The future of the NHS

Lord Darzi's report on the future of the NHS is now published.


See the summary or full report here.

And published alongside it, see:

National Health Service Constitution

A high quality workforce: NHS Next Stage review

To keep up to date with new Department of Health publications, see their Publications page: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/index.htm

And to keep up on the debate on the future of the NHS, click here for responses to the Darzi Report from the BMA, King's Fund, and many more.

NHS Waiting Times

The Department of Health and the Statistics Authority have released the latest figures on waiting times for the NHS in England.

The key points, plus the full data, are available on the DH website here.

Statistics by Trust are available, so it's possible to find out how Stockport is doing compared to other Trusts, and compared to the avaerage in England.

Looking for evidence?

There are lots of places where you could do a quick search for evidence. But these are some of the best options:

UpToDate is only available on the hospital network. But it's easy to use, quick to search, and packed with reliable summaries of the evidence that can be found, read and digested in seconds.

DynaMed is available free, with no password to remember, from anywhere in the UK. Similarly, it's easy to use, and summarises the evidence on thousands of topics so that you can find it in a jiffy.

TripDatabase is a great resource that searches for evidence from dozens of sources: Medline, Guidelines, electronic textbooks, evidence synopses, top clinical journals and more. And it's free.

And finally, here a new one I've just come accross:

SumSearch also searches accross a number of sources. It's free, and will help you to develop your search strategy by making suggestions as you type.

Cervical cancer vaccine - where's the evidence?

The Department of Health has announced a vaccination programme for the human papillomavirus, which is due to start in September. The programme will use the Cervarix vaccine, which is made by GlaxoSmithKline, but there is upset that an alternative, Sanofi Pasteur’s Gardasil, was not chosen, eg. BMJ News and Rapid Responses.

So where could we find out more about these two products. You could try these:

The NLH Women's Health Specialist Library

Quick search in PubMed

The British National Formulary (BNF)

Disease Mongering and Drug Promotion

'Disease mongering is the selling of sickness that widens the boundaries of illness and grows the markets for those who sell and deliver treatments.'
Moynihan (2006)

To read more on disease mongering, and action being taking against it see:

Moynihan et al. (2008)

PLoS Medicine Theme Issue (2006)

Healthy Skepticism

National Dementia Strategy

A national strategy for the diagnosis and treatment of dementia will be published in October 2008.

The Department of Health is currently undertaking a public consultation on the plan.

For more information, see the Department of Health website : http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/SocialCare/Deliveringadultsocialcare/Olderpeople/NationalDementiaStrategy/index.htm

New NICE Guidelines, June 2008

Breast cancer (advanced & metastatic) - bevacizumab (terminated appraisal)


Colorectal cancer (metastatic) - cetuximab (terminated appraisal)



Glioma (recurrent) - carmustine implants (terminated appraisal)



Head and neck cancer - cetuximab



Implantation of multifocal (non-accommodative) intraocular lenses during cataract surgery



Lumbar infusion test for the investigation of normal pressure hydrocephalus


Lung cancer (non-small-cell) - bevacizumab (terminated appraisal)


Obesity - rimonabant



Psoriasis - adalimumab


Stent insertion for bleeding oesophageal varices



Surgical repair of vaginal wall prolapse using mesh



Transcatheter aortic valve implantation for aortic stenosis

NHS Reforms report from the Audit Commission

Since 2000 the NHS has been undergoing dramatic market-style reforms. Eight years on, is there evidence of improvements in efficiency and effectiveness of the NHS? The Audit Commission has recently published a report on these reforms.

The report is availble to read or download online here.

The Audit Commission is an independent watchdog, driving economy, efficiency and effectiveness in local public services to deliver better outcomes for everyone.

PsycBITE

PsycBITE is a database that catalogues evidence for the treatment of psychological problems and issues occurring as a consequence of acquired brain impairment (ABI).

The database is free to access, and rates the studies it includes by methodological quality, making it easy to decide what to trust.

PsycBITE is compiled by the Royal Rehabilitation Centre, Sydney, Australia.

Search the database yourself here : http://www.psycbite.com/

BMJ Case Reports

The BMJ are soon to launch a new service : BMJ Case Reports

The humble case report is often overlooked as a weak form of evidence, but they are frequently the only form of evidence available. BMJ Case Reports are currently looking for case reports to be submitted.

Read more about the project, and submit your reports, here : http://casereports.bmj.com/

Annual Evidence Updates from the NLH

Annual Evidence Update on Multiple Sclerosis: An update of the evidence on this topic from the NLH Neurological Conditions Specialist Library

Annual Evidence Update on Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD): The Age Related Macular Degeneration Annual Evidence Update 2008 presents a collection of evidence that has emerged in the past 12 months since the 2007 National Knowledge Week (NKW)

National Knowledge Week on Proteinuria and the Use of eGFR: An update of the evidence on this topic from the NLH Kidney Diseases Specialist Library

National Knowledge Week on Homeopathy: An update of the evidence on this topic from the NLH Complementary & Alternative Medicine Specialist Library

Developing leaders to improve patient care

The Health Foundation believes that encouraging better leadership from clinicians and managers is one of the most important ways to improve the quality of healthcare in the UK.

Developing leaders to improve patient care explains what we have learnt about leadership:

* leaders are key to improving patient care
* leaders need emotional intelligence
* leaders should learn in multidisciplinary teams
* leaders are required throughout an organisation
* leaders need support from their colleagues and their organisation
* careful recruitment to leadership schemes is important.

To find out more about the Health Foundation and its leadership scheme, click here