GENERAL PRACTICE

Primary Care Federations. Putting patients first. A plan for primary care in the 21st century from the Royal College of General Practitioners (26th June 2008)
Politicians and doctors should be concentrating on the day to day needs of patients instead of arguing the pros and cons of buildings and real estate in the NHS review. That is the message of the RCGP in its new publication demonstrating how GPs working in federations are the real solution to delivering improvements in patient care. Primary Care Federations – putting patients first sets out an approach to the development of primary care that builds on and preserves the strengths of general practice and shows how services can be extended to meet the new challenges ahead.
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GUIDANCE/GUIDELINES

The National Education and Competence Framework for assistant critical care practitioners (19th June 2008)
Good practice framework describing the education, skills and competences of critical care practitioners practising at the assistant level.
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HEALTH INEQUALITIES

Treating Inequalities - how local innovators are fighting the health and social care disease (June 2008)
The third issue of Intelligence, addresses one of the NHS’ top priorities - the reduction of health inequalities. It highlights ways organisations are addressing imbalances in care at both local and regional levels, as well as through cross-sector partnerships.
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HEALTH PROMOTION

Improving health: changing behaviour - NHS health trainer handbook (26th June 2008)
Handbook to support health trainers in facilitating behaviour change.
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Motivation and Confidence: What does it take to change behaviour? (30th June 2008)
This is the fourth paper in a series, Kicking Bad Habits, on how people can be encouraged to adopt healthy behaviour. The paper considers the influence of an individual's motivation and confidence in modifying their health behaviours. While there is good evidence, in theory, that they are two key determinants of behaviour change, there remains little clarity about which behavioural interventions are successful.
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HEALTHCARE

Who’s accountable for health? (17th June 2008)
In November 2007, Sir Simon Milton, Chairman of the Local Government Association asked Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the King's Fund, to chair an independent cross-party Commission to investigate how to engage people in the complex decisions about local health services, and empower them to hold their local systems to account. The final report focuses on local accountability and public involvement in the planning, purchasing and delivery of health care in England. It defines accountability and differentiates it from public involvement, and it considers how these concepts operate now – and could operate in future – across the domains of health service commissioning, health care provision and public health.
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HEALTHCARE COMMISSION

Heart Surgery in the United Kingdom (26th June 2008)
The Commission has published the statistics on the cardiac website, which was set up in 2006 when heart surgery became the first speciality to publish information on survival.
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HOUSING

Housing aspirations for a new generation: Perspectives from white and south Asian British women (19th June 2008)
The study reflects the views of second generation South Asian women, and white British women, in each of the three areas about: what their housing aspirations are; how decisions are made within the household; what strategies they use to achieve their housing aspirations; what barriers they face; and what they think could be done to help.
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MENTAL HEALTH

From the Inside - Experiences of prison mental health care (25th June 2008)
From the Inside is based on interviews with 98 prisoners in five West Midlands prisons. It finds that the 'average' prisoner has a combination of mental health, substance use and other problems. Mental ill health is not the exception but the rule. Women prisoners suffer especially high levels of distress when they are separated from their children. It sets out what prisoners themselves say they need to improve their mental health: 'someone to talk to', 'something to do' during the day and practical help to plan for what they will do after they are released.
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A New Vision for Mental Health. Discussion Paper (20th June 2008)
The Prime Minister should appoint a Cabinet-level champion for mental wellbeing, according to a report produced by a coalition of seven leading health organisations. 'A New Vision for Mental Health' from the Future Vision Coalition, calls for action to build on the successes of the National Service Framework (NSF) for Mental Health, to put mental wellbeing at the centre of public policy and to improve the quality of life of all people with mental health problems.
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NHS

High Quality Care for all: NHS Next Stage Review Final Report (30th June 2008)
The final report of Lord Darzi's NHS Next Stage Review. It responds to the 10 SHA strategic visions and sets out a vision for an NHS with quality at its heart.
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What Matters to Staff in the NHS: Research Study Conducted for Department of Health - June 2008 (19th June 2008)
'What Matters to Staff in the NHS’ is a wide-ranging research study that identifies the major emotional and behaviour drivers contributing to staff engagement and motivation to provide high quality patient care. This work has informed the Next Stage Review and the development of the draft NHS Constitution.
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Joint Statement from the Social Partnership Forum 19th June 2008

Private Spending on Healthcare (25th June 2008)
The debate about healthcare finance in the UK continues after 60 years of the NHS. Both critics and supporters of the NHS question whether the UK can continue to provide tax-funded healthcare free at the point of need, as private incomes increase and as demands and the costs of healthcare continue to place ever greater pressures on the health budget. This report addresses two key policy problems: The macro level problem is the future financing of healthcare in the UK. We examine how much and how future healthcare will need to be funded. In particular, we are interested in the role that private health spending is likely to play in meeting future healthcare spending demands; and the second problem is how the current contribution of private spending in the health economy could be improved. Private spending in its many forms has always co-existed with the NHS, but has received less attention from policymakers as an integral part of the health system.
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Making it Happen. Next steps in NHS Reform, report of an expert working group (June 2008)
The pace of change and reform in the NHS has been relentless as government and those who work in the NHS seek ways to improve the service. The King’s Fund set up an expert working group to examine how effective the current incentives were in achieving this aim. The group focused on the role of PCTs as commissioners and on practice-based commissioning but discussed other issues, including patient choice. This paper includes specific proposals for government, the Department of Health, strategic health authorities and primary care trusts. These conclusions should feed into Lord Darzi’s review and help to clarify the next steps for the NHS.
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Modernising Scientific Careers (MSC) 30th June 2008)
Modernising Scientific Careers, led by the Chief Scientific Officer, is a key work programme within the Department of Health designed to ensure flexibility, sustainability and modern career pathways for healthcare scientists, fit to address the needs of future NHS.
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Our NHS, our future: the contribution of healthcare scientists (30th June 2008)
Examples of the potential contribution that scientists can make to the local Next Stage review process, to developing and setting up services within the primary care setting and to ensuring that the quality, service and safety of services are maintained.
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NICE

Breast Cancer (advanced & metastatic) - bevacizumab (terminated appraisal) Technology appraisal TA 147 (25th June 2008)
NICE is unable to recommend the use in the NHS of bevacizumab in combination with paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer because no evidence submission was received from the manufacturer or sponsor of the technology.
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Colorectal Cancer (metastatic) - cetuximab (terminated appraisal) Technology appraisal TA150 (25th June 2008)
NICE is unable to recommend the use in the NHS of cetuximab for the treatment of colorectal cancer following failure of oxaliplatin-containing chemotherapy because no evidence submission was received from the manufacturer or sponsor of the technology.
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Glioma (recurrent) - carmustine implants (terminated appraisal) Technology appraisal TA149 (25th June 2008)
NICE is unable to recommend the use in the NHS of carmustine implantsas an adjunct to surgery in patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme for whom surgical resection is indicated because no evidence submission was received from the manufacturer or sponsor of the technology.
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Head and neck cancer - cetuximab Technology appraisal TA145 (25th June 2008)
Cetuximab in combination with radiotherapy is recommended as a possible treatment for people with locally advanced squamous cell cancer of the head and neck if: they have a Karnofsky performance-status score of 90% or more, and all forms of platinum-based chemotherapy are considered inappropriate.
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Implantation of multifocal (non-accommodative) intraocular lenses during cataract surgery Interventional Procedure Guidance IPG 264 (25th June 2008)
A cataract is an eye condition in which the lens becomes cloudy over time. If untreated, cataracts can lead to blindness. During cataract surgery, the clouded lens is removed and replaced with an artificial lens, which provides clearer vision. Unlike standard intraocular lenses, a multifocal intraocular lens has areas with different focusing power with the aim of allowing near and distant objects to be seen without the need for spectacles.
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Lumbar infusion test for the investigation of normal pressure hydrocephalus Interventional Procedure Guidance IPG263 (25th June 2008)
Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a condition in which a clear, colourless fluid called cerebrospinal fluid (or CSF) accumulates around the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms include abnormal gait, urinary incontinence and impaired cognitive function. NPH can be managed by surgical intervention, for example with shunt surgery. The lumbar infusion test may be useful for selecting those patients who are most likely to benefit from this type of surgery. This test involves the insertion of a lumbar needle through the skin of the lower back into the spinal sac, recording the pressure of the CSF as fluid is infused into the spinal sac.
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Lung cancer (non-small-cell) - bevacizumab (terminated appraisal) Technology appraisal TA148 (25th June 2008)
NICE is unable to recommend the use in the NHS of bevacizumab in addition to platinum-based chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with unresectable advanced, metastatic or recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer (other than predominantly squamous cell histology) because no evidence submission was received from the manufacturer or sponsor of the technology.
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Obesity - rimonabant Technology appraisal TA144 (25th June 2008)
Rimonabant is recommended as a possible treatment for adults who are obese (that is, who have a BMI of 30 or more) or who are overweight (BMI of 27 or more) and have risk factors, such as type 2 diabetes or high levels of cholesterol. Rimonabant should be used at the same time as a calorie-controlled diet and exercise in people who have tried the weight-loss medicines orlistat and sibutramine, but they haven't worked or cannot be taken because side effects have occurred or are expected.
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Psoriasis - adalimumab Technology appraisal TA146 (25th June 2008)
Adalimumab is recommended as a possible treatment for adults with plaque psoriasis only if: their condition is severe and their condition has not improved with other treatments such as ciclosporin, methotrexate and PUVA (psoralen and long-wave ultraviolet radiation), or they have had side effects with these in the past or there is a medical reason why they should not be given these treatments.
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Stent insertion for bleeding oesophageal varices Interventional Procedure Guidance IPG265 (25th June 2008)
Bleeding can occur from swollen veins in the gullet (oesophagus), which is potentially life threatening. This procedure involves temporarily insertion of a tube shape mesh covered in plastic (called a stent) into the oesophagus. The stent is expanded to the width of the gullet so that it presses against the varicose veins with the aim of stopping the bleeding. The stent is removed within 2 weeks.
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Surgical repair of vaginal wall prolapse using mesh Interventional Procedure Guidance IPG267 (25th June 2008)
Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is a protrusion of one or more pelvic organs (bladder, rectum, uterus, vaginal vault, bowel) through vaginal fascia into the vagina and the downward displacement ('prolapse') of the associated vaginal wall from its normal location to or outside the vaginal opening. POP affects a woman's quality of life by its local physical effects (pressure, bulging, heaviness or discomfort) or its effect on urinary, bowel or sexual function. POP can be classified according to the compartment affected as: anterior vaginal wall prolapse (urethrocele, cystocele); posterior vaginal wall prolapse (rectocele, enterocele); prolapse of the cervix or uterus; and prolapse of the vaginal vault (which can only occur after prior hysterectomy). A woman can present with prolapse of one or more of these sites.
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Transcatheter aortic valve implantation for aortic stenosis Interventional Procedure Guidance IPG266 (25th June 2008)
Aortic stenosis occurs when the aortic valve, which separates the main pumping chamber of the heart from the main circulation, becomes partially blocked. This reduces the flow of blood out of the heart. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation is an alternative to surgical valve replacement. The procedure is performed through a tube, which is inserted into either a blood vessel at the top of the leg (transluminal approach) or into the apex of the heart (transapical approach). Through this tube, a replacement valve is positioned and deployed over the faulty valve.
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Interventional procedures programme process guide consultation (18th June 2008)
NICE is undertaking a review of the processes used in its Interventional Procedures Programme, which issues guidance on the safety and efficacy of interventional procedures being used in the NHS for the first time. NICE is now consulting on the updated Interventional Procedures Process Guide for a period of 12 weeks. Closing date for comments is 10th September 2008.
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Needle and syringe programmes: consultation on the evidence (20th June 2008)
NICE was asked by the Department of Health (DH) to develop public health intervention guidance to encourage the optimal provision of needle exchange schemes amongst injecting drug misusers. The scope is available from the NICE website. Closing date for comments is 18th July 2008.
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Hepatitis B - telbivudine: final appraisal determination (24th June 2008)
After considering the feedback from consultation, the Appraisal Committee has prepared a Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) on Telbivudine for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B and submitted it to the Institute. The FAD has been sent to the formal consultees for this appraisal who have 15 working days to consider whether they wish to appeal against it. Subject to any appeal by consultees, the FAD may be used as the basis for the Institute's guidance on the use of the appraised technology in the NHS in England and Wales. Closing date for comments is 8th July 2008.
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Hepatitis B - entecavir: final appraisal determination (24th June 2008)
After considering the feedback from consultation, the Appraisal Committee has prepared a Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) on Entecavir for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B and submitted it to the Institute. The FAD has been sent to the formal consultees for this appraisal who have 15 working days to consider whether they wish to appeal against it. Subject to any appeal by consultees, the FAD may be used as the basis for the Institute's guidance on the use of the appraised technology in the NHS in England and Wales. Closing date for comments is 8th July 2008.
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Looked after children: consultation on the draft scope (25th June 2008)
NICE & SCIE were asked by the Department of Health to develop guidance on looked after children. Closing date for comments is 23rd July 2008.
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Prevention of skin cancer: consultation on the draft scope (27th June 2008)
NICE was asked by the Department of Health to develop guidance on the prevention of skin cancer. Closing date for comments is 25th July 2008.
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Functional electrical stimulation for drop foot of central neurological origin (interventional procedures consultation) (30th June 2008)
Drop foot is the inability to lift the foot and toes when walking. It can result from conditions such as stroke, multiple sclerosis or spinal cord injury. Functional electrical stimulation involves stimulation of the peripheral nerves that supply the paralysed muscle using electrodes that may be implanted or placed on the surface of the skin. The aim is to restore muscular function. Closing date for comments is 28th July 2008.
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Electrically-stimulated intravesical chemotherapy for superficial bladder cancer (interventional procedures consultation) (30th June 2008)
This procedure, also known as electromotive drug administration (EMDA) of intravesical chemotherapy, can be used for patients with bladder cancer, either before or after surgery. A solution including a chemotherapy drug is injected into the bladder using a thin tube inserted through the urethra. At the same time, an electrode is inserted in the bladder and other electrodes are placed on the skin of the lower abdomen. An electric current is then created with the aim of improving absorption of the chemotherapeutic drugs.
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NURSING

Defending Dignity - Challenges and opportunities for nursing (25th June 2008)
This report is based on an RCN membership survey of more than more than 2,000 nurses, students and health care assistants. Carried out in February-March 2008, the survey investigated participants' awareness of dignity and the barriers that prevent dignified care being given to patients and clients in a wide range of environments. It includes recommendations for action from government, organisations and individuals.
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PARLIAMENTARY PUBLICATIONS

Joint Committee on Human Rights - Government Response to the Committee’s Fourteenth Report of Session 2007-08: Data Protection and Human Rights - Twenty-Second Report of Session 2007-08 (23rd June 2008)

PUBLIC HEALTH

Health Profiles (23rd June 2008)
Health Profiles for every local authority and region across England were published today by the Department of Health and the Association of Public Health Observatories. The Profiles use key health indicators to capture a picture of the nation’s health down to local level, providing areas across England with valuable information to improve their population’s health. This year’s data also includes new information on child health inequalities.
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RURAL

The Rural Advocate: Our NHS, Our Future - A rural response (23rd June 2008)
This short film follows the Rural Advocate, Stuart Burgess, as he investigates healthcare provision in rural areas. The film is part of a dossier of evidence in response to the NHS Next Stage Review.
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SEXUAL HEALTH

National mapping of on-site sexual health services in education settings. Provision in schools and pupil referral units in England (25th June 2008)
This report presents findings from the first national mapping survey of on-site sexual health services in secondary and further education settings in England. The mapping survey was completed by teenage pregnancy coordinators between October and December 2007 and had a high response rate with coordinators from 70 per cent of local authority areas returning the survey.
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SMOKING/TOBACCO

Smoke-free bars 07 (1st July 2008)
A report to the Department of Health on preliminary findings relating to air quality in English bars before and after implementation of smokefree legislation. This collaborative study by the University of Aberdeen, the Institute of Occupational Medicine, and Liverpool John Moore’s University examines changes in bar workers’ and customers’ exposure to second-hand smoke, health and attitudes.
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Smokefree England - one year on (1st July 2008)
A report examining the impact of the smokefree law, one year on since it was introduced in England on 1 July 2007. Research amongst businesses and consumers clearly suggests that the nation has quickly adapted to, is benefiting from, and is showing growing support for the smokefree law in England.
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SOCIAL CARE

Putting People First - working to make it happen: adult social care workforce strategy - interim statement (23rd June 2008)
This interim statement identifies the key issues for the workforce as set out in Putting People First and goes on to develop these into broader, strategic priorities for the workforce. It is intended to provide all stakeholders, whether public service or private and voluntary sector, with a high-level overview of strategy development prior to finalisation of the full Adult Social Care Workforce Strategy for launch in October this year.
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STATISTICS

Abortion statistics, England and Wales: 2007 (19th June 2008)
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GP Extended Opening Hours, May 2008 (17th June 2008)

Referral to Treatment Statistics, April 2008 (26th June 2008)
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NHS inpatient and outpatient waiting times figures, 31st May 2008 (27th June 2008)
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Fatal injuries in the workplace, statistics for the full year 2007/08 (30th June 2008)

NHS Staff Earnings January-March 2008 (26th June 2008)
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Monthly Digest of Statistics, June 2008 (26th June 2008)
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Large differences in infant mortality by ethnic group (24th June 2008)

Ambulance Services, England 2007-08 (19th June 2008)
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SURVEYS

Citizenship Survey: April 2007-March 2008, England and Wales (26th June 2008)
The Citizenship Survey is a face to face household survey carried out by Communities and Local Government covering a representative core sample of almost 10,000 adults in England and Wales each year, plus a minority ethnic boost sample of 5,000.
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PCT Survey - provision of IVF in England 2007 (23rd June 2008)
This survey was carried out in autumn 2007. There is a 100% response rate (some primary care trusts (PCTs) have sent in joint responses). Only four PCTs were not funding IVF, due to temporary suspensions of service (Stoke on Trent has subsequently reinstated the service, providing one full cycle of IVF.) The survey shows progress since a 2006 survey, funded by the Department and carried out by Infertility Network UK, which had a lower response rate (50%) and found that 14 PCTs were not funding IVF.
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WORKFORCE/WORKPLACE

A high quality workforce: NHS Next Stage Review (30th June 2008)
As part of the Next Stage Review, the future of the NHS workforce has been considered. The main findings are in the final report of the review. This document explains in more detail how each of the findings will be taken forward.
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