Judgement reserved in Rose Gibb appeal case
The final outcome of the Rose Gibb case may not be known until after the election, after judgement was reserved today in her Appeal Court hearing.
DH ignores own advice on digital engagement
The Department of Health was advised to merge NHS Choices, NHS Direct and HealthSpace into a single agency a year ago by research it commissioned itself then did not publish.
Questions over national cold weather plan
Calls for the creation of a national “cold weather plan” have sparked concerns over who should deliver it among health and social care, and primary and acute care.
Norfolk records major drop in bed blocking
There were up to 75 per cent fewer patients waiting for discharge on any one day across Norfolk this winter, following the introduction of a “capacity plan” to reduce bed blocking across the county.
Patient groups back closure of hospitals
Dozens of patient organisations are backing plans to close hospital services in coming years, but fear they will be let down by bad public engagement.
Sussex chief to step down without notice
The chief executive of a Sussex acute trust is to leave at the end of the month without working out her notice.
Close hospital beds to save money, says report
Some regions of the country should close more than a quarter of their hospital beds to save on running costs and improve care for individual patients, a think tank has said.
Bill Moyes teams with Paul Corrigan in policy talks
Two heavyweights of Labour’s health policy have teamed up with a think tank close to the Conservatives to argue for a curtailing of the Department of Health’s power and remit.
Rape victims 'need more NHS support'
Every victim of rape should be offered a choice of a male or female doctor on the NHS, a landmark review has recommended.
Assault reporting scheme rolled out
A surveillance scheme has been launched that uses NHS hospital data to provide a snapshot of the number of assaults taking place each year in Scotland.
CMO's report: national plan needed to cut winter death toll
A national cold weather plan should be developed to help reduce England’s annual winter death toll, chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson has said in his final annual report.
Poor hospital communication criticised in coroner's report
Communication between doctors and nurses treating a 21 month old boy who later died was “poor”, a coroner’s report says.
NHS is yet to capture the wealth of the net
Texting appointment reminders is a good start but the health service lags far behind leading industries in exploiting the rich potential of the digital revolution, reports Dave West
NHS car parking: driven to distraction
Hospital car parking has become an impassioned talking point. While it may seem a side issue to the real work of healthcare, the heated arguments over charging won’t subside until policies are seen as fair and fixed, writes Joe Farrington-Douglas
NHS quality accounts: quality is becoming an accountable business
This year will see the first tranche of reports intended to show how trusts are engaging with quality across all their services. Dave West looks at how this could represent a step change in health organisations’ accountability
Roger Taylor on the NHS safety debate
The public needs all the facts to enable them to fully engage in the debate on healthcare safety
Andrew Haldenby on hospital closures and competition
The gloom surrounding the UK’s public finances is darkening as the general election approaches.
Paul Corrigan on suspending NHS incentives
Research from the London School of Economics published in December gave insight into how competition within the NHS is benefiting patients.
Why NHS volunteering is all round value
Aintree is one of many trusts that both benefit from and give advantages to volunteers, reports Alison Moore
Discharge notes: how to save time and reduce errors
The problem of delays in GPs receiving patients’ discharge details is being resolved across Cheshire through a shared electronic communications system
Understanding patient costs video masterclass
Patient-level costing offers a way to reduce unnecessary variation in the cost of care. Watch HSJ’s free online masterclass to learn more.
Patient experience: what counts for the customer?
A satisfaction score system used by businesses is highly relevant to the NHS, say Richard Ingleton and colleagues
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
Assessment centres: do your staff measure up?
A London foundation trust used assessment centres to ensure its frontline managers were on-message and up to the job. This is how they did it
