All Health Service Journal articles in 16 August 2007
View all stories from this issue.
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Comment
Lisa Rodrigues on intoxicating publicity
It was impossible to miss the publication of the Alastair Campbell diaries - the newspaper serialisation and TV programme meant people were talking about them everywhere. While some may have diagnosed a serious case of work-related stress, I just thought he showed great timing, and he got me thinking about ...
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Comment
Media Watch
The papers are again keen to expose the 'scandal' of hospital food - this time the focus is on hospital kitchens. The Observer told readers of a 'searing indictment' of their cleanliness after government inspection reports revealed 'that breaches of food hygiene laws include infestations of mice and cockroaches, kitchen ...
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HSJ Knowledge
Recalling the offer of choice
The government revealed the results of its£11million GP access survey last month and promised ‘immediate action’ to rectify the areas of underperformance, particularly the poorer access reported by patients in poorer areas; ‘improvement teams’ are being dispatched.Another part of the access survey concerned patient choice. The survey asked patients whether ...
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News
PFI link-ups could save millions
Hospital trusts considering using the private finance initiative could save millions of pounds by teaming up with non-NHS partners, according to the chief executive of a trust set to go into partnership with a football club.West Hertfordshire Hospitals trust stands to save£80m-£100m because it is building a new hospital in ...
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News
Union 'gobsmacked' by ambulance funds blow
North West Ambulance Service trust has admitted it can only afford to buy 35 of the 128 ambulances it needs to replace, raising questions over the reconfigured service's buying power.Board papers from the service, which was formed in July 2006 following the merger of four trusts, say it needs to ...
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HSJ Knowledge
Born under a bad sign
Perinatal depression is gaining a higher profile, with a drive to increase awareness and provide wider access to specialist provision. Emma Dent reports
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Comment
Michael White on politics
The old saying that 'it never rains but it pours' seems unusually apt this soggy summer. But this week the saying also applied to Britain's elderly people when the High Court ruling on Aricept, the Alzheimer's drug, was accompanied by a torrent of reports highlighting deficient aspects of their treatment.One ...
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Comment
Your Humble Servant: do as I say
To: Don Wise, chief executiveFrom: Paul Servant, assistant chief executiveRe: Do as I say not as I doDear DonI gather your fact-finding summer visit to South Africa with Mrs Wise and the children went well. Your thoughts on ambulance response times on safari have given our colleagues down there much ...
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News
Healthy schools
As health initiatives that straddle health and local government go, the National Healthy Schools Programme is an elder citizen. Eight years after it began, it is an example of what can be achieved when the two sectors work together. Input from schools leads to healthier populations, while input from the ...
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News
Weird world health
End Game’s family once had a cat that suffered a stroke and is ashamed to say that until this tragic event occurred, they did not realise that felines were subject to such health events, thinking that they were limited to humans.Now more evidence of the health problems that can be ...
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HSJ Knowledge
A game for two players
The Healthy Schools initiative continues to be a thriving joint programme, reports Varya Shaw
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HSJ Knowledge
Equality - tools of the trade
Ethnically diverse populations present a range of challenges for healthcare. But help is at hand with Hammersmith's award-winning cultural toolkit, says Stuart Shepherd
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News
Human rights let down by existing law
Human rights should be enshrined in health service delivery, according to a report calling for new duties to protect the rights of older people in hospitals and care homes.A joint committee on human rights report this week said existing legislation does not sufficiently protect and promote the rights of older ...
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HSJ Knowledge
David Lee on encouraging honesty
Once again, it is the time of year when a young manager's thoughts turn to the staff survey. The NHS staff survey is the largest of its kind in the world, and annual familiarity can breed contempt. But the results have a way of impacting on organisations' parts that even ...
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Comment
High Court drugs ruling marks latest skirmish in war of words
The High Court ruling upholding the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's decision over medication for Alzheimer's is just the latest skirmish in what promises to be protracted manoeuvring over drug use and pricing.
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News
Victory for NICE as High Court rejects drugs firm complaints
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has had its integrity upheld after fending off its first High Court legal challenge.The organisation's victory over its decision not to recommend the use of certain drugs to treat Alzheimer's disease was seized on as a sign that its processes were fair.But ...
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News
Deadly E. coli outbreak
The public health protection unit at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is working with environmental health at Renfrewshire Council, the Food Standards Agency and Health Protection Scotland to identify the source of a deadly outbreak of E.coli in Paisley. It had killed one woman and infected six others at the ...
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News
Trust in bully probe praised for progress
A hospital trust has been praised for the way it has tackled problems of bullying and harassment.The Healthcare Commission said East Sussex Hospitals trust had made 'significant progress' in improving communication and relationships between staff since its initial investigation in 2004-05.Trust chair John Lewis said: 'While the commission found that ...
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News
PCTs to consult on Darzi's London blueprint
NHS London has asked the capital's primary care trusts to form a joint committee to carry out consultation on junior health minister Lord Darzi's report, A Framework for Action.The joint committee would be responsible for approving the consultation document, considering the impact the proposals would have on health inequalities and ...