‘False fears’ preventing smokers from using e-cigarettes to quit Over half of smokers believe nicotine vaping products are equally or more harmful than smoking despite US vaping deaths being caused by substances banned in UK, according to a new report by Public Health England Coronavirus: COVID-19 added to list of notifiable diseases General practice staff must notify Public Health England if they are presented with a case of COVID-19, under new rules RCM calls upon NHS to respect the right to pain relief during childbirth The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has called upon the NHS to make sure pain relief is available to ‘every woman who wants it, provided it is safe to do so’ Coronavirus: Government sets out plans to contain spread Almost 20% of the UK population could be off work sick during the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in a worst case scenario, the Government have said as part of their response Coronavirus: New guidance published for staff Guidance to support staff in managing COVID-19 has been produced by the RCN, RCM and other trade unions Spike in depression ‘linked to Universal Credit’ A rise in mental-health problems among the unemployed has been linked with the rollout of universal credit and other government welfare changes, in a study published by Lancet Public Health Coronavirus: UK schools shut as outbreak spreads across Europe Four schools have been closed due to the COVID-19, after students returned from Northern Italy, an area with a severe outbreak Diabetes: Record high at risk of developing type 2 Two million people in England are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a record high, NHS figures have shown Life expectancy fails to rise for ‘first time in a century’ For the first time in more than 100 years life expectancy has failed to increase across the country, and for the poorest 10% of women it has actually declined, the Marmot 2020 review has found Health visiting: Services unable to offer the minimum level of support Cuts to public health budgets have left health visitors overstretched and unable to provide high quality care in some areas, the Institute for Health Visiting’s annual survey has found Major funding boost to Care Home Nurses Network The RCN Foundation will provide funding for 3 years to the Care Home Nurses Network, allowing the project to extend to Wales and Northern Ireland ‘Too many’ staff still face abuse NHS staff are happier and more likely to recommend their organisation as a place to work than last year, but too many still experience unacceptable abuse from patients and the public, the NHS Staff Survey has found 'Significant increase’ in BME representation at senior levels There has been a notable rise in representation of BME people at board level across the NHS, according to the latest annual Workforce Race Equality Standard Cuts to services leave children's health at risk Reductions in the school nursing and health visiting workforce risk harming provision of children and young people’s health, the British Medical Association has warned Mumps outbreaks across England Mumps cases have risen to the highest levels in a decade, as Public Health England urges patients to get vaccinated Coronavirus: Diagnostic test rolled out across UK A novel coronavirus diagnostic test developed by Public Health England (PHE) is being rolled out to laboratories across the UK Nursing apprenticeships: Boosting numbers will strengthen nurse workforce Increasing the number of nursing apprentices is key to fulfilling the ambitions of the NHS Long-Term Plan, England’s chief nursing officer has said ‘Unacceptable’ shortages of contraceptives and HRT A shortage of contraceptives and HRT is ‘causing chaos’, healthcare organisations have warned ‘Painkiller’ should not be used as term for medication Describing medication to relieve pain as ‘painkillers’ is unhelpful, and may cause ‘unrealistic expectations’, according to a government advisor New system to increase efficiency of pharmacy prescriptions An electronic system which enables pharmacies to immediately check if a patient is eligible for free prescriptions is to be rolled out nationally, the NHS has announced Pollution: Nearly a quarter of the UK live in areas exceeding clean air guidelines Around 15 million people in the UK live in areas where average levels of tiny toxic particles in the air exceed guidelines set out by the World Health Organization, analysis by the British Heart Foundation has found Sharp rise in alcohol-related harm Around 1.3 million people were admitted to hospital because of alcohol in 2018, 7.4% of all hospital admissions across the country, new data released by the NHS has shown Social media: NHS chief warns of ‘fake news’ risk to health The proliferation of inaccurate and often deliberately misleading health information available online, often through the booming ‘wellness industry’, is leading to people taking risks with their health as well as wasting money, NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has warned Coronavirus: Global emergency declared The spread of the novel coronavirus that has emerged from Wuhan, China, has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization Climate change: NHS launches campaign to tackle ‘health emergency’ The NHS will step up action to combat the climate emergency, chief executive Simon Stevens has announced
‘False fears’ preventing smokers from using e-cigarettes to quit Over half of smokers believe nicotine vaping products are equally or more harmful than smoking despite US vaping deaths being caused by substances banned in UK, according to a new report by Public Health England
Coronavirus: COVID-19 added to list of notifiable diseases General practice staff must notify Public Health England if they are presented with a case of COVID-19, under new rules
RCM calls upon NHS to respect the right to pain relief during childbirth The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has called upon the NHS to make sure pain relief is available to ‘every woman who wants it, provided it is safe to do so’
Coronavirus: Government sets out plans to contain spread Almost 20% of the UK population could be off work sick during the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in a worst case scenario, the Government have said as part of their response
Coronavirus: New guidance published for staff Guidance to support staff in managing COVID-19 has been produced by the RCN, RCM and other trade unions
Spike in depression ‘linked to Universal Credit’ A rise in mental-health problems among the unemployed has been linked with the rollout of universal credit and other government welfare changes, in a study published by Lancet Public Health
Coronavirus: UK schools shut as outbreak spreads across Europe Four schools have been closed due to the COVID-19, after students returned from Northern Italy, an area with a severe outbreak
Diabetes: Record high at risk of developing type 2 Two million people in England are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a record high, NHS figures have shown
Life expectancy fails to rise for ‘first time in a century’ For the first time in more than 100 years life expectancy has failed to increase across the country, and for the poorest 10% of women it has actually declined, the Marmot 2020 review has found
Health visiting: Services unable to offer the minimum level of support Cuts to public health budgets have left health visitors overstretched and unable to provide high quality care in some areas, the Institute for Health Visiting’s annual survey has found
Major funding boost to Care Home Nurses Network The RCN Foundation will provide funding for 3 years to the Care Home Nurses Network, allowing the project to extend to Wales and Northern Ireland
‘Too many’ staff still face abuse NHS staff are happier and more likely to recommend their organisation as a place to work than last year, but too many still experience unacceptable abuse from patients and the public, the NHS Staff Survey has found
'Significant increase’ in BME representation at senior levels There has been a notable rise in representation of BME people at board level across the NHS, according to the latest annual Workforce Race Equality Standard
Cuts to services leave children's health at risk Reductions in the school nursing and health visiting workforce risk harming provision of children and young people’s health, the British Medical Association has warned
Mumps outbreaks across England Mumps cases have risen to the highest levels in a decade, as Public Health England urges patients to get vaccinated
Coronavirus: Diagnostic test rolled out across UK A novel coronavirus diagnostic test developed by Public Health England (PHE) is being rolled out to laboratories across the UK
Nursing apprenticeships: Boosting numbers will strengthen nurse workforce Increasing the number of nursing apprentices is key to fulfilling the ambitions of the NHS Long-Term Plan, England’s chief nursing officer has said
‘Unacceptable’ shortages of contraceptives and HRT A shortage of contraceptives and HRT is ‘causing chaos’, healthcare organisations have warned
‘Painkiller’ should not be used as term for medication Describing medication to relieve pain as ‘painkillers’ is unhelpful, and may cause ‘unrealistic expectations’, according to a government advisor
New system to increase efficiency of pharmacy prescriptions An electronic system which enables pharmacies to immediately check if a patient is eligible for free prescriptions is to be rolled out nationally, the NHS has announced
Pollution: Nearly a quarter of the UK live in areas exceeding clean air guidelines Around 15 million people in the UK live in areas where average levels of tiny toxic particles in the air exceed guidelines set out by the World Health Organization, analysis by the British Heart Foundation has found
Sharp rise in alcohol-related harm Around 1.3 million people were admitted to hospital because of alcohol in 2018, 7.4% of all hospital admissions across the country, new data released by the NHS has shown
Social media: NHS chief warns of ‘fake news’ risk to health The proliferation of inaccurate and often deliberately misleading health information available online, often through the booming ‘wellness industry’, is leading to people taking risks with their health as well as wasting money, NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has warned
Coronavirus: Global emergency declared The spread of the novel coronavirus that has emerged from Wuhan, China, has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization
Climate change: NHS launches campaign to tackle ‘health emergency’ The NHS will step up action to combat the climate emergency, chief executive Simon Stevens has announced
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