Health Service Journal
21 January 2010
View all stories from this issue.
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Alder Hey to bury final human remains
A grim chapter in the Alder Hey organ scandal will come to an end this month when the last human remains in the possession of the hospital are laid to rest. -
Andy Burnham backs sunbed ban for under 18s
The government has backed a call to ban under 18s from using sunbeds at tanning salons. -
Andy Burnham praises 'NHS resilience'
Health secretary Andy Burnham has thanked NHS and social care staff for their “exceptional bravery and commitment” during Britain’s “big freeze”. -
Barking, Havering and Redbridge appoints chairman
Sir David Varney has been appointed chair of Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust. -
Basildon prosecuted over disabled patient's death
Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals Foundation Trust is being prosecuted over the death of a severely disabled patient. -
Book Review: Shackleton’s Way
Witness leadership skills in this great Antarctic adventurer, says Julie Wells -
Can healthcare spending thaw icy economies?
The UK is not the only country facing arctic financial conditions. The NHS can learn a lot from Europe and beyond -
Cancer care plans could cut costs
Primary care trusts could make significant cost savings by adopting a more personalised approach to the follow-up care of cancer patients, national clinical director for cancer Professor Sir Mike Richards has said. -
Care UK chief hits out at renewal process as ITC contracts expire
The process for renewing contracts for the first independent treatment centres has been described as a “pig’s ear” by the chief executive of the largest independent provider in that sector. -
CQC critical over Milton Keynes baby deaths
A hospital that came under fire after two newborn babies died in its maternity unit has failed to implement sufficient improvements, the Care Quality Commission has said. -
David Cameron asked to justify Care UK donation
Health secretary Andy Burnham has written to Conservative Party leader David Cameron demanding information on the £21,000 donation from the wife of Care UK chairman John Nash to shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley. -
Department of Health defends NHS energy contracts
The Department of Health has defended NHS organisations that have signed cut-price energy contracts that allow gas supplies to be cut off with minimal warning. -
DH appoints liver disease tsar to lead national strategy
The Department of Health has appointed Dr Martin Lombard as the first national clinical director for liver disease. -
DH delays student funds shake-up
The Department of Health has decided to delay implementation of proposals to shake up doctor and nurse training funding for at least another year. -
East Midlands Ambulance Service Trust given clean bill of health
East Midlands Ambulance Service Trust has been given a clean bill of health after a repeat hygiene inspection by the Care Quality Commission. -
Elder care pilot slashes hospital admissions
A pilot programme for improving care of older patients has slashed hospital overnight stays and accident and emergency attendances, and produced significant financial savings. -
Election slip
Any brownie points earned by health secretary Andy Burnham during the Hoon-Hewitt plot to oust Gordon Brown were nearly lost when he appeared to give the election date away last week. -
Expletive tweeted
Conservative leader David Cameron was desperate not to slip up during a live webcast at the King’s Fund. He was answering questions submitted by the public via email and Twitter - despite having famously called users of the website a rude word during a radio interview last year. -
Fears over staff vetting and barring scheme
A registration scheme to protect vulnerable people will force managers to make moral judgements about people’s lifestyles and place a “significant” financial burden on the NHS, HSJ has been told. -
Four countries’ pulses beat to different tunes
The devolved nations of the NHS are showing striking contrasts in productivity and performance, with Scotland’s policy paths in particular appearing to have led its services into a much less healthy state than England’s. Alison Moore reports -
Four nations research reignites row over targets
A report comparing the healthcare systems within the UK has reignited the political row over targets. -
Four nations: was England’s approach to the NHS on target after all?
Research published this week by the Nuffield trust has reignited the debate over the value of health service targets. -
Fundamentals of NHS Governance
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Fundamentals of NHS Governance conference -
Fundamentals of NHS Governance - conference sessions
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Fundamentals of NHS Governance conference -
How to eliminate bullying from the NHS
The pressure to drive performance can too easily turn a well intentioned manager into a bully, warns Jenny Rogers. NHS organisations must get rid of the blame culture -
HSJ Offer - Free cinema tickets to see Astro Boy
Subscribers can get free cinema tickets to see the new film Astro Boy. Sign in now to claim your free tickets. Hurry, tickets are limited -
Jenny Rogers on the pitfalls of assessing risk in the NHS
Along with the assertive consumer of public services has come a troublesome shadow: the all-pervasive fear of being blamed or sued. And along with this goes an epidemic of catastrophising about things that are extremely unlikely to happen. What else can explain how seemingly rational people justify absurd decisions? -
Joint job advert
Having both the big NHS regulators without permanent chairs can’t be an ideal situation as a general election approaches, but every problem presents opportunities. -
Lookey-Likey: Nuffield Trust and the Village People
HSJ was surprised to come across a snap of a dodgy Village People tribute act on the Nuffield Trust’s website. -
Managers' pay rises and cold weather costs
Managers in Scotland will have taken cover this week, especially from junior nurses, after their salary increases were revealed by the Scottish Liberal Democrats. -
Michael White on Tory health policy
Cheerful Andrew Lansley sounds like a man who believes that the end of his long trek towards ministerial office is finally in sight. He is probably right. By the time he becomes what we must start thinking of as secretary of state for public health he will have shadowed the job for almost six years. -
MPs told to ‘free’ PCTs of acute commissioning
Primary care trusts should be “released” from commissioning acute care and left to concentrate on improving primary and community services, MPs have been told. -
Neil Churchill: advice for managers on giving criticism
As a manager, you are meant to give three pieces of praise for every piece of criticism. That’s the minimum ratio experts believe is effective in encouraging good performance. -
NHS East of England urged to work better with PCTs
NHS chief executive Sir David Nicholson has advised East of England strategic health authority to make “demonstrable improvements” in its relationships with primary care trusts. -
NMC report highlights midwife shortage
The Nursing and Midwifery Council has said the midwifery profession was “still playing catch up” after a report warned Britain’s rising birth rate was leading to a shortage of staff. -
Nottingham trust named best in NHS for gay and lesbian staff
Five NHS organisations appeared in the annual list of the UK’s top 100 lesbian, gay, and bisexual friendly employers, published by charity Stonewall. -
Payment by Results
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Payment by Results conference -
Payment by Results - conference sessions
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Payment by Results conference -
Quality board to adopt 'values' in bid to avoid further rows
The Care Quality Commission, Monitor, Dr Foster Intelligence and others are being asked to follow a set of “values” in the hope of avoiding a repeat of last year’s row over quality reporting. -
Renewed speculation over minimum drink price
Andy Burnham’s comments that some alcoholic drinks are “ludicrously cheap” has renewed speculation that the government could impose a minimum price per unit. -
Rise in acute admissions will be ‘unsustainable’ for PCTs
Just 10 per cent of primary care trusts have successfully reduced emergency admissions to their local acute trusts. -
Risk Management
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Risk Management conference -
Risk Management - conference sessions
A business critical briefing from HSJ’s Risk Management conference -
Swine flu preparations cost £1bn
The government spent more than £1bn in preparation for a flu pandemic, it has been disclosed. -
Tailored care for cancer survivors
Cancer survivors in Yorkshire and Humber have been chosen to trial a new NHS “survivorship plan” that will provide care and services for those living with and beyond the disease. -
Take action to avoid coroners’ reports
Coroners produce rule 43 reports into deaths to prevent future fatalities. Providers must follow a number of steps to stay out of them, says Adam Hartrick -
Thin ice
A new initiative by public health minister Gillian Merron aims to encourage families to walk their kids to school at least once a week as a way of becoming more active. -
This is PCTs’ admission of failure – but everyone shares the blame
Analysis of primary care trusts’ emergency and elective admissions data, shared exclusively with HSJ by health intelligence provider CHKS, reveals that in the majority of areas, both trends are going in the wrong direction: upwards. -
Tories pledge to cut spending immediately
A Conservative government would start cutting back on state spending immediately after taking office if it were to win this year’s general election, shadow chancellor George Osborne said. -
Tories promise out of hours review
The Conservatives have said that they will review NHS out-of-hours care if they win the forthcoming general election, following the death of a 70-year-old Cambridge man who was given an overdose by an overtired locum. -
Tories to focus on illness prevention
The Conservatives have said that a bigger portion of NHS cash should be targeted at illness prevention. -
Trilby hat
Spotted by End Game last week: NHS South West chief executive Sir Ian Carruthers and NHS QIPP lead Jim Easton messing around with a trilby hat in Mr Easton’s office. -
Trusts could face £500,000 fines for losing patient data
Organisations that lose sensitive data could be fined up to £500,000 under newly approved penalties. -
Why innovation means survival in the NHS
Innovating is an evolutionary process with trials and errors - bit it is vital in financially hard times, says Becky Malby -
World class commissioning: the human factor
A diagnostic tool boosts organisations’ world class commissioning competencies, says Carol Brooks
