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Calls for NHS Chief David Nicholson to resign

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So he counters with Video

 

 “Everyone Counts”

 

Sir David Nicholson

Sir David Nicholson (Photo credit: NHS avid Confederation)

The calls for the NHS’s supremo, David Nicholson, to resign are mounting.

He was in charge for some of the time when patients were being abused in Mid-Staffordshire hospital – but although Dr. Max Pemberton of Daily Telegraph, Julie Bailey of Cure the NHS and many others are calling for his resignation – and even to go to prison – he counters with a rambling video about the NHS.

He can’t even dress properly to be filmed – perhaps he considers it isn’t worth getting properly dressed when sending out his message to the NHS – or is this all he thinks the NHS is worth?

 

Watch the video on http://www.commissioningboard.nhs.uk/everyonecounts/everyone-counts-intro/

 

Who is it?

No – it’s not the Plumber – actually the video focusses on SIR David Nicholson – perhaps he can’t afford a tie on his vast salary

It’s entitled “Everyone Counts“  – one of the buzz phrases thought up by the expensve Consultant hangers-on employed by the NHS.  Problem is , they think up these phrases, but no-one actually thinks they should carry the idea on, and Plumber Nicholdson doesn’t seem to know either.

So don’t hold your breath – we STILL won’t be listened to. But it rather shows us, in a week when the Francis Report shocked the Nation, that patients still will have to fight their own battles;  NHS big-wigs still only pay lip service to consulting Patients.   Am still puzzling over why I can’t be sent a copy of the report from my recent MRI scan:  was told I couldn’t have it “due to patient confidentiality’!

And David Nicholson is still hanging on to his job, even after all the calls for his resignation post the Francis Report.

So whatever Francis Report said, it is still down to us to make a fuss if we don’t get what we are entitled to.

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What's going to happen to NHS after Francis Report?

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Five hospitals to be investigated

 

But is anyone naive enough to think things are going to

change?

 

Two days after the report came out, the headlines have disappeared from the BBC website, showing the lack of interest shown by the general public.

Don’t get me wrong – Possibly 1,200 patients may have died earlier or even needlessly.  But their relatives won’t get much comfort from the report;  no-one’s head is to roll – no-one is accountable.  All Robert Francis has done is set up a massive industry for Consultant and Conference organisers to milk for the next decade.

But as nhsManagers.net says:

Hours before the Francis report was published Number 10 had decided that its 290 recommendations were not enough. One more was needed. The Prime Minister announced he alone had the solution; an Inspector of Hospitals. If that is the solution I suspect Francis would have said so. Why didn’t he? Because he knows what we know; it is bureaucracy that got us into this mess. More bureaucracy is the last thing we need. Daft idea but the lad has to look busy so he’s had his two-penny-worth. That’s the trouble; everyone will want to have their two-penny-worth. Two hundred and ninety one recommendations will become 291 headings, 500 sub-sets, 1,500 reports and three thousand complications, report-backs, work-groups, committees and a shed-load of costs.

The massive Francis report will be the NHS’ F-word for quite a while. What is missing from his report are a few more ‘F’ words;

But ‘Dave’ in No. 10 has a solution!

In response to the findings of the Francis Report into the failings at Mid-Stafford hospital, David Cameron announced that five other hospitals with persistently high death rates would be investigated. All the hospitals named have had high rates for two years.  Yet the Dept. Health has waited until now to act.

The hospitals are:

  • Colchester Hospital University NHS Foundation Trust
  • Tameside Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
  • Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
  • Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
  • East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust.

Death rates are calculated by looking at the number of people that would be expected to die when taking into account the age and disease profile of the local population.

High death rates were one of the factors that triggered the original investigation into Stafford Hospital. While not necessarily proof there is a problem, they are a “smoke alarm” suggesting there could be.

The figures for the five hospitals were already known about within the NHS and were being monitored

However, will grieving relatives have to wait another two years before a report comes out?  What these hopitals need is to appoint a Matron with the power to RUN the hospital, SACK incompetentS, decide WHERE funding is to go, and then do ward rounds EVERY day to talk to patients and LISTEN to their needs.

Don’t hold your breath – but be prepared for cost-saving measures such as Charing Cross Hospital:  they are throwing out the water fountains.

The Mid Staffs public inquiry

See Francis on this video – it makes sad viewing:

http://www.itv.com/news/2013-02-06/key-recommendations-of-nhs-mid-staffordshire-public-inquiry/

Robert Francis QC delivers his statement, saying: “This is a story of appalling and unnecessary suffering of hundreds of people”

There has been anger from some quarters after nobody lost their jobs as a result of the public inquiry.

James Duff’s wife Doreen died in the hospital. He said: “Not one person has lost their job over this – instead they have been promoted and some people have been moved sideways.

“This has been a disaster yet nobody is accountable.”

  • The public inquiry is the fifth major investigation into what happened
  • It has focused mainly on the commissioning, supervision and regulation of the trust from 2005 to 2009 – something campaigners felt had not been properly covered before
  • It was chaired by Robert Francis QC, who also led the fourth major investigation
  • It sat between November 2011 and December 2012 and cost £13m
  • More than 160 witnesses appeared at the hearings and one million pages of evidence have been sifted through
  • The final report contains 290 recommendations over nearly 1,800 pages.

He has also appointed Ann Clwyd, Welsh MP for Cynon Valley, to lead an investigation – now that’s more iike it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-21357075

in the meantime

The government’s full response to the public inquiry will come next month, however, it has already been announced that a new post of chief inspector of hospitals will be created in the autumn.

Speaking in the House of Commons, David Cameron said he was “truly sorry” for what happened at Stafford Hospital, which was “not just wrong, it was truly dreadful” and the government needed to “purge” a culture of complacency.

Sir David Nicholson (how did he get a knighthood?) has been the focus of anger from families affected by the scandal. He is chief executive of the NHS and was briefly in charge of the Regional Health Authority while death rates were high at Stafford Hospital.

Responding to calls for him to go, he said: “I think it’s perfectly understandable, I understand the anger that they feel, the upset that they feel about the treatment of their loved ones in Mid-Staffordshire hospital.

“I absolutely understand all of that. At the time I apologised and in a sense I apologise again to the people of Stafford for what happened, but apologies are not enough.

“We need action, we need to make things happen.”

Too right – but forgive my cynicism –

I think Patients and their Relatives are still going to

have to take on the collective might of the NHS to get the best

available  treatment.

If you have ideas – send a message to your MP, local hospital

and/or PCT:  let them now your views – and DEMAND an

answer.

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Britain Against Cancer

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The Great Clock

The Great Clock (Photo credit: Martin Deutsch)

The  ALL PARTY

 

PARLIAMENTARY

 

GROUP’S  ANNUAL

 

CONFERENCE

 

This was the 14th annual gathering, and it’s beginning to show its age.  Chairman, John Baron, MP,  gave a rousing introduction which promised much – but by the time we gathered for the first break-out session, entitled What Patients want from the NHS,  it became obvious that lessons from previous conferences haven’t been learnt.

Looking round the room, there were the usual faces present.  Sitting at democratically-placed tables-in-the-round;  each was to be ‘hosted’ by one of the ‘usual’ volunteers, leaving one to wonder why were we banging the same drum which obviously wasn’t being listened to.

Instead, it would have surely been more productive to get hosts who were tasked with actually providing what patients want;   listening to what we said we wanted, Why not  bring in some of the high and mighty who pontificate about cancer care in today’s NHS, but obviously aren’t listening to patients?  When faced with a dozen patients – they would HAVE to listen.

Each Delegate psck contained a dinky postcard, offering “London Cancer’s overall  mission is to drive superior outcomes…….” etc. etc.  Why not say it is to improve care, in plain simple language?  That’s what we all want, and things are improving – but too slowly for some. 

Wot, nothing from Europe?

Macmillan were involved in running this event, and their letest survey says London’s cancer care is lagging way behind the rest of the UK.  Being so close to the Continent, it would have been an ideal  opportunity to invite European experts, and listen to some straight-talking from their Oncologists as to why we are lagging behind. 

But it seems UK PLC is too arrogant to ask advice from other countries, even if their care enables their citizens to live far longer after a cancer diagnosis.

Europa Donna (the European-wide consortium of Breast Cancer societies) were present;  perhaps next year Macmillan might ask them to provide speakers?

Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS)

CNSs were talked about as a ‘good thing’ that everyone should have access to.  A straw poll produced the information that patients considered access to a helpful CNS was most important – where he or she was based was less important – it was access, even at the end of a phone or email, that patients wanted.But one wonders why the Chief Nurse, or whoever, wasn’t called to the Platform to answer why they aren’t available to every patient?  Many patients were treat five or even ten years ago, but have never been given access to a CNS, even though post-cancer they will have many questions.  Lots of Jaw Jaw, but no action – and so it went on. 

There was a feeling that patients still weren’t being given enough care and support once they had left hospital, and access to a CNS (when needed) would be helpful for all.

Plenty of MPs were present;  one of them, Andy Burnham (ex-Health Minister) was a speaker;  he  gave a very good speech, but so he should.  He doesn’t have the cares of office any longer, so it is easy to comment, knowing you can’t be held accountable.  But as usual the audience was not given enough time to ask questions as he had ‘another engagement’.  One wonders what was more important than talking about health.

Next Year

This could be the ideal opportunity to make the conference really meaningful.  Macmillan should forget its politicing – and get some dialogue going.  What about

  • a head-to-head with Andy Burnham questioning Mike Richards? 
  •  Mitzi Blennerhasset questioning Julietta Patnick on screening
  • and am sure readers can think of other interesting combinations!

Get the ‘great and good’ out of their Consulting rooms, and into the sessions to actually meet with nurses and patients to answer their questions.

But will anyone be brave enough to organise such a gathering?

 

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Patient Power beats Ministry

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Minister forced to climb down

English: Iain Duncan Smith, British politician...

Iain Duncan Smith,

 

 

Ian Duncan Smith, Minister for Work and Pensions, has been forced to give in to campaigneers such as Macmillan.

 

Now, those undergoing cancer treatment, such as chemotherapy or raqdiuotherapy, will no lomger be expected to look for work during treatment.

Whereas before their benefits were taken away.

What made IDS climb down?

Could it have been public outcry, headed by Charities such as Macmillan?  If so, well done everyone who wrote to their MP. Lobbied etc.  Patient Power really does work!

 

MACMILLAN CANCER SUPPORT RESPONSE

Following a Government consultation, Work Capability Assessment: Accounting for the effects of cancer treatment, that closed in March, the Department of Work and Pensions has released its formal response,  Mike Hobday, Director of Policy of Macmillan Cancer Support, says:

“We welcome the Government’s announcement that more cancer patients will avoid having to face stressful medical assessments or back to work interviews while experiencing the effects of gruelling treatments.

“Macmillan campaigned vigorously for greater protection for cancer patients who are too sick to work.  We are delighted the Government has listened.

“As the response makes clear there is still work to be done to ensure these commitments become a reality.  We look forward to continuing to work with the Government to implement these important changes.”

Give us work

The ironic thing is that msnycancer survivors would like to work from home during treatmernt.  Type of work that would be pasrticularly suited would be anything needing IT skills.

However, when the NHS set up the  pathetic National Cancer Surviors Initiative http://www.ncsi.org.uk, the NHS said they couldn’t get cancer patients to set it up (even though Macmillan  didn’t support using those cancer survivors with IT experiencet;  it might have ensured the website was more interesting and relevant to what cancer survivors WANT AND   NEED).

Excuse given?  It was showing  ‘discrimination’ to use cancer survivors, but if NHS and Macmillan read the Act, they will see reverse discrimination IS allowed.

 

Enhanced by ZemantaArticle author:  Verite Reily Collins   verite@vgreenbee.net

Does Atos stand for arrogance?

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Or for ‘new’ politics?

Atos

Atos (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

Let’s hope the legscy left by the Olympics is to stand up to bullies.

Atos is being challenged

It has cost the Government £50 million to defend challenges against Atos-recommended withdrawals of Disability Benefit with 38 out of 40 cases going overturning Atos rulingd.

The Guardian  Newspaper recently commentet that they were surprised that Atos had chosen to sponsor the Paralympics. As a company tasked by the Government to carry out the controversial assessmentd of Disabled people, it semed a bizarre choice.

But this typifies the new way of running anything political and/or Government-run.  When a Government realises that reforming one of their institutions, such as the NHS, was what they thought was needed – thinking seems yo be to throw taxpayers money at this, then stand back and let the company that is going to make a fortune take flak from the public. 

Witness :  the massive amount  Olympic security was going to cost;  then get a company such as G4S to run the contract; when it all goes pear-shaped, stand back and let G4S take the flak.  And don’t worry, G4S will be offered other contracts to compensate.

The same principle applies with reorganising the Benefits system.  And re organising the NHS – instead of working hard with  those already working in the industry who must know where skeletons are buried, and what needs to be changed.  Doing it the sensible way, taking  time, and supporting those who have worked in the field for some time. Instead just grab a fistful of taxes, scatter them into some CEO’s pocket, and let them handle this.  They will be shamed into giving back some dosh as a sop, but nothing like the huge amounts they are going to make.

Good News

A HEALTH professional signed off work by her doctor in “excruciating pain” lost all her benefits and was judged fit to work following an assessment by Atos.

The mother – she lives in Camden but wants to remain anonymous – said she had been pushed to the limits of despair by the Government’s £100m contractor:  Atos Healthcare

Currently the agents of the Coalition’s welfare reform and Paralympics partner – is under intense criticism for assessments campaign groups who say they are forcing seriously ill people over the edge.

The mother has worked all her life until a serious workplace injury forced her to quit. She regularly sees a hospital pain management team for her pain but after being assessed by Atos she was told she no longer qualified for Employment Support Allowance (ESA).

Her child tax credits, housing, council and employment benefits were cut off in the same week.

She said: “I am in extreme, excruciating pain. But for three months I didn’t have any money at all. At first I thought this was a joke. I was asking for help from friends – but the worst thing was I couldn’t give my two children anything during the holidays.
How do you explain to a child about this sort of thing?

“I was so proud to work – I went to school, university, I have studied. Now the kids are crying for you and it makes you so upset. When they stop one benefit, the others also stop.”

She added: “These assessments – the trouble you have to go through – they are leaving people with mental illness.

“I cannot carry shopping bags. I can’t stand for long and cook so I sometimes buy ready meals. I told them this and they said: ‘Oh, because you can put things in the microwave you can go to work.’

“They score you on communication, sitting and standing, about whether you can read your email, can you talk on the phone, walk 200 metres?

“It is like speaking to a robot – they ask you what you can do, but not how you are. I was assessed by a nurse – fitness to work should be assessed by a doctor.”

Disability benefit assessments were formerly done by a registered GP.

Lost papers

After challenging the decision, she was told her appeal papers had been lost. With help from the Kentish Town-based campaign group WinVisible, some of her benefits have been restored.

Clare Glassman from WinVisible said: “One of the main problems is that Atos do not get penalised when they get things wrong.

Women are terrified and it is very, very serious. They don’t count pain levels or the difficulties of getting around. None of that. Being in a wheelchair is now classed as being mobile.

“The BMA [British Medical Association] has called for these assessments to be scrapped. We have got results for some people, but there needs to be a wholesale change because this is happening on a massive scale.”

She said she had spoken to women living in Camden who had physical disabilities but also “terrible psychological” injuries that were not taken into account under the new system.

She said “equality” – a principle championed by New Labour – was being used to argue that it was “patronising that the severely disabled cannot work”.

A week of protest ended when more than 400 protesters demonstrated outside the Atos headquarters in Triton Square, Euston.  Then George Osborne was booed by tens of thousands of Paralympic fans as he handed out medals in the Olympic Stadium.

A spokeswoman for Atos said: “We don’t make benefit decisions – we are small part of the overall process. We send a report off to the Department and they decide these are parameters set by the Government – that is all Government policy.

She added: “At Atos we have proudly supported the Paralympics Movement for a decade. We hope people will view the Games, as we do, as an opportunity to celebrate sporting achievements.”

“We fully respect people’s right to peaceful protest and we understand this is a highly emotive issue.

So who are they?

Go on the Atos Website and it is obvious they don’t want to publicise that they are a foreigtn-owned compay.  But the dead give-away is the telephone codes used.  But one wonders why they are so coy? When you go to Google, the UK website that comes up does its best to hide its origins.

But ironically, their attempt to gain more clients by sponsoring the Paolympics may have highlighted the company’s failings, and given protesters a focus-point where to aim demonstrations.  The company weren’t helped by the heavy-handed policing of these protests, with media pictures of people in wheelchairs being manhandled.  Never good publkicity.

Meantime, now that Lansley and his pathetic team have been booted out, idn’t it time to go back to transparency, and awarding Government contracts to British companies who have a proven record, and can be held accountible?

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Being sensible with Herbal remedies

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Careful taking herbal remedies

 

BELEM, BRAZIL - JUNE 07: Amazonian herbal reme...

BELEM, BRAZIL – JUNE 07: Avoid Street displays like this

 

 

Sadly, many of the most efficient cancer drugs aren’t  very nice to take – so we end up either being resentful as we dutifully swallow our prescribed drugs – but not very willingly.

Or, ditching drugs altogether and going for old-fashioned alternatives.

But before we take alternatives, we should ensure that these medicines are not going to give us as many problems.

Some herbs can be very, very powerful, and even kill us if we mis-use them.

What’s best for us

Sadly, as a medical writer I get numerous claims of XXXXX herbs that can cure cancer.  They can’t.

Believe me, if there was a real Herbal cure for cancer, even though the drug companies might not like this, Governments are spending too much money on cancer treatment to ignore this.  But as so often happens, yet another claim of a ‘miracle’ plant bites the dust, and the world goes back to searching again.

But many people believe that herbal remedies can help mitigate the side effects of drugs, so if you want to take these:

a)  take your Oncologist’s advi ce

b) then ask the advi ce of a Pharmacist who understands the power of herbal medicine.

Better still, after you have taken sensible advice, go for products grown and supplied by one of the traditional companies that has a good reputation in this field – not one that has come on the scene from some country with a supposed reputation for medicine – but no actual backing or basis for their prescribing.

  •  Has it a good record?  Some companies have been going for 200 years
  •  Has it has an advisory committee overseeing products?
  •  Is it is proud of its traditions, guarding these jealously?
  • So look for a herbal company that has a good track record, as is sold in a specialist pharmacy such as Lloyds or Boots.
  • One such firm is the 200 year old firm of Potters Herbals, whose products are stocked in major specialist pharmacies, where the pharmacists understand herbal medicines.

Recently I saw a copy of their report Health of the Nation, which is a fascinating account of different major problems that affect our health – from coughs to lack of sleep.

Plants can be powerful!

  • Don’t let Foxgloves fool you;  like many plants and herbs, they are very pretty.  (see left).

Herbs gathered from plants are powerful:  aspirin is made from white willow;  morphine and codeine are made from the opium poppy – and the favourite for medieaval poisoners was the attractive foxglove (digitalis).

But  company such as Potters has a reputation to safeguard.  For many major worres today, from digestive problems to stress, they have an old-fashioned herbal remedy.  Our ancestors seemed to do well on these, and prescribed by someone who understands their interaction with anything else you can take, they may well provide a gentler solution than taking a drug.

Sometimes drugs are necessary – but have a look through this report and see if there is a solution that makes sense.  As they rightly say, “routinely popping pills isn’t necessarily the answer to safeguarding everyone’s health.  Natural ingredients can play a powerful contribution to health by working effectively, and generally they also have fewer side effects.

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It's Official – report confirms pain can be ignored by doctors

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NICE releases new guidelines

 

for pain relief

 

English: Opium Poppy - Papaver somniferum

Opium Poppy - (Wikipedia)

 

If you have problems getting

your aches and pains

acknowledged  – NICE agrees

you have a point

 

 

 

NICE (National Institure for Health and Clinical Excellence) has admited

Many of us who suffer are “under-treated for their pain”.

 

Papaver somniferum var. album (Opium Poppy) - ...

Opium Poppy - (Photo credit: Arthur Chapman)

Sometimes morphine and other strong opoids are the only adequate pain relief source for many patients.  So NICE wants doctors in England and Wales to make more use of these.

The guidelines recommend doctors discuss patients’ concerns:  these may include addiction, tolerance, side-effects and fears that treatment implies the final stage of life.

The guidance deals with five opioids:

  •  morphine
  • diamorphine (heroin)
  • buprenorphine
  • fentanyl
  • oxycodone.

They come either from the opium poppy or are synthetically produced versions.

NICE says “misinterpretations and misunderstanding” have surrounded the use of strong opioids for decades, which has resulted in errors “causing under-dosing and avoidable pain, or overdosing and distressing adverse effects”.

There is also the legacy of Dr Harold Shipman.  He used diamorphine to murder his victims, so it has doctors wary of prescribing strong opioids, and patients and their carers taking them.

What you can do

So cancer patients, who are worried that they are not being given adequate pain relief, can take note of Mike Bennett, St Gemma’s professor of palliative medicine at the University of Leeds  He says “Almost half of patients with advanced cancer are under-treated for their pain, largely because clinicians are reluctant to use strong opioids.”

Prof Bennett said the issue also applied to the late stages of other conditions such as heart failure and neurological disorders.

In the British Medical Journal he says doctors should address patients’ concerns and reassure them that addiction is “very rare”.

Doctors are also told to advise patients about side-effects, including constipation, which can be treated with laxatives.

Will I become an addict?

Dr Damien Longson, Chair of the NICE Guideline Development Group said: “People worry they can become addicted, particularly if opioids are prescribed over an extended period of time. This guideline puts a strong emphasis on good communication between healthcare professionals and patients, which is key to ensuring any worries or uncertainties are addressed with timely and accurate information.”

Another person who welcomed the NICE guidelines, Dr Fiona Hicks, chairwoman of the Royal College of Physicians’ recent working party on improving end-of-life care, said she welcomed the new NICE guidelines with its “emphasis on strong communication with patients, including how to help patients cope with both taking opioids and deal with the side-effects.”

Supporting this comment, Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Compassion in Dying, said: “This guideline will support healthcare professionals in providing good end-of-life care across all settings, and will help to ensure that many people have what they consider to be a good death with their pain properly managed.”

What can I do?

Get your GP to refer you to the best pain management clinic at a hospital in your area.

Warning!  a good clinic will have a long waiting list – but in this instance it could be a guarantee that others think the same as you, and want to make use of its expertise.

The Royal Marsden has an excellent Pain Management Clinic.  It can take six months for a referral, but once there, patients say they have a long, long interview with one or sometimes two doctors.  They are asked numerous questions, but the advice given is reassuring.  Sarah B says “I found the assessment was extremely thorough.  I was asked seaching questions.  Asked to qualify some answers which proved they were actually listening to what I said, and at the end was given several options which are working out extremely well”.  Afterwards I received an excellent summary of what was discussed, and am looking forward to my follow-up appointment to find out more.

So don’t ‘grin and bear it’.  Official advice is you CAN take pain killers – with care.

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GPs make too many mistakes when prescribing

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GMC say one in six prescriptions 

 

could have errors

Medicine drugs

 

Shocking statistics have recently been released, saying that errors happen in far too many prescriptions.

I didn’t believe this, so took my bag of pills into my local Boots, and asked the Pharmacist to review them.  I came out a very much wiser person.

If I could find errors in prescribing, considering myself fairly savvy – no wonder the elderly can be particularly at risk.

The magazine Pharmacy Voice has responded to the findings of a study into GP prescribing, which found that around 1 in 20 prescriptions written by family doctors contained an error.

The research, commissioned by the GMC (General Medical Council) looked at a sample of GP practices in England and found that the most common errors were

  • missing information on dosage
  • prescribing an incorrect dosage
  • failing to ensure that patients got necessary monitoring through blood tests
  • not saying if pills should be taken before, during or after meals (this was what happened to me)

Ian Facer, Chairman of Pharmacy Voice said:

“With millions of prescription items issued by GPs each day, some errors are perhaps inevitable – so it is important to have a safeguard against patient harm; that safeguard is provided by local pharmacies.

Headlines echo concerns

The GMC reports GPs are making too many mistakes when prescribing drugs to patients.  They are calling for longer consultations, to give doctors time to evaluate other drugs taken by patients, and monitoring the effects.

Its study – based on 1,200 patients – found the elderly and the young were the worst affected.

But the report said although many mistakes were only minor, and some would have been corrected by the pharmacist before the patients were actually given the drugs, nonetheless, it was clear there was room for improvement.  They are calling for better training for GPs and more checks on their prescribing practices.

They also suggested the length of the GP consultation should be increased from 10 minutes to 15 to ease the time pressure on doctors.

Lead researcher Professor Tony Avery added: “It’s important we do everything we can to avoid all errors.”
The most common type of error identified was incomplete information on the prescription, followed by problems with dose and timing of doses.

In total, 18% of patients experienced a mistake with at least one prescription over the course of the year.

But for the over-75s the figure increased to 38%, reflecting the fact they were often on a number of different medications at the same time.

Children under the age of 14 were also more likely to experience an error – something that was put down to the difficulty of getting doses right.

But the overwhelming majority of cases were not classed as serious, with only 4% of errors judged as severe.!!!!  In other words, one in 25 of us will have a serious incident.  Thanks a bunch!

These serious cases included incidents where patients were given drugs which they were allergic to, and a lack of monitoring of potentially risky drugs such as warfarin, which thins the blood.

Reassuring?

Why aren’t I reassured?  LaLa Lansley says the government is working with GPs to improve practices.  Considering he and the GMC are at loggerheads, I don’t see how this is to happen.  But fear not, he said patients should be reassured that even when GPs made mistakes, there were systems in place to make sure patients were not affected.

“The vast majority of prescriptions are checked by community pharmacists, who spot and put right any errors when they are dispensed.”      Well, thank heavens for that.

So take  advantage of free check services

The National Pharmacy Association survey for Ask Your Pharmacist Week (7-13 November) found :

  •  Only 8% of people know that the vast majority of pharmacies have consultation rooms from which numerous NHS health and wellbeing services are delivered.  (Almost 9 in 10 pharmacies have NHS-accredited consultation areas)
  • There is no waiting time (you often don’t have to make an appointment), and the pharmacist will be with you for as long as it takes to help you.
  • New Medicine Service is an NHS service,  aimed at helping people who have been newly prescribed a medicine. People often find they have problems when they start a new medicine, but NMS helps to sort these out.  Now you can visit your local pharmacy to get expert help and advice.

 

Pharmacies such as Lloydspharmacy offering Medicines Use Reviews are available free on the NHS in pharmacies.

Anyone taking two or more prescribed medicines for a long term condition can benefit from this, and, as I found out when I tried out the service, even if you have been on medicines for some time, my pharmacist was able to suggest simple steps that helped with side effects, and reduced nausea effects.  I had a private, very informatived and helpful interview which wasn’t rushed, and I was able to discuss all my worries for free.

 

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Welsh cancer charity is setting up choirs

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Singing is Therapy for Cancer Survivors

 

One of worst problems facing cancer patients is isolation.

But, this is the Year of the Choirs; headed by the wonderful Military Wives Choir.  They have proved that getting together to sing can help with depression and loneliness – and it’s FUN!

But that was just one Choir.  Could a ‘choir movement’ do something to improve lives in different areas?

Wales is famous for its Choirs

So it is not surprising that the Welsh thought this a good idea.  Tenovus, in partnership with the motivation and team building company Sing and Inspire, set up a choir for people affected by cancer, to determine if this could act as an alternative support group.

There was a hard-headed basis to all this;  the object was to determine whether the choir actually improved the lives of  choir members.  Tenovus worked together with a team from the School of Healthcare Studies at Cardiff University to measure their health and wellbeing before, during and at the end of the choir’s initial 3 month pilot period.

Despite being carried out over a relatively short period of time, the pilot study showed that the choir brought about  significant improvements in those reporting various conditions prior to taking part:

  • in social function
  • mental health
  • a reduction in perceived pain
  • reduced depression and anxiety in those that reported suffering from these conditions prior to taking part in the choir.

So is it worth it?

Tenovus say statistical results and personal testimonies collected from members of the choir showed that a choir can be an excellent support group.

Angela Davies joined the choir after being diagnosed with inoperable ovarian cancer;  “I go to choir every week with my husband Glyn and son Josh. It has made an enormous difference to my life and is a huge support. It has given me the confidence to get out of the house, meet a new family and given me a new purpose. I no longer feel I am battling the disease alone.”

Today the choir continues to perform under the name of the Tenovus Sing For Life Choir.

What for the Future?

Since it started in 2010 in Pontypridd, things have gone from strength to strength. The success of this choir led to Tenovus receiving a £1 million grant to set up fifteen further choirs across Wales. The first choir opened in Cardiff on the 7 March and the next will open in Cwmbran.

So if you want to join, they plan to roll out a further 15 choirs across Wales.

Cardiff  (already running)
Swansea – starting April
Cwmbran  – May
Carmarthen – October
Merthyr -  Jan 2013
Bridgend  – Jan 2013
Monmouth – Jan 2013
Cardigan – Sept. 2013
Brecon – Sep 2013
Aberystwyth – Sep 2013
Builth – Apr 2014
Lampeter – Apr 2014
Bangor – Sep 2014
Wrexham – Sep 2014
Newtown  – Sep 2014

http://www.tenovus.org.uk/how-we-can-help-you/our-sing-for-life-choir.aspx

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Cancer campaign – new, inovative and perhaps controversial

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What do you think of this?

 

 

Breast Cancer Care (BCC) is one of the charities whom I support as much as I can.  But sadly, not many people know of its existence.

This could be about to change, thanks to a ‘new’ style of advert thought up between advertising agency M&C Saatchi and  The Mill, to launch an innovative advertising campaign to ‘support the woman behind the breast cancer’.

As a survivor, I am grateful to Estée Lauder and her company’s ground-breaking support for us with their pink ribbons;  but recently these ribbons were pinned on to a great many campaigns that just seemed to be riding on the emotive appeal.

Now, using a very beautiful woman who has obviously had breast cancer, and adding the thousands of pills we have to take – which have given so many of us unthought of problems, whilst helping keep us alive – this video uses them all very effectively, to get across that we cancer patients are also human beings.

Breast Cancer Care knows we need better care

Research by BCC confirms the wide-ranging, long-lasting effects of breast cancer on women’s physical and emotional wellbeing.  This past couple of years David Cameron and Andrew Lansley have totally lost any support I gave to the Conservative Party in the past;  each time they gave a speech, both of them trotted out the cliché that Britain’s cancer care was way behind that offered to Europeans (cue for sob story) but NEITHER uttered one sentence showing the many ways we could copy this treatment at little or no cost.  They were climbing on the bandwagon that says “cancer is vote catching’, without offering one practical solution.

But BCC carred out a survey, and found that after treatment:

  • 92%  of women said they needed information and advice beyond that offered by their hospital consultant
  • up to five years after treatment, almost half (45%) said they still thought about their breast cancer every day
  •  63% said their breast cancer still negatively impacts their sex life.

The new advert raises awareness that when breast cancer overshadows everything, Breast Cancer Care is dedicated to providing round-the-clock emotional and practical support to the person behind the disease – from diagnosis, through treatment and beyond.

More than 48,000 people are newly diagnosed with breast cancer every year in the UK, and as incidence increases and statutory provision becomes more pressured, the services Breast Cancer Care offers are more urgently needed than ever.

M&C Saatchi has worked with Breast Cancer Care on a pro-bono basis to develop this impactful creative, and this photo shows a still from the campaign.

Where can you see this?

The advert will feature throughout the UK on Clear Channel billboards and outdoor advertising poster sites.  Look out for them a bus stops, where Clear Channel provide a lot of the advertising panels that feature on these.

Together with M&C Saatchi, The Mill, creators of award-winning video projects, have produced a video featuring a woman emerging from a veil of medication, bringing to life the concept.  A pro-bono Facebook advertising campaign with Sponsored Stories is being coordinated by BLiNQ Media to reach thousands of users at www.facebook.com/breastcancercare.

What it’s like

To bring to life the issues faced by those with a breast cancer diagnosis, Breast Cancer Care has recruited guest bloggers to talk about their own experiences on the campaign area of the charity’s website: www.breastcancercare.org.uk/thewoman.

Erin, 32, from Milton Keynes, speaks for many of us when she says:  “Of course it’s important to have medical treatment for breast cancer and I expected side effects, but I definitely underestimated the impact having breast cancer would have on all aspects of my life.  I had children to look after;  I lost my confidence and my hair and wasn’t able to work any more.

“My medical team were great but they were busy and I didn’t want to bother them with my questions.  When I heard about Breast Cancer Care it was comforting knowing there was help available …… I rang the helpline with my questions and they patiently answered them.  I think every woman should know that Breast Cancer Care is there to support them every step of the way.”

I totally agree with Erin;  at hospital the over-worked staff constantly said ‘phone a helpline’.  But having worked on many fund-raising events for the charities that offer these services, my feeling was, “I raised money to help others, not myself”.  But eventually I did phone – and what an incredible amount of helpful information is provided by the helpline nurses!

Samia al Qadhi Chief Executive at Breast Cancer Care said:  “We are delighted to have the support of M&C Saatchi, and all our partners, in creating an innovative advertising campaign that reaches out to the woman behind every breast cancer diagnosis.  We know from supporting thousands of women that it can be all too easy to forget that the treatment of breast cancer isn’t just about a woman’s physical health”.

“ in 2010 alone we had 3 million requests for support.  And we know how to support the women behind the breast cancer because they’re involved in everything we do: contributing to our publications, participating in our campaigns and helping to raise money for our work.  Two-thirds (66%) of women who have received a breast cancer diagnosis feel that their friends and family have moved on after a year and they need our support.   Breast Cancer Care’s website, online forums, Helpline, publications and information sessions are all there to help them.”

So this campaign is a very thoughtful way of emphasing our pill-laden life, and how we have to depend on so much that is pumped into our bodies, which are poisons to a greater or lesser degree.  I keep on replaying the video – and hope you like it as much as I do.

www.breastcancercare.org.uk      0808 800 6000.

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