This alert has been issued in response to two recently reported patient safety incidents, when enteral nutrition was unintentionally given into the respiratory tract through a misplaced nasogastric tube inserted with the aid of a placement device. Placement devices for nasogastric tube insertion Patient safety alerts are shared rapidly with healthcare providers via the Central […]

NHS England today welcomes the publication of the Health and Social Care Centre’s Focus on Accident and Emergency. Data going back to 2004 shows how patterns of use have changed: attendances have grown by 11 per cent over four years, with 60,000 people per day using A&E services. Professor Keith Willett, Director for Acute Episodes […]

This weekly summary offers an overview of the system and pulls together information on waiting times in A&E, ambulance response times, daily situation reports from the NHS, and information on flu rates. Winter health check report 29 Nov 2013

The Department of Health has today published a new interactive online map, bringing together existing information on dementia services in England. Alistair Burns, National Clinical Director for Dementia at NHS England, said: “The publication of this interactive map, using existing available information, builds a clear transparent picture of dementia services across the country. “We know […]

NHS England has today published assurance frameworks for CCGs and direct commissioners. The frameworks set out how NHS England will assure that CCGs and NHS England’s own direct commissioning functions – which include primary care, specialised services, health screening and immunisation services, services for members of the armed forces and health and justice services – […]

More than one million individual pieces of feedback have been collected through the Friends and Family Test (FFT) in just six months, driving the patient voice into the heart of the NHS to improve services. Today’s publication of the latest FFT results show that between April and October 2013 a total of 1,176,562 surveys have […]

NHS leaders in London have announced the first step in a radical transformation of GP services in London. General Practice – A Call to Action, which is published today (Thursday 28 November 2013), was produced in partnership with some of London’s leading doctors. The aspiration is to transform GP services so they are more convenient, […]

The NHS has today issued a call for 100,000 people to sign a pledge saying they will look in on an elderly friend or neighbour this winter. Each winter thousands of people in England die as a result of cold weather. Most are over 75 and most of these deaths could be avoided. Hundreds of […]

Teams of cancer specialists and other senior clinicians have begun reviews of services for every type of cancer at Colchester Hospital University NHS Foundation Trust. The review teams, which are independent of the Trust, are being co-ordinated by an NHS England-led Incident Management Team. They are examining all 14 cancer pathways at the Trust. The […]

The Chief Nursing Officer for England today called for further improvements in care standards and transparency and the creation of a culture of empowerment in the nursing and midwifery profession, saying: “Absolute transparency is the key to driving improvements in standards of care. We need to ensure that every single patient receives great care, every […]