use them to reflect on
their practice.
NICE Consultation Gateway
The NICE consultation gateway pages provide information about the work that NICE does, current
NICE consultations and new topics for guideline and guidance development, and how you can get
involved. We will highlight these pages in every bulletin.
You can find out the latest on NICE consultations and new topics in development at Current
consultations and topics in development.
RCN events
The RCN organises an annual programme of events and conferences, including RCN Congress, to
support all health care professionals with their personal and professional development. See:

RCN national events

England regions and branches

Northern Ireland

Scotland

Wales.
Events
Advances and current practice in ENT and maxillofacial. Developed by nurses for nurses, this one
day conference will include evidence based presentations to update clinical practice and provide a
platform for discussion within ENT/MAXFAX. Nurses with an interest in ENT/MAX and
decontamination in ENT are invited to attend and gain valuable access to best practice examples to
take back to the workplace and improve patient outcomes. 24 November 2014 - RCN HQ, 20
Cavendish Square, London W1G 0RN.
RCN Looked after children nurses network for a half day event on Monday 1 December
2014. Confirmed speaker: Lynn Davinson, Childrens Inspection team leader, Care Quality
Commisson (CQC).
FGM Zero Tolerance and Maximum Action. 06 February 2015, RCN HQ, 20 Cavendish Square,
London W1G 0RN. This event will be launching the updated RCN Publication FGM – guidance for
nurses and midwives and is designed to increase awareness among nurses and midwives.
Quality improvement
Audit, reviews, legislation, inspections, regulation
Clinical Audit Support Centre. eNewsletter, Issue 67. November 2014 issue now available.
DH. Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework (ASCOF) 2015-2016. The ASCOF measures how well
care and support services achieve the outcomes that matter most to people.
King’s Fund. Exploring CQC’s well-led domain. The CQC’s inspections focus on five key lines of
enquiry as part of its ‘well-led’ domain. This paper sets out what boards can do in these five areas
and draws on examples of good practice in leadership and culture in health care. It has been
written as a practical guide for board members in strengthening leadership and culture and in
preparing for CQC inspections.
Welsh Government. Learning from Trusted to Care. Following the publication of Trusted to Care
Mark Drakeford AM, Minister for Health and Social Services ordered a series of unannounced ‘spot
check’ visits to district general hospitals. Reports are now available providing details on their
findings from each hospital visited. An All Wales report has also been compiled bringing together
results and good practice from all the hospital sites.
Guidance, innovation, tools
DH. Adult autism statutory guidance. The DH seeks views on new guidance to support ‘Think
Autism’ and the adult autism strategy.
DH. Ebola virus disease: clinical management and guidance. Guidance, resources and information
for professionals about Ebola virus disease, a severe viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF).
Ebola and infectivity: factsheet. Factsheet on how Ebola virus disease (EVD) is transmitted and
how the infectiousness of an Ebola case changes during the period of illness.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland. New guidelines on palliative care in Scotland
published. Supported by Healthcare Improvement Scotland and the Scottish Partnership for
Palliative Care, the updated guidelines reflect expert opinion about good practice in the
management of adult patients at the end of life.
King’s Fund. Commissioning and contracting for integrated care. This report describes how CCGs in
England are innovating with two broad models – the prime contract and alliance contract. It draws
on experiences from five geographical areas, covering different population and disease groups
(cancer, end-of-life care, musculoskeletal services, mental health rehabilitation, and older people’s
services). It concludes by highlighting four lessons that CCGs, other commissioners and providers
should keep in mind as they embark on new models of commissioning and contracting to support
integrated care.
NHS Confederation. Know your NHS abbreviations. Test your knowledge with our acronym buster
quiz. See how many NHS acronyms and abbreviations you can crack.
NHS Improving Quality. Seven Day Service Self-Assessment Tool. Seven Day Service SelfAssessment Tool. A national self-assessment tool has been developed to allow organisations to
baseline provision of seven day services. The tool will enable you to self assess current level of
service provision, using nationally agreed definitions, and help you to understand your local needs
and requirements to deliver extended services.
Public Health England. Information to support the commissioning of chlamydia screening in general
practice and community pharmacies.This guidance is for commissioning chlamydia screening in
general practice and community pharmacies. It can be adapted to suit local circumstances and
provides suggested sections that commissioners may wish to include in their contracts with
providers of chlamydia screening.
Public Health England. European Antibiotic Awareness Day: resources toolkit for healthcare
professionals in England. This guidance is to help the NHS, local authorities and others to support
European Antibiotic Awareness Day and the Antibiotic Guardian campaign, to encourage
responsible use of antibiotics.
Public Health England. Men need humour and camaraderie to lose weight. A new How to guide
launched by the Men’s Health Forum charity, and supported by Public Health England, is the first
to show how to adapt and run weight-loss programmes that are tailored specifically for men.
Practice examples and case studies
NHS Confederation. NHS partners network members’ clinical case studies now online. The NHS
Confederation's NHS Partners Network (NHSPN) has published a collection of case studies which
demonstrate how the independent healthcare sector is supporting the NHS and contributing to
high-quality clinical care.
NHS National Institute for Health Research. Community engagement is key for diabetes
research. North Thames consists of around 80 percent ethnic minority groups and one of the
largest communities is Bangladeshi. Traditionally, this group has not engaged with diabetes
research, even though they are seven times more likely to have diabetes than white people.
Reports, commentary, statistics
Age UK. Older not colder report. The research published to launch the Charity’s Campaign for
Warm Homes, clearly shows that high energy bills and fuel poverty, together with hard-to-heat,
energy-inefficient homes are weighing heavily on the minds of older people. Around five million
over-65s say escalating energy bills is one of their main concerns over the winter months.
Academy of Medical Royal Colleges. Protecting resources, promoting value: a doctor’s guide to
cutting waste in clinical care. This report, written by two clinicians for the Academy of Medical
Royal Colleges, provides a framework to “think critically about waste from a clinical perspective
and provides examples of doctors improving value of health care by reducing waste”. It draws
heavily on the ‘Lean’ method, first developed 50 years ago to improve efficiency and productivity
in car manufacturing. Here, waste is defined as any activity that does not add value from the
patient perspective. Waste is synonymous with inefficiency. There are two main types of efficiency
in health care: technical and allocative.
BMC Health Services Research. Patient and public attitudes to and awareness of clinical practice
guidelines: a systematic review with thematic and narrative syntheses. The main objective of this
review is to identify and synthesise evidence of the public’s attitudes towards clinical practice
guidelines and evidence-based recommendations written for providers or the public, together with
their awareness of guidelines.
Centre for Mental Health. The lifetime costs of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD). “This dissertation aims to compile a broad estimate of the total economic impact of ADHD
to society over the course of the lifetime of a typical-case individual suffering from ADHD.”
Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC). World diabetes day
newsletter. World Diabetes Day (14 November 2015) aims to raise awareness of the risks and
costs of diabetes to health systems throughout the world. Diabetes is a highly prevalent, long term
condition, making it one of the biggest and most expensive challenges in the world.
Department of Health. Changes to the health visiting service. This document provides information
on changes to the health visiting service including how the services are commissioned. It also
provides information for health practitioners, providers and local authorities on changes to the
Healthy Child Programme, the Health Visiting Programme and on the importance of health visiting.
DH. 'Think Autism': an update to the government adult autism strategy. ‘Think Autism’ sets out a
clear programme the Department of Health and other government departments will be taking to
improve the lives of people with autism, primarily through taking actions that will support local
authorities, the NHS, other public services and their partners with their local implementation work.
DH. 21st Century healthcare for the whole NHS. The Secretary of State for Health, Jeremy Hunt,
attended the Kings Fund Annual Conference on Thursday 13 November 2014 to outline plans for a
more personalised, 21st century healthcare for the whole NHS.
Guardian. The NHS needs a 10-year funding commitment. The NHS Confederation chief executive
explains the benefits of giving the health service a longer financial settlement.
Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP). Increased in advanced techniques to
diagnose prostate cancer. The first report of the National Prostate Cancer Audit (NPCA) looks at
whether NHS services in England and Wales for men diagnosed with prostate cancer meet
recommended standards.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Evidence of improvement in care for older people in hospitals
says new report. The report on the care of older people in acute hospitals which provides an
overview of Healthcare Improvement Scotland inspections between May 2013 to July 2014 and the
impact of associated national improvement programmes on frailty and delirium.
Implementation Science. Rethinking capacity building for knowledge mobilisation: developing
multilevel capabilities in healthcare organisations. This conceptual paper uses empirical and
theoretical literature on organisational learning and dynamic capabilities to enhance our
understanding of intentional capacity building for knowledge mobilisation in healthcare
organisations.
Joseph Rowntree Foundation. How can positive risk-taking help build dementia-friendly
communities? Managing risk can dominate everyday practice in dementia care. However, based on
learning from approaches developed in statutory mental health services, the benefits of ‘positive
risk-taking’ can outweigh the negative effect of avoiding risk altogether.”
King's Fund. Tackling poverty: making more of the NHS in England. The research on which this
paper is based was commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation to inform its work to
develop an anti-poverty strategy for the United Kingdom. Importantly for potential poverty
reduction, the NHS has immense economic power as well as massive scale and reach in the
population. As a country we are now spending more than £100 billion on the NHS in England, and
there are more than 300 million consultations in general practice every year alone, and more in
hospital and other community services. But it is far less clear that the most is being made of that
potential in terms of the effect on poverty.
Local Government Association. Making an impact through good governance: a practical guide for
health and wellbeing boards. Now that health and wellbeing boards are fully operational, their
emphasis is on being as effective as possible in their statutory and influencing roles. This guide
discusses how health and wellbeing boards can make an impact through their governance
structures and procedures – delivering business within council constitutional requirements, as
required by statute – while enabling all board members to participate as equal partners.
National Audit Office. The financial sustainability of NHS bodies. This report finds that the financial
position of the NHS has worsened since 2012-13, with growing financial stress in NHS trusts and
foundation trusts. It notes that financial risk is increasing in NHS trusts and foundation trusts, and
those in severe financial difficulty continue to rely on in-year cash support from the Department of
Health. In 2013-14, over £0.5 billion extra money was issued to 21 NHS trusts and 10 foundation
trusts to ensure that organisations in difficulty have the cash they need to pay staff and creditors.
National Audit Office. Planning for the better care fund. The Better Care Fund is an innovative idea
but the quality of early preparation and planning did not match the scale of the ambition. Current
plans forecast £314m of savings for the NHS rather than the £1 billion in early planning
assumptions.
NHS Confederation. More national levers needed to drive essential improvements to CAMHS
services. A new Health Select Committee (HSC) report states there are ‘serious and deeply
ingrained problems’ with the commissioning of child and adolescent mental health services. These
problems were considered to run through the whole system from prevention and early
intervention, to inpatient services for the most vulnerable young people.
Northern Ireland Executive. Child exploitation report. In an Oral Statement to the Assembly, the
Minister told MLAs that the inquiry concludes that while child sexual exploitation is not new in
Northern Ireland and takes many forms, it has been difficult to establish its prevalence, mainly due
to its hidden nature and under-reporting.
Older People's Commissioner for Wales. A place to call home? This report is the result of review
into the quality of life for older people living in care homes in Wales and it finds that too many
older people are no longer able to do the things that matter to them, lose meaningful choice and
control over their lives, have their emotional needs neglected and do not have their basic rights
upheld. It also highlights that many care homes adopt a one-size-fits-all approach which often fails
to meet the needs of individuals.
Royal College of Midwives. Postnatal care planning (PDF 1.5MB). “The impact that good postnatal
care could have on women’s experiences and their long-term health in the context of the
increasing complexity of the health of women who become pregnant, more intervention in labour,
the high rate of caesarean sections and widespread morbidity should not be underestimated”.
Think Local Act Personal. Information and Advice Strategy Tool. A step-by-step online guide to
help local authorities meet the requirements of the Care Act and associated statutory guidance in
relation to the provision of information and advice. It is designed around a six stage process for
developing an information and advice strategy. Each stage of the process contains material
including questions to be addressed, tools, links to useful resources and case examples.
Welsh Government. Primary care services for Wales up to March 2018. The plan gives details
about the future development of the services provided in Wales.
Patient safety
Care Inspectorate. NHS Health Scotland’s position statement on ENDS (e-cigarettes and other
simulator products). They acknowledge that this continues to be a rapidly changing area and will
continue to monitor the evidence and other aspects as they evolve, reviewing and updating the
statement when required. Their focus, though, remains on health and on sustaining and advancing
on the progress to date in order to achieve a ‘tobacco-free’ generation.
Guardian Health. Cataract inquiry shows patients suffered ‘potentially serious harm’. This
Guardian news story highlights how human error led to patients receiving overdoses of antibiotics
during surgery and states that action has been taken to ensure patient safety.
Harm Free Care. Making your stay with us safe. Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Trust developed an
award-winning 'airline style' patient safety card. This card is now available for all NHS trusts to
use. Designed as part of an inpatient Welcome Pack, the safety card supports our commitment to
patient safety and enables patients to play an active role in their care. A short film – akin to an
airline video – has also been developed.
Health Education England. Education and Training for Patient Safety Commission outlines next
steps. The Commission on Education and Training for Patient Safety, established by HEE to put
patient safety at the heart of education and training for the health and healthcare workforce, has
outlined the first steps of how it will undertake its review of the current provision of patient safety
measures and the actions to improve this.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Management of adverse events. Healthcare Improvement
Scotland has been working with NHS boards across NHSScotland to improve the effective
management of, and learning from, adverse events. This publication provides an overview of their
work to date including their adverse events review programme and the development of a national
framework to support NHS boards in managing adverse events.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Red alert for patient safety. Ex-Red Arrows pilot Justin Hughes
jets in for safety brief at SPSP national conference.
Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors. Human Factors in Healthcare (PDF 147KB). Quality
improvement, medication practices with infusion devices and electronic notification &
documentation are some of the topics in the latest IEHF Human Factors in Healthcare information
sheet. Additional human factors information sheets.
Evidence based practice
BBC News Health. Breastfeeding problems linked to injection after birth. New mothers given an
injection after their baby is born are more prone to problems with breastfeeding, a study has
indicated.
BMC Psychiatry. Initial and long-term evaluation of patients with Alzheimer’s after hospitalization
in cognitive and behavioural units. The primary objective of this study was to determine the
factors associated with the evolution of behavioural disorders among patients with Alzheimer’s
disease and related disorders during the year following their hospitalisation in cognitive and
behavioural units.
Implementation Science. Predicting risk of hospital and emergency department use for home care
elderly persons through a secondary analysis of cross-national data. This project was designed to
further understanding of the reasons for older adult emergency department visits and admissions
to acute care hospitals.
NICE. NICE issues final guidance on ‘spray-on skin’ technology for healing burn wounds, and
garments to prevent pressure ulcers. NICE has published final medical technology guidance on two
different technologies which are found to be promising – but which both need more evidence on
their use in clinical practice before they can be supported for routine use in the NHS.
NICE medical technologies guidance. Parafricta Bootees and Undergarments to reduce skin
breakdown in people with or at risk of pressure ulcers. NICE has said that Parafricta Bootees and
Undergarments show potential to reduce the development and progression of skin damage caused
by friction and shear in people with, or at risk of, pressure ulcers. Research is recommended to
address uncertainties about the claimed patient and system benefits of using the garments.
NICE evidence updates. NICE has published the following updates:

Lower limb peripheral arterial disease. A summary of selected new evidence relevant to
NICE clinical guideline 147 ‘Lower limb peripheral arterial disease: diagnosis and
management’ (2012).

Psoriasis. A summary of selected new evidence relevant to NICE clinical guideline 153 ‘The
assessment and management of psoriasis’ (2012).
NICE. Department of Health begins three-yearly review of NICE. Announced in October by George
Freeman MP, the minister responsible for NICE, the review will look in detail at the function, form
and governance of NICE as a non-departmental public body. All non-departmental public bodies
(NDPBs) undergo a review at least once every three years. NICE’s review will begin this month,
with a final report scheduled to be published in February 2015.
NICE. NICE guidance on smoking cessation in hospitals could have a major impact on cutting
smoking rates. Clinicians should make better use of opportunities to help people quit smoking
when they present to hospitals in England, and have the potential to prevent hundreds of
thousands of premature deaths by reaching 1.1 million smokers each year, say researchers.
NICE. NICE refutes arguments against wider statin use. Responding to an open letter sent to the
House of Commons Health Select Committee, NICE chair Professor David Haslam has said statins
are safe and effective.
Public Health England. Carbon monoxide (CO): antenatal checks algorithm for midwives. An
algorithm for midwives to help diagnose carbon monoxide poisoning in pregnant women and offer
advice for women in the event of exposure.
Patient focus
AARP International - The Journal. Neighbourhood care: nurses leading the way. Buurtzorg
('neighborhood care') is an innovative approach in the Netherlands which was set up to deliver
home care. It originated in 2006 from the staff’s dissatisfaction of traditional home care
organisations. Bureaucratic duties, working in isolation from other care providers, and, above all,
neglect of their professional competencies, were amongst the numerous complaints. Since then
Buurtzorg has become a major success story in the Netherlands drawing accolades from the Dutch
Ministry, patient organisations and others.
RSA Replay: Humanity Above Bureaucracy.
BBC News Health. Patients struggle to book appointments with GP. Patients at one in six surgeries
have problems booking appointments, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said after an inspection
of 336 practices.
Health Foundation. What does person –centred care mean? Patients give their views on what
person-centred care means to them.
Health and Social Care Public Health Agency. Communicating effectively with a person living with
dementia. This booklet provides advice for the carers and family members of people living with
dementia.
House of Commons Public Accounts Committee. Out-of-hours GP services in England. This report
finds that patients’ experience of and satisfaction with the out-of-hours services varies significantly
and unacceptably across the country, as does the cost.
INVOLVE. Learning to listen at Parkinson’s UK. Parkinson’s UK has introduced a user involvement
team and employed people with Parkinson’s to work across each department to support teams to
improve the way they involve people in their work. Meaningful involvement was introduced as a
team performance measure and recruitment, induction programmes and on-going training now
had a strong user involvement focus.
INVOLVE. Using social media for public involvement in research. Article discussing the use of social
media to encourage public involvement in research.
King’s Fund. People in control of their own health and care. “Putting involvement at the forefront of
policy and practice provides the opportunity not only to create an effective and sustainable health
and care system, but also to contribute to a more equitable and healthier society.”
King’s Fund. People in control of their own health and care. The idea that people should have a
stronger voice in decisions about their health and care, and that services should better reflect their
needs and preferences, has been a policy goal of politicians and senior policy-makers in health for
at least 20 years.
KPMG. Creating new value with patients, carers and communities (PDF 2.2MB). KPMG has carried
out original research to find out what patients organisations in different countries believe patients
need and how that compares with the health care they receive.
NHS Confederation. Reducing waste could unlock ‘huge benefits to patients’. Partnership working
between clinical and managerial leaders to reduce waste could unlock “huge benefits to patients”,
the NHS Confederation’s director of policy said, responding to a new report calling for doctors to
do more cut down on waste.
NHS England. Patient Online Support and Resources. NHS England has launched an interactive
patient online support and resources guide to help general practices deliver patient services online.
Developed in partnership with the Royal College of General Practitioners, it provides practical tools
on implementing a range of online services including booking appointments and ordering repeat
prescriptions.
NHS England. NHS England welcomes soaps’ positive mental health stories. NHS England has
welcomed better portrayals of mental health in prime time TV storylines after a report showed the
subject being covered more authentically and more often.
NHS England. New team to give voice to learning disability community. A new two person team is
to be appointed to help people with learning disabilities co-design and transform services as part
of NHS England’s Transforming Care programme.
Northern Ireland Executive. District nursing is at the heart of transforming patient care. The
Minister was speaking at the Royal College of Nursing’s Community Nursing Conference in Belfast
today. Addressing an audience of over 60 practising frontline community nurses at the RCN offices,
Minister Wells said: "District nursing is a vital part of our health service, particularly in the care of
older people and those with long-term conditions. It is my view that district nursing is
transforming and is at the heart of my vision for Transforming Your Care."
Northern Ireland Executive. Inpatient experience survey 2014. The DHSSPS, working in
conjunction with Health & Social Care Trusts, have carried out the Inpatient Patient Experience
Survey, the first in a regional programme of patient experience surveys across the health and
social care service. The aim is to gain a greater understanding of the aspects of care that are of
most importance to patients, to act on patients’ feedback, and to improve the quality of health and
social care.
Northern Ireland Executive. Service framework for children and young people will improve the
health and life chances of all children. The Minister was speaking as he launched a public
consultation on the Service Framework for Children and Young People. Highlighting that all
children’s and young people’s rights, needs and interests will be prioritised to secure positives
outcomes for them.
Public Health England. PHE updates patient information leaflets on immunisations for children. A
number of leaflets on immunisations in children have been updated to reflect the revisions to the
immunisation schedule from September 2014.
RCN. Good practice for handling feedback. The RCN has published new guidance to help health
care workers deal with feedback, concerns, complaints and compliments. The pamphlet has been
developed following discussion with RCN members about their own experiences. It is part of the
RCN’s commitment to help improve the way the NHS handles feedback and complaints following
the Clwyd-Hart review into the NHS complaints system. Consultation with RCN members revealed
that many feel there is a lack of information in their workplace from their employers on what the
process is for dealing with complaints, and what is expected of them.
RCN launches new guidance for handling feedback.
RSA. People powered NHS, A Power to Create - an RSA discussion paper. In this discussion paper,
Alex Fox, CEO Shared Lives Plus states that the term 'personalisation' remains contested and
whilst lives have been transformed by the introduction of a personalised approach, there remain
barriers. As other public sector services look to make a power-shift, he advises that it is not
enough to introduce systems of personalisation for example personal budgets and direct payments
- but personalisation values must be embedded too.
Self Care Forum. Self Care Week 2014. Self Care Week 2014 takes place from 17 – 23 November
2014. The theme is ‘Self Care for Life – Be Healthy this Winter’.
Social Care Institute for Excellence. Dignity in care. Everyone who receives care and support
deserves dignity and respect. Four new videos are launched today on Social Care TV, looking at
four important aspects of dignity in care. Research indicates that there are eight main factors that
promote dignity in care. Each of these Dignity Factors contributes to a person's sense of self
respect, and they should all be present in care.
Vision 2020. VISION 2020 UK Dementia and Sight Loss Group: Eye examinations for people with
dementia Factsheet. VISION 2020 UK has produced practical and easy-to-follow advice on wearing
glasses and eye examinations for people with dementia.
eHealth
BBC News Health. NHS plans 'kitemark' for health apps. An NHS "kitemark" for health-related
smartphone apps is one of a number of new technological initiatives being backed by NHS chiefs in
England. The NHS has previously said it wants to be paperless by 2018 and give patients access to
health records via laptops or mobile phones These new detailed plans also include an e-version of
the red book that records baby's immunisations.
Department of Health. Confidentiality and information sharing for direct care: guidance for health
and care professionals. The Department of Health and the Information Governance Alliance want
to know how this guidance leaflet, to help health care professionals make the right decisions about
data sharing, can be improved. The consultation ends on 31 January 2015.
DH. National Data Guardian appointed to safeguard patients’ healthcare information. Secretary of
State for Health Jeremy Hunt has appointed independent expert Dame Fiona Caldicott to a new
role as National Data Guardian for health and care. Following the appointment of the Chief
Inspector of Hospitals to speak out about standards of care, the National Data Guardian will
become the patients’ champion on security of personal medical information.
Health in Wales. ‘Putting the Patient First’ - Removing Barriers to Sharing Data in the NHS. The
ICO's Dawn Monaghan explores how the data sharing in the NHS has changed, particularly in the
last twelve months, with a concerted effort across health and social care to remove the barriers
and to encourage and increase appropriate data sharing, whilst ensuring organisations comply with
the law.
Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR).eHealth Literacy Interventions for Older Adults: A
Systematic Review of the Literature. “eHealth resources offer new opportunities for older adults to
access health information online, connect with others with shared health interests, and manage
their health. However, older adults often lack sufficient eHealth literacy to maximize their benefit
from these resources.” This review evaluates the research design, methods, and findings of
eHealth literacy interventions for older adults.
Local Government Association (LGA). Connecting health and wellbeing boards: a social media
guide. This guide was undertaken in response to requests from people working with health and
wellbeing boards where there was a real desire for social media to be used effectively to help the
boards shape policy, explain decisions and deliver objectives.
National Information Board. Personalised health and care 2020: using data and technology to
transform outcomes for patients and citizens - a framework for action. This framework for action
aims to support frontline staff, patients and citizens to take better advantage of the digital
opportunity. It finds that better use of data and technology has the power to improve health,
transform the quality and reduce the cost of health and care services. It can: give patients and
citizens more control over their health and wellbeing; empower carers; reduce the administrative
burden for care professionals; and support the development of new medicines and treatments.
NIB. Introducing 'Personalised health and care 2020: a framework for action'.
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). Rethinking resistance to ‘big IT’: a sociological study
of why and when health care staff do not use nationally mandated information and communication
technologies. This study examines why nationally mandated information and communication
technology systems are often locally resented and little used, from a sociological perspective. The
analysis focused on the Choose and Book system for outpatient referrals and makes suggestions to
counteract resistance to the implementation of new systems.
NHS Confederation. Vision to outline how technology will improve patient care. A strategy to
maximise the use of technology and innovation in health and care services was unveiled on
Thursday (13 November 2014), as part of an ambitious vision to make better use of digital
technology to improve patient care and make the NHS more efficient by 2020.
NHS England. Plans for a paperless NHS. New plans to improve health outcomes and the quality of
patient care through digital technology and innovation have been unveiled by national health and
social care organisations.
NHS Wales NHS Informatics Service. Informatics Service product used in Ebola treatment centre.
An Injectable Medicines Guide, set up and maintained by the NHS Wales Informatics Service, is
being used in a Save the Children emergency Ebola treatment centre in Sierra Leone. The guide is
a website containing comprehensive information about injectable medicines and is aimed primarily
at nurses. It includes details on how to safely use injectable drugs, how to make the drugs up,
give the drugs and things to be aware of.
Staff focus
Centre for Workforce Intelligence. In-depth review of the psychiatrist workforce. This report
contains an in-depth review of the psychiatrist workforce in England, with a particular focus on
fully trained psychiatrists with a certificate of completion of training (‘CCT holders’) who typically
are employed as consultants. The review considered demand and supply for CCT holders in the six
psychiatry specialties: general adult psychiatry, psychiatry of old age, child and adolescent
psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, psychiatry of learning disability, and medical psychotherapy.
Department of Health. Changes to the health visiting service. This guide provides information on
changes to the health visiting service including how the services are commissioned.
Health Education England. We want your views on e-learning. Health Education England's eLearning for Healthcare works in partnership with the NHS and Professional bodies to design,
develop and deliver high quality e-learning which is available, free of charge, to the healthcare
workforce. They are currently embarking on a major upgrade programme of the learning platform
and welcome your views on the current platform to ensure that future developments meet your
needs.
King’s Fund. How will we staff new models of care in the NHS? A King’s Fund blog looking at
staffing new models of care on the NHS.
NHS Employers. Guidance on prevention and management of stress at work. NHS Employers has
published comprehensive guidance to help managers throughout the NHS reduce stress in the
workplace and better support staff who experience it. For the past two years, 38 per cent of staff
have told the NHS staff survey that they have suffered stress in the previous 12 months.
NHS Employers. Overtime and holiday pay calculations new guidance. Following the decision there
has been a great deal of press coverage recently of various tribunal and court decisions regarding
the calculation of holiday pay, particularly in respect of overtime, and NHS Employers has received
a number of requests from employers for more information on this area.
NHS Employers. 2015 Advancing Healthcare Awards now launched. In their ninth year, these
awards recognise and reward professionals who lead innovative practice that makes a real
difference to patients' lives in healthcare science and allied health professions.
National Institute for Health Research. NIHR: The efficient use of the maternity workforce and the
implications for safety and quality in maternity care: a population-based, cross-sectional study.
The performance of maternity services is seen as a touchstone of whether or not NHS care is high
quality. Staffing has been identified in numerous reports as being a critical component of safe,
effective, user-centred care. There is little evidence regarding the impact of maternity workforce
staffing and skill mix on the safety, quality and cost of maternity care in the UK. The objective of
this research was to understand the relationship between organisational factors, maternity
workforce staffing and skill mix, cost and indicators of safe and high-quality care.
Nursing and Midwifery Council. First nurses and midwives to pilot the system of revalidation this
spring. The NMC has announced more organisations it will be partnering with to test the system
and processes underpinning revalidation. Participants are being sought from the nurses and
midwives employed by these organisations to pilot the revalidation model. The pilot will help
identify any ways in which the NMC should refine the model, guidance and forms before its
introduction at the end of 2015.
NMC. Annual reports and accounts and fitness to practise report 2013-2014 published. The reports
presented to Parliament reflect the previous financial year from 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014.
Primary Care Commissioning. Being appraised. All practice staff should get an appraisal. For some
this can be a cause of concern. Understanding the purpose and process of appraisals can make the
experience easier and more productive for the individual and the organisation. Handling an
appraisal is a key skill not only for a manager, but also for the member of staff being appraised.
Public Health England. Evidence into practice: tackling domestic violence in universities and the
workplace. Public Health England has launched two new initiatives to help tackle domestic violence
and sexual harassment in universities and the workplace.
Royal National Institute of Blind People. Top tips for health care professionals. People with sight
loss regularly share their concerns with RNIB about the care environment and lack of disability
awareness among care staff. We know that people with sight loss are a third more likely to
experience difficulties in accessing care services than non-disabled people.
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