Blog
Rayner my parade! The importance of specialist advice.
Jemma Brimblecombe
12 April 2016
Report on ‘overstretched’ NHS Ophthalmic services gives cause for concern
The President of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, Professor Carrie MacEwen, has warned the BBC that NHS ophthalmic services are struggling to keep up with an increasing demand caused by more eye diseases in an ageing population requiring long term care.
30 November 2015
The ‘Weekend Effect’ – Babies born at weekend more likely to die
Babies born at the weekend are more likely to die within seven days than those born on weekdays, according to a study published last week in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).
This research adds further fuel to the continuing row over the alleged “weekend effect” (see our previous blog, "The ‘Weekend Effect’ – How to avoid dying in hospital"), which ignited following the publication of a study in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine suggesting that an extra 11,000 people died each year following admission to hospital on a weekend as opposed to a weekday.
20 November 2015
HIV – still a death sentence?
Earlier this week, Hollywood star Charlie Sheen took to national television to confirm that he is living with HIV.
After days of intense media speculation, the former star of sitcom Two And A Half Men appeared on NBC's Today show, stating "I am here to admit that I am HIV positive". Sheen revealed that he had paid "enough to take it into the millions" to keep people from going public about his illness. "I have to put a stop to this onslaught, this barrage of attacks and of sub-truths", he said. Sheen was apparently first diagnosed roughly four years ago, but doesn't know how he contracted the virus.
23 October 2015
Cerebral Palsy - what are the triggers for investigating a clinical negligence claim?
For many children and adults there is no connection between their cerebral palsy and the circumstances of their birth. For others there is a direct causal link, and for them, their injury may have been avoidable.
13 October 2015
The ‘Weekend Effect’ – How to avoid dying in hospital
A recent study has produced findings which suggest that patients are more likely to die if admitted to hospital on a weekend.
The study, authored by researchers from University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and University College London and published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, examined the effect of hospital admission day on death rates across NHS England hospitals for 2013-2014. The results confirm findings from an analysis they undertook for 2009-2010.