DATA PROTECTION

Guide to Data Protection (26th November 2009)
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has produced a new guide to handling personal information.

The Guide offers practical advice to those with day-to-day responsibility for data protection, taking a straight-forward look at the principles of the Data Protection Act, helping organisations safeguard personal data.
Press Release
Guide

DENTAL

Local self-assessment audit for assessing implementation of HTM 01-05: decontamination in primary care dental practices and related infection prevention and control issues (1st December 2009)
The Department of Health and Infection Prevention Society (DH/IPS) audit tool has been produced jointly by the Department and the Infection Prevention Society to allow practices to assess their level of compliance with HTM 01-05. It will allow practices to identify areas where they need to improve the quality of the decontamination process to achieve essential quality requirements and best practice as identified in the guidance document.

The Health Technical Memorandum 01-05: Decontamination in primary care dental practices is also available.
Audit Tool

DIET/NUTRITION

Food Standards Agency's Strategy for 2010-2015 (7th December 2009)
Consumers should expect to be eating safer food and be choosing healthier and more balanced meals by 2015 as a result of the Food Standards Agency’s Strategy for 2010–2015, published today.

The five outcomes the Agency aims to deliver are:

• food produced or sold in the UK is safe to eat
• imported food is safe to eat
• consumers understand about safe food and healthy eating, and have the information they need to make informed choices
• food products and catering meals are healthier
• regulation is effective, risk-based and proportionate, is clear about the responsibilities of food business operators and others, and protects consumers and their interests from fraud and other risks

Strategy

DISEASES AND DISORDERS

Tuberculosis in the UK: Annual report on tuberculosis surveillance in the UK 2009 (2nd December 2009)
In 2008 in the UK, 8,655 cases of tuberculosis were reported, a rate of 14.1 per 100,000 population. This represents an increase of 2.2% in the rate of disease compared with 2007.

The main burden of disease was concentrated in major urban areas; 39% of cases were reported from London, a rate of 44.3 cases per 100,000. Nineteen primary care organisations had a rate of 40 per 100,000 or over, all of which covered major urban areas.
Report

DOCTORS

An in depth investigation into causes of prescribing errors by foundation trainees in relation their medical education. EQUIP study (3rd December 2009)
Prescribing errors in hospitals could be reduced if a standardised prescription chart was introduced in all UK hospitals, according to research commissioned by the General Medical Council (GMC).

An in-depth study into the causes and prevalence of prescribing errors made by Foundation Year 1 doctors (first year foundation trainees) has found that prescription errors are not solely, or even primarily, a problem of the most junior trainees and that doctors at all levels, including consultants, make mistakes.

The five main targets for interventions to improve patient safety by minimising prescribing errors are:

• clinical working environments
• undergraduate medical education programmes
• Foundation Year 1 education
• Other parts of the medical education continuum
• Interprofessional education

Press Release
Report

EDUCATION/SCHOOLS

Carlisle's Lifestyle on the Road (2nd December 2009)
Carlisle's LifeStyle on the Road project provides public health and fitness provision to schools and the community. It uses a unique van for specialist coaches and fitness equipment to be transported to venues.
Information

ELDERLY/OLDER PEOPLE

Getting On: Well-being in later life (1st December 2009)
There is a lively policy debate about later life, dominated by how to improve pensions and social care, and who will foot the bill. But there is much less information about people’s experiences of growing older: their quality of life, their expectations and their emotional wellbeing. ippr’s work on ‘the politics of ageing’ seeks to plug this gap, and, further, to place a clearer focus on inequalities in older people’s wellbeing.

This report sets out a wider agenda for policymakers and practitioners. It reviews UK policies for older people and international practice, as well as the priorities of older people in urban versus rural locations. It concludes with recommendations for action, which signal a fresh approach to later life and seek to challenge outdated assumptions.
Report

FINANCE

The Quarter: quarter 2, 2009/10 (8th December 2009)
David Flory has released his second quarterly report of 2009/10, which details NHS finance and operational performance. It shows that the NHS has built on a strong start to 2009/10 by sustaining delivery on key priorities such as reducing waiting times and healthcare associated infections (HCAIs), increasing access to primary care and maintaining good financial health. However, there are still a few organisations struggling to balance their finances and attention will be focused on these. Against a background of good overall operational performance, there also remain some organisations still not delivering standards on a consistent basis. Such deficiencies in performance need to be addressed locally.
Report

FORCED MARRIAGE

One year on: initial impact of the Forced Marriage Act 2007 (3rd December 2009)
A report reviewing the impact of the Act in its first year of operation.

The 2007 Act enables a number of family courts to make a Forced Marriage Protection Order to prevent a forced marriage from occurring or to protect the victim and help remove them from a situation where a marriage has already taken place.

Forced marriage is not the same as an arranged marriage where both spouses can choose whether or not to accept the arrangement. In forced marriage, one or both spouses do not, or cannot consent to the marriage and duress is involved.
Report

HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE

Shaping personal health budgets: a view from the top (3rd December 2009)
Personalisation is a key aspect of future health policy, but how close is it to becoming a reality? This report presents the opinions of local health and social care leaders on the future of personal health budgets. It portrays their understanding of the key issues, as well as their expectations, hopes and doubts.
Publication

HEALTH INEQUALITIES

Tackling health inequalities: 2006-08 policy and data update for the 2010 national target (3rd December 2009)
This document provides an update on progress to meet the health inequalities national target to reduce the gap as measured by infant mortality and life expectancy, by 10% by 2010. It includes an assessment of whether the 70 spearhead area local authorities, which map to 62 PCTs, are on track to meet the life expectancy target.
Report

HIV AND AIDS

HIV in the United Kingdom: 2009 Report (27th November 2009)
The number of people living with HIV in the UK continues to rise, with an estimated 83,000 infected at the end of 2008, of whom over a quarter (27%) were unaware of their infection.

During 2008, there were 7,298 new diagnoses of HIV in the UK. This represents a slight decline on previous years, predominantly due to fewer diagnoses among black African women who acquired their infection abroad.
Report

HOMELESSNESS

No One Left Out: communities ending rough sleeping - An annual progress report: November 2008-November 2009 (27th November 2009)
The government's new rough sleeping strategy No One Left Out: communities ending rough sleeping was launched on 18 November 2008. Building on the success in reducing the numbers of people sleeping rough by two thirds over the last 10 years, the strategy sets out a new ambitious objective of ending rough sleeping in England by 2012.

The strategy was backed by a 15 point action plan. This report reflects on the progress during the first year of the strategy's delivery.
Report

IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Impact assessment for Personal Care at Home Bill (25th November 2009)

LEARNING DISABILITIES

Equal access? A practical guide for the NHS: creating a Single Equality Scheme that includes improving access for people with learning disabilities (7th December 2009)
This is a guide to support the NHS to include people with learning disabilities in their equality schemes, with practical examples of reasonable adjustments to achieve equality of access.
Guidance

LOCAL AUTHORITY/GOVERNMENT

LAC (DH) (2009)8 Autism strategy: improving services for people with autistic spectrum conditions (7th December 2009)
This circular highlights arrangements for the design and delivery of a new national strategy for adults with autistic spectrum conditions.
Publication

Valuing health: business case literature review (8th December 2009)
The Healthy Communities programme has produced a literature review which summarises the available evidence and research on the financial and non-financial impact of health improvement activity. This review highlights the need for a greater focus on the financial impact of health improvement activity on local government services, but does indicate that there are a number of areas where local authorities could expect to make efficiency savings. These include older people’s health and independence, workforce health and climate change and sustainability.
Report

Assessments relating to people with learning difficulties: Guidance to Local Authorities (November 2009)
The transition from school to a new learning establishment can be a difficult time for any young person. Those with learning difficulties are at particular risk of not making a successful transition. As a result, young people with learning difficulties are less likely to participate in education or training post-16 as those without, and are twice as likely to be NEET (not in education, training or employment).

The guidance is designed to help local authorities make consistent, effective and robust decisions but does not tell them what to do in each individual case. The guidance is current to March 2010 when new guidance published in Spring 2010, reflecting changes brought about by the ASCL Act, comes into effect.
Guidance

Assessments relating to people with learning difficulties: Guidance to Local Authorities - Analysis of consultation responses (November 2009)
The Education and Skills Act 2008 section 80 states that “in exercising its functions under this section, an authority must have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State”.

The Education and Skills Act 2008 inserted Sections 139A to 139C into the Learning and Skills Act 2000 which placed a statutory responsibility on local authorities in relation to assessments relating to learning difficulties. The purpose of this consultation was to seek views on the draft statutory guidance.

The consultation ran from 23 April to 16 July 2009. A total of 70 responses were received. A summary of responses to each question is provided and a list of the respondents is included in the Annex.
Responses

Safeguarding children and young people: a new scrutiny guide (4th December 2009)
The Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) and Centre for Public Scrutiny (CfPS) have published a new guide to support overview and scrutiny committees in fulfilling their critical role in relation to safeguarding children.

The guide is designed to assist both councillors and officers in shaping and developing local safe services. The document includes:

• suggestions for approaches to scrutiny
• key references and advice for further reading
• a series of questions that committee members may want to consider when testing whether local arrangements are robust.

Guide

LONG-TERM CONDITIONS

'Your health, your way - a guide to long term conditions and self care' for social care professionals (3rd December 2009)
A brief overview of ‘Your health, your way – a guide to long term conditions and self care’ for social care professionals. It discusses the concept of personalised support planning for people with long-term conditions (LTCs) and supported self care with points for consideration when starting the support planning process.
Guidance

MATERNITY/MIDWIFERY

The Family Nurse Partnership Programme (3rd December 2009)
This letter from Ann Keen and Dawn Primarolo informs about the Family Nurse Partnership (FNP) Programme. FNP is an evidence-based, preventive programme for vulnerable first-time young parents, delivered from early pregnancy until the child is two. Extensive evidence points to short and long term benefits for children and parents.
Information

Birth and beyond: stakeholder perceptions of current antenatal education provision in England (8th December 2009)
This research examined stakeholder perspectives about current NHS ante-natal education across ten strategic health authorities in England. The views expressed in this report are the authors' and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Health.
Report

Birth and beyond: a review of the evidence about antenatal education (8th December 2009)
The aim of this study was to synthesise published evidence concerning the cost and effectiveness of antenatal education, alongside evidence about stakeholder perspectives.
Report

Getting Maternity Services right for pregnant teenagers and young fathers - 2nd edition (November 2009)
This guide is aimed at practitioners working in mainstream services or areas where the prevalence of teenage pregnancy is relatively low and where there are no dedicated services for pregnant teenagers. It sets out the reasons why it is important to improve the maternity service offered to young parents, and offers practical guidance on working with pregnant teenagers and young fathers.

This guide, originally produced in 2008, has been revised following feedback from midwives and other maternity workers saying that they would welcome more guidance on ways of effectively engaging with young mothers. The content has been revised with the close involvement of the Fatherhood Institute and offers practical guidance on working with pregnant teenagers, young mothers and young fathers.
Guide

MENTAL HEALTH

New Horizons: a shared vision for mental health (7th December 2009)
New Horizons is a cross-government programme of action with the twin aims to:

• improve the mental health and well-being of the population
• improve the quality and accessibility of services for people with poor mental health.

New Horizons sets out an intention across a wide range of agencies to move towards a society where people understand that their mental well-being is as important as their physical health if they are to live their lives to the full. It describes some of the factors that affect well-being and some everyday strategies for preserving and boosting it. It also sets out the benefits, including economic benefits, of doing so.
Guidance

Working our way to better mental health: a framework for action (7th December 2009)
The Government has launched the first ever national mental health and employment strategy.

The framework is designed to:

• Improve well-being at work for everyone, and
• Deliver significantly better employment results for people with mental health conditions, supporting them into work, helping them to stay in work and assisting them to return to work more quickly after sickness absences.

Framework

Realising ambitions: Better employment support for people with a mental health condition (7th December 2009)
This report sets out the reviewers’ vision for change to ensure the Government can better help more people with mental health conditions who are workless into sustained employment.

It sets out a number of recommendations for Government. These fall in to three broad groups:

• increasing capacity and dispelling myths within existing structures so they are better able to meet the needs of people with a mental health condition
• “model of more support”: implementing Individual Placement and Support (IPS) in a Great Britain context
• establishing effective systems for monitoring outcomes and driving change.

Report

Work, Recovery and Inclusion: Employment support for people in contact with secondary mental health services (7th December 2009)
Work, Recovery and Inclusion is a new government delivery strategy that sets out a series of actions that will help meet the aspirations of people in contact with secondary mental health services who want to work. It is deliberately challenging and aspirational and aims to bring about significant changes in outcomes.

The strategy looks to a future where people who are in contact with secondary mental health services are helped to get jobs, where they are equally valued for their contributions to the workplace, and where having a mental health condition is not seen as a barrier to work.
Strategy

Mental health clinical costing standards 2009/10 (4th December 2009)
Best practice guidance for organisations using and implementing Patient Level Costing and Information Systems (PLICS) in a mental health setting.
Guidance

Revision of Preventing Suicide: A toolkit for mental health services (25th November 2009)
The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) has launched a revision of "Preventing Suicide: A toolkit for mental health service". The toolkit was originally published in 2003 and has been amended to reflect recent policy changes and has had input from key stakeholders, service users, carers and experts.
Toolkit

At a glance 18: Personalisation briefing: implications for community mental health services (November 2009)
This briefing, from Social Care Institute for Excellence, examines the implications of the personalisation agenda for practitioners and managers in community mental health services.
Briefing (Web Page)
Briefing (PDF)

NHS

Guidance on provisions to deal with nuisance or disturbance behaviour on NHS premises in England (30th November 2009)
Guidance to provide NHS bodies with a framework in which to use the power of removal in dealing with nuisance or disturbance behaviour on NHS premises in England through the use of powers contained in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008.
Guidance

Applying the NHS Performance Framework to Mental Health Trusts (26th November 2009)
This document informs mental health trusts, PCTs and SHAs of the criteria against which mental health performance will be assessed. It should be read alongside Implementing the NHS Performance Framework.
Guidance

Interventional radiology: improving quality and outcomes for patients. A report from the National Imaging Board (25th November 2009)
The National Imaging programme is lead by Dr Erika Denton, National Clinical Lead for Diagnostic Imaging and chair of the National Imaging Board.

A sub-group of the National Imaging Board, has produced this report to inform and stimulate discussion about how Interventional Radiology (IR) Services can support the quality and productivity agenda. The document has been produced by interventional radiologists, nurses, radiographers, a patient representative and members of the Department of Health and National Imaging Board.

The report illustrates how the NHS can improve quality, safety and productivity while delivering comparable or better outcomes for patients with shorter hospital stays and fewer major complications. It suggests and describes how IR services can help to ensure patient safety whilst delivering the highest quality care.'
Report

Windmill 2009. NHS response to the financial storm (3rd December 2009)
It is clear that the era of unprecedented investment in health care is over, and prospects for future funding now look bleak. But just how the NHS will respond to this is uncertain. To test how those in the system might respond, KingsFund used a behavioural simulation – Windmill 2009, designed by Loop2. From this event, and discussions with policy-makers, regulators, commissioners and providers, managers and clinicians, they developed an analysis of what will be required if health and social care systems are to respond effectively to the major challenges that lie ahead. They identify key themes and recommendations for action in each of these.
Report