Daily digest July 9 2015

Patient choked to death after nil by mouth error

A health board has been fined £40,000 for causing the death of a 'nil by mouth’ patient, who died after being given sausages and mash for lunch.

James South was being fed via a nose tube and had a warning sign written in red pen above his hospital bed. But a healthcare assistant helped him fill out his lunch menu and later a nursing student handed him his meal of soup, sausages and mash, and ice-cream at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness. 

Fifteen minutes later, the 51-year-old was dead, having choked to death.

Read more on the Daily Express website

Prozac use could increase birth defect risk, study finds

Researchers in the United States and Canada have confirmed a link between the use of the commonly-prescribed antidepressants Prozac and Paxil by pregnant women and a small increased risk of birth defects.

While the findings cannot prove causation, they back up previously observed associations between the drugs and heart defects and abnormalities affecting the skull and other parts of the body. 

However, the authors of the study, who included experts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stressed that the actual increased risk of already rare defects was small in each case.

Read more on the Independent website

FGM awareness app launched to help at-risk girls

A web app that allows teenagers to find out about female genital mutilation (FGM) and get help if they are at risk, while remaining anonymous, has been launched.

The free app, designed by a team at Coventry University and developed with the help of local schoolchildren, has privacy features to allow teenagers to get the facts about FGM and access helplines without being traced, with features such as a 'close and remove' button for anyone whose internet use is monitored.

The app will also disappear if the smartphone is shaken. Named Petals, to avoid highlighting the subject matter, the app can also be used as an educational tool, with a quiz, FAQ and glossary sections.

Read more on the Guardian website