NEWS
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley used a speech to a UN committee to call for tough international action to make progress on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.
The meeting of the UN General Assembly members on non-com- municable diseases was called to discuss the challenges of diseases such as cancer, obesity and heart disease, and the unhealthy lifestyles which cause them.
Lansley told the representatives: “Today, we face new challenges from obesity, lung disease and al- cohol-related diseases. These are inextricably linked to the way we live our lives. They are just as wide-
spread, just as chronic and increas- ingly threaten early mortality and disability.
“We need a bold and determined ‘whole government’ approach look- ing at better outcomes and helping individuals to make better choices about their own health. With an em- phasis on prevention, on physical activity, on personal and corporate responsibility and with unified gov- ernment action, we can make a big difference.”
Massive rise in job insecurity amongst Scottish nurses
Less than a third of Scottish nurses feel that the profession offers a secure job, according to a survey by the Royal College of Nursing, down from 82% just two years ago in 2009.
The RCN surveyed 700 nurses and healthcare support workers, and found that only 30% now believe nursing is a secure pro- fession. Other results showed that only 38% would recom- mend nursing as a career, and almost 75% believed stress had increased at work.
Sixteen top medical research or- ganisations, including Cancer Research UK and the Medical Re- search Council (MRC), have called on the EU to urgently reforms the way clinical trials are regulated.
They argue that the disproportion- ate regulation of European clinical trials is impeding research into potentially lifesaving treatments – without improving patient safety.
Betty McBride, policy & commu- nications director at the British Heart Foundation, accuses the
current laws of “over-burdensome regulation”, and wants changes to the European Clinical Trials Di- rective, to ensure safety “without overwhelming researchers with red tape”.
The organisations’ statement to the European Commission and MEPs outlines how the directive should be revised to help stream- line the approval process for clini- cal trials. This could also lead to increased involvement in trials. Sir Mark Walport, director of the Wellcome Trust, argues that high
levels of participation are “crucial to fully realising the benefits of medical research for health and the economy in the UK”.
The statement charges the direc- tive with causing unnecessary bureaucracy for those undertaking trials, as they must go above and beyond the requirements to ensure they are compliant. It argues that this makes it increasingly difficult for researchers to undertake multi- national trials as well as significant- ly increasing the average cost and time it takes for trials to begin.
With continued cuts, prolonged pay freezes and planned pen- sion increases, it was “no sur- prise” that morale had dropped, said director of RCN Scotland, Theresa Fyffe. She called for ac- tion to be taken in order to pro- tect standards in patient care.
Fyffe said: “The survey’s find- ings should fire a warning shot across the bows, for the Scottish Government and NHS managers alike. Our nursing workforce is at breaking point and the tactic of cutting posts in an uncoor- dinated manner is simply not working.”
Only 34.7% of NHS staff were vaccinated last year, although the flu virus caused over 600 deaths of vulnerable patients – and health professionals who failed to get the jab are guilty of a “complete der- eliction of duty” according to Dr Lindsey Davies, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health.
The H1N1 swine flu virus is potentially fatal, and the new national NHS Staff Seasonal Flu Vaccine Campaign could greatly reduce this risk, experts say. There are 16 million people who are eligible for the free flu jab.
The NHS staff campaign is being led by NHS Employers.
Davies said: “It's a complete
getting the influenza vaccination doctors will not only be protecting themselves but also their families, patients and the NHS services they provide.
dereliction of duty for any health professional not to have the flu vaccine because as well as having a duty to treat patients, they also have a duty to keep them from harm.
“If a vulnerable patient gets the flu, they could die, it's as simple as that. That's a danger at the
moment. The patient isn't well to start with, so if a doctor infects their patient – especially if they are chronically unwell, very elderly, pregnant, have a breathing con- dition or are a young baby – then that patient could die.”
The BMA is backing the campaign and a spokeswoman said: “By
“We believe that it is essential that at-risk groups understand the importance of having the flu vac- cine. In the absence of a national campaign, it is essential that local areas develop systems to target these groups.”
An extra 2 million vaccines have been ordered for this winter, and to provide an emergency reserve. People are recommended to get vaccinated even if they did so last year, as there is no evidence the protection would still be effective from the previous year.
national health executive Sep/Oct 11 | 9
© NHS Employers
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