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Content ArticleThis briefing by The Health Foundation Improvement Analytics Unit looks at recent data around patient preferences for online and face-to-face consultations and examines the impact of the increasing use of online tools on patient access to primary care. The Improvement Analytics Unit examined 7.5 million patient-initiated requests for primary care made using the askmyGP online consultation system between March 2019 and September 2021 at 146 general practices in England. These practices had a combined total list size of 1.35 million patients.
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Content ArticleThis short animated video explores the issue of prioritising equality in shared decision making, to ensure that all patients' and family members' values are sought and incorporated in treatment decisions.
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Content ArticleThis investigation by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) explores the timely recognition and treatment of suspected pulmonary embolism in emergency departments. Pulmonary embolisms can form when clots from the deep veins of the body, usually originating in the legs, travel through the venous system and become lodged in the lungs. A person suffering from a pulmonary embolism requires urgent treatment to reduce the chance of significant harm or death.
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Content ArticleIn October 2021 the UK Government launched a review of leadership in health and social care, led by former Vice Chief of the Defence Staff General Sir Gordon Messenger. In this article, the NHS Confederation - the membership organisation that brings together, supports and speaks for the whole healthcare system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland - looks at the key issues for NHS leadership that NHS Federation members would like to see addressed in Sir Gordon Messenger’s final report, expected to be published in April 2022.
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Content ArticleThis preprint study aimed to determine the prevalence of organ impairment in Long Covid at 6 and 12 months after initial acute Covid-19 infection. The authors found that single organ impairment persisted in 59% patients at 12 months post-Covid-19. The conclude that organ impairment in Long Covid has implications for symptoms, quality of life and longer-term health, and they highlight the need for prevention and integrated care of Long Covid.
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Content Article500,000 immunocompromised people, who are at particularly high risk from Covid, live in the UK. Because their weakened immune systems meant they were less likely to have been protected by the first two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine than the general population, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation recommended they have a ‘third primary dose’ eight weeks after their second dose (whereas other groups were to get a booster six months after their second dose). But the complexity of this system meant that huge numbers of immunocompromised people were left waiting for a vaccine invitation that never came. In this blog for The King's Fund, Gemma Peters, Chief Executive of Blood Cancer UK, examines the challenges people with blood cancer and others with compromised immunity faced during the Covid-19 vaccine roll-out. She argues that NHS England must fix these issues by establishing a register of immunocompromised people and a reliable way of contacting them, tackling misinformation and publicly acknowledging the issues people with compromised immune systems have faced to date.
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EventuntilThe Point of Care Foundation has partnered with others whose mission is to Humanise Healthcare. Our next cohort for the Patient Leadership Programme is scheduled for May 2022, when we once again partner with David Gilbert, mental health service user, director of InHealth Associates and the first Patient Director in the NHS, to host his ground-breaking Patient Leadership programme. Patient Leadership signals a breakthrough in healthcare that moves beyond traditional engagement and uncovers the pioneering and transformative work of patient leaders – those affected by life-changing illness, injury or disability who want to lead change in the healthcare system. Or ‘those who have been through stuff, who know stuff, who want to change stuff’. This course lays the foundation for understanding patient leadership. It is designed for both patients and non-patients to explore together different facets of this emerging social movement. Programme lead – David Gilbert, Director, InHealth Associates Host – Ioanna Xenephontes, Patient Experience & Involvement Programmes, The Point of Care Foundation Who should come on this programme? We welcome applications from patient and carer leaders, health professionals, managers, non-clinical staff and those from the independent, voluntary and charitable sectors who are interested in advancing the cause of patient leadership. It is open to international attendees. Programme Outline The Course will be delivered through four sessions; each will be two and a half hours long and take place via Zoom. Each session will consist of about 50/50 presentation and discussion. It will enable participants to develop the knowledge and skills to drive the cause of patient leadership. Patient Leadership Programme Outline Cost Total cost for the programme (all four sessions) costs: £195. A small number of free bursary places are available to patient leaders. Details on application. *The programme will be limited to 12 participants. Applications To apply for a place on the Patient Leadership Programme please follow the link to our application form. The application form will take you around 10 minutes and needs to be completed in one sitting. We have two free bursary places available. If you are a patient, service user or carer and feel that you are unable to pay the fee, please email info@pointofcarefoundation.org.uk to be considered for one of these two free places on a first come first served basis. If your application for the bursary is successful you will receive a voucher code to enter for the programme fee when applying.
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Content ArticleIn Sierra Leone, 34% of pregnancies and 40% of maternal deaths are amongst teenagers and risks are known to be higher for younger teenagers. This qualitative study in Reproductive Health aimed to explore the causes of this high incidence of maternal death for younger teenagers, and to identify possible interventions to improve outcomes. Through focus groups and semi-structured interviews, the authors identified transactional sex - including sex for school fees, sex with teachers for grades and sex for food and clothes - as the main cause of high pregnancy rates for this group. They also identified gendered social norms for sexual behaviour, lack of access to contraception and the fact that abortion is illegal in Sierra Leone as factors meaning that teenage girls are more likely to become pregnant. Key factors affecting vulnerability to death once pregnant included abandonment, delayed care seeking and being cared for by a non-parental adult. Their findings challenge the idea that adolescent girls have the necessary agency to make straightforward choices about their sexual behaviour and contraceptives. They identify a mentoring scheme for the most vulnerable pregnant girls and a locally managed blood donation register as potential interventions to deal with the high rate of maternal death amongst teenage girls.
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Content ArticleThis analysis by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development provides the latest comparable data and trends on the performance of health systems in OECD countries and key emerging economies. It examines performance indicators that suggest the following trends: Overall health status in the United Kingdom is close to the OECD average Overweight/obesity and alcohol consumption are higher than the OECD average Population coverage is high, with high satisfaction and strong financial protection The United Kingdom performs well on many key indicators of care quality, though avoidable hospital admissions could be further reduced Health and long-term care spending are above average, though hospital beds and the number of doctors and nurses are slightly below the OECD average The analysis also looks at the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on deaths, health spending, life expectancy, healthcare activity and mental health.
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Content ArticleThis analysis by the Health Foundation examines the mismatch between the public’s perceptions of what influences health (namely individual behaviour and access to care) and the clear evidence base that demonstrates the significance of wider determinants of health. The authors explore the reasons behind public perceptions and look at how public health professionals can use communications techniques to improve public understanding of evidence about health inequalities.
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Content Article
Care and support jargon buster
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Patient engagement
This directory from the organisation Think Local Act Personal provides Plain English definitions of jargon commonly used in health and care. -
Content ArticleThis article in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology aimed to calculate the medication costs of potentially inappropriate prescribing for middle-aged adults compare with the cost of consensus-validated, evidence-based, ‘adequate’ alternative prescribing scenarios. It used a Delphi consensus panel and cross-sectional study to examine primary care data of 55,880 patients aged 45-64 years old in South London. The study found that duplicate drug classes was the most costly criterion for both PIP and alternative prescribing. It identified no substantial cost difference between adequate prescribing versus PIP and the authors recommend that future studies investigate the wider health economic costs of alternative prescribing, such as reducing hospital admissions.
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Content ArticleThe All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Coronavirus was set up in July 2020 to conduct a rapid inquiry into the UK Government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. This report outlines the APPG's findings on the incidence, impact and treatment of Long Covid. It includes recommendations for the UK Government to tackle the issues related to Long Covid that individuals, employers and healthcare professionals face.
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Content ArticleDuring the Covid-19 pandemic, mental health services had to quickly innovate to ensure that some of the most vulnerable people in society could continue to access mental health support, while protecting service users and staff from the virus. The NHS Confederation’s Mental Health Network and the International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) have worked together to produce these case studies which capture ten innovations from different countries. Key themes in the case studies include: The advantages of digital platforms in improving access The importance of supporting the wellbeing of staff Using data and evaluation to drive improvements and make the financial case for innovations The benefits of co-producing services with service users and staff Lessons about how the availability of innovations is communicated
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Content ArticleMedication errors are the most common adverse event in hospitals and have significant economic and health consequences. This white paper developed by the European Collaborative Action on Medication Errors and Traceability (ECAMET) Alliance collects the results of a pan-European survey on medication errors. It includes 25 reports comprising 13 country reports in English, eight translations in other languages, a private hospitals report, specialised oncology and ICU reports and one consolidated report. It makes several recommendations to reduce medication errors in hospitals and highlights the need to: establish a culture of safety. create strategies to improve communication. raise awareness and organise regular multi-disciplinary training meetings. systematically use accreditation/certification systems. introduce technological tools.
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Content ArticleThis report by Healthwatch highlights barriers and delays that people with little or no English can face when trying to access healthcare. Based on research conducted by Healthwatch, it examines the difficulties that patients with little or no English encounter at every stage of their healthcare journey, including registering with a GP, accessing urgent care, navigating healthcare premises, explaining their problems and understanding what the doctor says. It highlights system-, staff- and patient-related barriers that must be tackled in order to achieve equal access to care.
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Content ArticleHealthcare professionals have a duty to be open and honest with patients and people in their care when something that goes wrong with their treatment or care causes, or has the potential to cause, harm or distress. This is know as the professional duty of candour. This joint guidance from the General Medical Council and Nursing & Midwifery Council provides detailed guidance for healthcare professionals on: being open and honest with patients in your care, and those close to them, when things go wrong. encouraging a learning culture by reporting errors.
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Content Article
This is part of our new series of Patient Safety Spotlight interviews, where we talk to people about their role and what motivates them to make health and social care safer. Julie talks to us about how attitudes to patient safety have evolved since the 1990s, the role of the World Health Organization in improving quality and safety, and the need to learn lessons from infection prevention and control approaches that were adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic. -
Content ArticleThe experience feedback committee (EFC) is a tool designed to involve medical teams in patient safety management, through root cause analysis within the team. This study in the Journal of Patient Safety aimed to establish whether patient safety culture, as measured by the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPS), differed regarding care provider involvement in EFC activities. The authors found that participation in EFC activities was associated with higher patient safety culture scores, suggesting that root cause analysis in the team’s routine may improve patient safety culture.
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Content ArticleThis article in The Journal of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine looks at the issue of systemic racism in long-term services and supports (LTSS) including nursing homes and home- and community-based care in the USA. The authors highlight segregation and disparities, with Black, Indigenous, and persons of colour (BIPOC) users having less access to quality care and reporting poorer quality of life. The authors make a number of policy recommendations to address these health inequalities in LTSS: Targeted increases to Medicaid reimbursement tied to direct care, and targeted enhanced Medicare and/or Medicaid reimbursement to LTSS providers that serve a disproportionate share of Medicaid or underserved older adults. Pay for performance incentives should focus on improving care among LTSS providers who serve individuals with disadvantaged status because of systemic racism and that operate above and beyond a person's clinical severity and comorbidity. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should develop an overall health equity measure which would help capture how well providers meet the needs of diverse populations. Care Compare quality scores by race and ethnicity should be used internally and shared with states to develop culturally appropriate policies. Race and ethnicity-specific quality measures should be included on state-level report cards to incentivise action among states and tailor solutions to the local context. Promote culture change in nursing homes, with an ultimate goal of creating a person-centred, homelike model of care. Expand access to Medicaid-waivered home- and community-based services. Ensure that home- and community-based services are culturally appropriate. Promote integrated home- and community-based programs that can be targeted to BIPOC users to address existing disparities in outcomes.
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Content ArticleThis article by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides advice for patients about steps they can take to help avoid catching healthcare-associated infections, which can ultimately lead to sepsis and even death. It outlines ten things patients and their families can do to protect themselves or their loved ones while receiving medical care. Speak up Keep hands clean Ask each day if your central line catheter or urinary catheter is necessary Prepare for surgery Ask your healthcare provider, “Will there be a new needle, new syringe, and a new vial for this procedure or injection?” Be antibiotics aware Watch out for deadly diarrhoea (aka Clostridium difficile) Know the signs and symptoms of infection Get vaccinated Cover your mouth and nose
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Content ArticleIn this opinion piece for BJGP Life, GP Chris Lowe explores potential problems with electronic access to primary care. He describes his own experience of e-consultation and warns of the potential of such technologies to make life harder for staff. He also raises concerns that rather than widen access to GPs, online access makes appointments less accessible for certain populations, and that introducing too many new technologies too quickly may cause experienced GPs to retire early.
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Content ArticleThis interactive timeline from The King's Fund sets out reviews and other significant developments concerning NHS and social care leadership in England between 2008 and 2022.
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Content ArticleThis article in the Italian Journal of Pediatrics discusses existing knowledge about paediatric Long Covid and looks at how to identify and manage Long Covid in children. The authors recommend three-month primary care follow up for all children who have had Covid-19, to determine whether each child is experiencing ongoing effects after the acute phase of the virus. They highlight the need for relevant medical investigations when symptoms remain to give the best chance of successful recovery, and recommend that psychological support be offered to children where appropriate.
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Content ArticleIn this blog, Jessica Behrhorst, Senior Director for Patient Safety at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), discusses challenges staff face in creating a safety culture, such as fear of negative consequences and thinking they will not be taken seriously. She highlights the importance of acknowledging these fears and building positive group norms in order to engage staff. She also highlights the role of root cause analysis in addressing fears about speaking up.
