News – Page 1996
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News
Patients allowed to opt out of care records service
Patients will have the right to opt out of having their information shared through the NHS care records service, health minister Lord Warner told HSJ's Demystifying the National Programme for IT conference yesterday.Under the government implied consent model, those who do not opt out will be deemed to have given ...
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Hewitt calls for alcopops tax hike
Health secretary Patricia Hewitt has written to chancellor Gordon Brown asking for an increase in taxes on alcopops and other drinks favoured by teenagers to curb binge drinking.Earlier this month Ms Hewitt launched the 'Know Your Limits' campaign against excessive drinking in the under-25 age group. In June, the Information ...
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New figures show improvement in inpatient waits
The proportion of patients waiting under 13 weeks for an inpatient appointment rose year on year in September from 70.8 per cent to 74.7 per cent, according to figures published today by the Department of Health. The median waiting time was 7.4 weeks, down on the 7.9 weeks recorded in ...
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Doncaster therapy pilot sees 1,000 clients
A pilot scheme in Doncaster to improve access to talking therapies for people with mental health problems has seen 1,000 clients in its first three months. The scheme is one of two pilots designed to help people with mild to moderate depression to get back into work and off incapacity ...
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Government responds to report on ITCs
The government has published its response to the Commons health select committee's report on independent treatment centres.The committee's report criticised the role of ITCs and said their performance had been variable.In its response the Department of Health has promised to provide more information to patients on which to base their ...
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NHS pay rises 'eaten up by inflation'
Big rises in the basics of daily living eat up 'cost of living' increases for NHS staff covered by the nurses and other health professions pay review body, according to research by Unison.In its evidence to the review body, the union says that last year's 2.5 per cent pay rise ...
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Conservatives launch initiative on patient involvement
The Conservatives have launched a consultation on the future of public and patient involvement in health.The concept of HealthWatch was outlined by Conservative leader David Cameron and shadow health minister Andrew Lansley in a speech to the King's Fund earlier this month.At a summit today Mr Lansley will highlight the ...
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Suicide rate continues to fall
Suicide rates in England have continued to fall and are now at their lowest ever level, according to new figures.The three-year average is now 8.5 deaths per 100,000, down from a baseline of 9.4 deaths per 100,000 in 1995.The Department of Health has published a new guide giving advice on ...
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Lords consider Commons amendments to NHS Redress Bill
The bill to streamline the handling of NHS complaints has returned to the Lords, where peers have failed to reach agreement with MPs over its provisions.Peers yesterday voted by 149 to 133 to back an amendment to ensure that investigations were carried out by a body independent of that against ...
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Action plan for audiology services
An action plan is being developed to improve access to audiology services including those outside the 18-week waiting time, a Department of Health minister has announced.Social care minister Ivan Lewis said in a parliamentary written answer that ministers were aware of long waits for audiology services.
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Hewitt warns: patients will vote with feet
Patients will 'vote with their feet' and refuse to be treated at poorly performing hospitals, health secretary Patricia Hewitt has said.
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New pay-off packages to reflect length of service
New redundancy and retirement packages based on length of service rather than age have been agreed by the Department of Health.
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Inappropriate admissions: guidance to urge 12.5pc cut
The prime minister's delivery unit is taking a key role in shaping 'crisp' new guidance for primary care trusts to reduce inappropriate hospital admissions and save over £1.4bn a year.
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PbR 'fundamentally flawed' says coding chief
The current system of payment by results is 'fundamentally flawed and unacceptable' the head of the Professional Association of Clinical Coders warned last week.
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Call to scrap funding formula
The NHS funding formula is based on an untested scientific premise and should be scrapped, the chief economic advisor to the Department of Health was told last week.
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PCT to lose 90 posts in £29m cuts plan
A primary care trust has announced plans to cut up to 90 jobs in response to the Department of Health requirement to balance its books within one financial year.
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DoH publishes new smoking cessation figures
The Department of Health has published the latest quarterly statistics on access to smoking cessation services. It shows Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire strategic health authority had the highest proportion of successful quitters (63 per cent) while Cheshire and Merseyside SHA reported the lowest (41 per cent). ...
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Fall in Welsh waiting times
The number of people waiting for over eight months for inpatient or day-case treatment in Wales has fallen by 737 over the last quarter - a 10.5 per cent reduction. In outpatients, the number of people waiting over eight months for a first appointment has ...
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Mayor calls for action on Muslim health in London
London mayor Ken Livingstone has called on NHS organisations to act on the recommendations of the first ever large-scale report on the lives of Muslims in the capital One in twelve Londoners is Muslim and the report finds that their health is disproportionately affected by ...
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Efficiency savings costed at £2.2bn
The Department of Health is to expand the number of productivity indicators on which trusts are compared as the first set of figures revealed the NHS could save £2.2bn a year if it improved its efficiency.