Jennifer Sprinks
Desperate times for nursing staff as Greek economic crisis deepens
Nurses in Greece are facing pay cuts of 40% and have seen health budgets squeezed so tight that supplies of medication and medical equipment are running low.
Alternatives to standardised mortality ratios needed, study suggests
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Imperial College London say the widely used hospital-wide standardised mortality ratios should not be used to benchmark hospitals’ quality of care
'Unacceptably slow' progress to community care for learning disabilities patients
A six-month review into the progress made by NHS England’s Transforming Care programme to improve services for people with learning disabilities concludes the progress made is 'unacceptable'
Military nurse who beat Ebola receives medal from Downing Street
Corporal Anna Cross, who became the world's first patient to receive an experimental drug treatment for Ebola, has been awarded a medal for her services in helping to respond to the outbreak of the virus in West Africa
Daily digest July 14 2015
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New e-learning programme highlights distress in dementia
Training aims to help staff understand causes of stress for dementia patients in hospitals
Researchers will assess benefits of HCA experience for nursing students
Nottingham University is following progress of a sample of nursing students previously recruited to a pre-degree care pilot, to assess effect of working as healthcare assistants before starting their training
Daily digest July 10 2015
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FGM survivor calls for mothers to be educated
Speaking to healthcare professionals in London today, female genital mutilation survivor Fatuma Farah said mothers need to be educated about FGM so that their children are not subjected to the procedure
The NHS has spent £20 million on hiring overseas nurses temporarily, says RCN
In response to the Migration Advisory Committee's call for evidence on minimum salary thresholds for tier 2 visas, the RCN warns that increasing the threshold will result in up to 3,365 overseas nurses being sent home in 2017
Daily digest July 7 2015
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New standard addresses reducing tobacco-related harm
A National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quality standard seeks to support people who want to cut down on the amount they smoke
Recruiting overseas nurses not a long-term solution, health minister warns
Lord Prior of Brampton lauds the contribution of overseas nurses, but warns that they are not a permanent solution for the UK's nursing shortages
Sierra Leone’s health system was ‘too weak’ to cope with Ebola
A report published by the international development think tank the Overseas Development Institute says the Ebola outbreak exposed weaknesses in Sierra Leone's health system
Ghanaian nurses visit RCN HQ to exchange best nursing practice
A delegation of nurses from Ghana visited the RCN headquarters in London today to exchange tips on strengthening nursing leadership and shaping health policy
What about nursing’s ‘fourth dimension’?
The NMC’s revised code of conduct makes no specific mention of spirituality. Critics say spirituality deserves to be included because it is a part of everyday care. The other three dimensions of holistic care – psychological, social and physical – are included. However, the regulator argues that spirituality is covered by the mention of human rights. Furthermore, it is a complex subject and is not included in the other regulators’ codes of conduct.
Dedicated dementia carers recruited to improve end of life care
Two healthcare support workers have been appointed to help care homes in Walsall become more dementia-friendly and ensure patients receive individualised care
Education funding for nurses in need of fundamental reform, say universities
The Council of Deans of Health (CoDH) and Universities UK are jointly calling on the government to look at whether the current grants-based system can be shifted to student loans.