Nursing Times
May 2012

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"Can kindness and compassion really be measured?"

Evaluation through measurement is key to improving quality but how ready are we to be transparent about nursing performance, asks Anne Cooper.
"If the cap fits: does nursing need to rebrand its image?"

Only the most ardent retro fan would seriously entertain a return to the days of the nursing cap.
#NurChat - Is the Nursing and Care Quality Forum a waste of money?

Did you miss the latest #NurChat Twitter debate about whether or not the Nursing and Care Quality Forum is a waste of money? Let us sum it up for you…
#NurChat - Restraint: an issue for all nurses?

Did you miss the latest #NurChat Twitter debate about whether restraint is an issue for all nurses or not? Let us sum it up for you…
#NURSESHIFT: Caring for the unpopular patient

On 1 May 2012, nurses and students got online to discuss ‘caring for the unpopular patient’.
#NURSESHIFT: Mentors

On 17 May 2012, Healthcare professionals and students alike went online to explore the issue of mentors further.
'A glance may show if someone is gay'

The Daily Telegraph boldly and erroneously reported that “women really do have a ‘gaydar’ which allows them to tell someone’s sexuality ‘in the blink of an eye’”, while the Sun informs us that “most people have a ‘gaydar’”.
A one-to-one doesn’t mean going head to head

Speaking to staff members directly will leave you both with a clearer sense of targets and achievements.
Academic attacks media 'myths' about nursing profession

A nursing historian has attacked media critics that express “highly critical” but “ill informed” opinions about the profession.
ADHD 'more common in overdue children'

“Babies who spend too long in the womb are twice as likely to suffer behavioural problems in early childhood,” the Daily Mail has warned.
Boost your confidence to reach the stars

Developing skills to maintain and lift your personal confidence could tip the scales from failure to success.
Botox closer to being approved for migraine treatment

The use of Botox to treat chronic migraine on the NHS has moved a step nearer.
'Breast cancer blood test' needs more work

“A genetic test could help predict breast cancer many years before it develops,” the Daily Mail has reported.
'Build on the forum’s work to boost nursing'

The Olympic torch is being passed carefully from one hand to another around the country right now, but it’s not the only baton being gingerly transferred at the moment.
Camera technology may be used to monitor hospital hand hygiene

Hospitals are being offered trials of camera technology developed for slaughterhouses that would see nursing practice monitored remotely from centres in other countries.
Cameron announces patient rating system

Patients will be able to rate the treatment they receive in hospitals to ensure that people are treated with dignity and respect on wards, it will be announced today.
Can you sleep yourself thin?

If you want to lose weight you should “get more sleep”, says the Daily Mail.
Cancer Research study shows importance of patient helpline services

Cancer patients primarily reach out to helplines to gain a better understanding of their condition as well as to make informed choices for treatment, according to a new study.
Carter: 'It's never been tougher for nurses'

“It’s never been tougher” for nursing staff but the profession should not be blamed for care failings, according to the head of the Royal College of Nursing.
Children’s nursing revolutionary receives honorary award

Marcelle de Sousa, who revolutionised healthcare for children and young people in the UK, has been honoured for her achievements by London South Bank University.
Community heart nurse to join torch relay

A Bradford community heart nurse is one of at least four nurses set to carry the Olympic Torch this summer.
Community nursing 'overburdened', warns RCN

The majority of community nurses say they are facing cutbacks and spending less time with patients, according to survey results revealed yesterday.
Congress rejects plan to pay people to be healthier

Nurses have rejected calls to introduce financial incentives for improved public health behaviour.
COPD project scoops best practice award

A project to help Wirral patients with chronic lung diseases manage their own care has won a regional award for best practice.
Coroner finds 'failings' in Mid Staffs twin deaths

A coroner has ruled there were failings in the care of twin babies who died after nurses at Stafford Hospital gave them a massive overdose of morphine.
Cure tinnitus 'by listening to the sea' claim

People with tinnitus have been “advised to listen to the sea to cure ringing in ears”, according to Metro, the free commuters’ newspaper.
Dahl charity offers nurses innovation grants

Research grants are being made available to nurses by a children’s charity set up by the author of George’s Marvellous Medicine and other well known books.
Doctors vote for industrial action over pensions

UK doctors have voted strongly in favour of taking industrial action for the first time since 1975, over the government’s planned changes to the NHS pension.
Emergency waits rise alongside savings target struggle

The number of patients waiting more than four hours in accident and emergency has increased by 26% in the past year, according to the King’s Fund.
Essex nurse to be Olympics first responder

A nurse from Colchester General Hospital has been chosen to be a medical first responder at the London Olympics.
Genetic clue to origins of pancreas cancer

“Aggressive pancreatic tumours may be treatable with a new class of drugs,” BBC News has reported.
GMB members overwhelmingly reject pension deal

NHS workers in the GMB union have voted to reject the government’s “final” pension deal by a majority of 96.5%.
Health scare 'clouded views on HRT'

“Thousands of women have had a ‘wasted decade’ of suffering since the HRT scare, according to an international panel of experts,” the Daily Mail has reported.
Health workers strike over NHS pension proposals

Up to 100,000 workers across the NHS were expected to take part in strike action today in protest at the government’s controversial pension refoms.
How common are repeat abortions?

The NHS “spends £1m a week on repeat abortions”, the Daily Mail reported.
HPV screening trial recommended

Cervical disease screening came under scrutiny when the UK National Screening Committee met last month.
Illegal kidney trade 'booming'

The global trade in illegal kidneys is booming, according to The Guardian.
'Invest in skilled nurses to make real savings'

It’s that time of year again. The Royal College of Nursing’s annual congress is upon us and by the time you read this Andrew Lansley will have inevitably endured a frosty reception from delegates.
'It doesn't matter' where health visitors are based, says Lansley

The health secretary has dismissed arguments over where health visitors should be based as “missing the point”.
'It was like a production line in a factory - we had to work as quickly as possible to see as many patients as we could'

Jonny Briggs took time away from the high technology of intensive care to provide basic healthcare in Kenyan villages.
'Lansley must listen to nurses on the front line'

Don’t take nurses’ politeness as a sign that they are OK with government’s activities and attitude.
Lansley vetoes reform risk register publication

The government has vetoed the publication of a risk register on the implementation of its NHS reforms, which it had been ordered to publish by an independent tribunal.
'Listen to and observe people whom you wish to emulate'

We talk to Ruth Westerby, a senior lecturer in health and social care at the University of Wolverhampton, and clinical lead for cardiovascular disease and evidence-based healthcare at Education for Health who qualified in 1987.
London 'has high rate of childbirth deaths'

“More than 100 mothers have died in childbirth in London in the last five years,” according to The Independent.
London NHS panel backs closing minister's local A&E

A panel appointed to look at the options for downgrading a hospital in south west London has recommended closing health minister Paul Burstow’s local A&E and maternity department.
Male contraceptive pill still a pipe dream

“Scientists are a step close to developing a contraceptive pill for men,” says The Daily Telegraph.
'Management's not actually a bad idea when you think about it'

Management. The word conjures up all sorts of images for nurses.
Many dental patients 'given wrong price info'

Around 500,000 people a year may be wrongly told they cannot have NHS dental treatment, says a new report by the Office of Fair Trading. This could lead to them paying more for private treatment.
Mental health nurses protest at car park charge

More than 100 nurses and health workers have staged a lunchtime protest against the introduction of parking charges for patients and staff at Springfield University Hospital in South London.
MPs call for mandatory HCA regulation

Healthcare assistants should be subject to compulsory regulation similar to nurses, an influential group of MPs has said.
Multiple abortion data revealed

Terminations were given to three teenage girls in England and Wales who had previously had at least seven pregnancies terminated, latest figures reveal.
'Negligible risk' from UK rabies case

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has confirmed a case of rabies in London.
'Nerve bypass' restores movement in man's paralysed arm

Revolutionary surgery has given a paralysed man the ability to move his arms and hands again, it has been widely reported.
New course set up to create 'elite' nurses who start out as sisters

A post-graduate course to fast-track “elite” nurses into ward management roles has been created by a partnership of trusts and universities in London.
New infection threats emerging to replace MRSA and C. diff

A third of healthcare associated infections are now caused by bacteria that need to be tackled with different infection control techniques to MRSA and C. difficile, a report has warned.
New nursing director for Tameside Hospital

Tameside Hospital has appointed a new director of nursing.
New system tracks learning disability patients

A new patient-tracking system has been introduced by Sussex Community Trust to help patients with learning disabilities in West Sussex get targeted specialist support on admission.
Next CNO calls on nurses to spread best practice

The next chief nursing officer for England has called on nurses to embrace evidence-based practices to mark International Nurses Day.
NHS 'OK' for prostate cancer drug Zytiga

“NHS ban on pill to treat prostate cancer is lifted,” the Daily Express has said, while the Daily Mail has warned that a “prostate cancer wonder drug” was set for approval “south of border but turned down by Scotland”.
NICE calls for better communication on opioid treatment

Nurses should discuss concerns about addiction with patients who are being treated with strong opioids for pain relief when nearing the end of life, according to latest guidance.
NMC advertises for new chief exec and chair

The nursing regulator has started recruiting for a permanent chief executive and chair.
NMC consults on proposed changes to FtP process

Nurses are being asked whether they support the introduction of measures that would remove the need for full fitness to practise proceedings in some situations where registrants admit guilt.
NMC launches consultation on planned fee hike

The Nursing and Midwifery Council has begun a consultation exercise on its proposals to increase the registration fee from £76 to £120.
NMC proposes 60% hike in registration fee

The Nursing and Midwifery Council has proposed increasing the annual registrants’ fee to £120 from the start of next year.
Nurse led TIA clinic nominated for NICE award

A pioneering nurse-led clinic to care for patients who have had a transient ischaemic attack has been nominated for a national award.
Nurses Day celebrated in Westminster Abbey

Thousands of nurses once again celebrated International Nurses Day this year at the annual service to commemorate the life of Florence Nightingale in Westminster Abbey.
Nurses petition government over NMC fee plans

Anger at the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s proposed fee hike has led a group of nurses to petition the government to intervene.
Nursing lecturers to train nurses in Malawi

Nurses in Malawi are to be trained by staff from the University of East Anglia’s School of Nursing Sciences.
Our tweetly round-up

We scour the twittersphere in order to bring you our top tweets from this week. Did you make it in?
Our tweetly round-up...

We scour the twittersphere in order to bring you our top tweets from this week. Did you make it in?
Our tweetly round-up...

We scour the twittersphere in order to bring you our top tweets from this week. Did you make it in?
Our tweetly round-up...

We scour the twittersphere in order to bring you our top tweets from this week. Did you make it in?
Parents 'underestimate meningitis risks'

Parents’ misunderstandings about meningitis could be putting children at risk, according to new research.
Patients warned of blood clot risk

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is still a threat to hospital patients due to poor public awareness of the condition, one expert has warned.
PE lessons 'put girls off exercise'

“Schoolgirls are being put off exercise and sport by their PE lessons,” The Daily Telegraph has reported.
People 'needlessly avoid sex after heart attacks'

Thousands of heart attack survivors are too worried to have sex because they fear it will trigger another attack, the Daily Mail has reported.
Pregnancy: weight control cuts complications

“Dieting in pregnancy is good for you,” according to The Independent, while the Daily Mail has warned pregnant women not to eat for two since “piling on the pounds during pregnancy” increases the risk of complications.
Prescriptions: '1 in 20 has an error'

GPs may be regularly making mistakes when prescribing medicines, according to a high-profile report published by the General Medical Council.
Prime minister's forum finds 'overwhelming concern about staffing'

Inspectors should crack down on hospitals that do not regularly review nurse staffing levels, according to the group commissioned by the prime minister to help drive up NHS care standards.
RCN outlines staffing needed for 'safe' care of older people

The Royal College of Nursing has specified precise recommendations around staffing numbers and skill mix for wards caring for older people.
RCN warns of treatment in corridors and long trolley waits

Patients are being routinely left on trolleys for hours and treated in corridors and other inappropriate areas, the Royal College of Nursing has warned in the wake of new survey results.
Regional pay - will MPs include themselves in it?

Andrew Lansley pushes through the most madcap, unpopular legislation in the history of the NHS, then announces the coalition backs plans to reduce pay to staff in poorer areas of what will be left of the health service.
Rosemary Cook to leave Queen's Nursing Institute

Rosemary Cook is to the Queen’s Nursing Institute to become chief executive of the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine.
'Seeing an inspirational tutor on the ward and in class made me see the link between doing and thinking'

A desire to be an artificial limb engineer led Andrea Nelson into a career in nursing.
South West trusts set up regional 'pay cartel'

Sixteen trusts in the south west are seeking to move away from Agenda for Change and have formed a consortium to lead regional negotiation on pay, terms and conditions.
Statins 'may help even healthy over-50s'

Everyone over the age of 50 should be given statins because the “cholesterol-busting” drugs reduce the risk of a heart attack even in healthy people, according to the Daily Telegraph and many other newspapers.
Stigma of obesity 'lingers after weight loss'

“No matter how much weight you’ve lost, your friends still think of you as fat,” according to the Daily Mail.
Teesside neonatal nurse to carry Olympic torch

Neonatal nurse Jo Chubb will be taking part in the Olympic torch relay next month.
The leaders of the student pack: our winners revealed

Student nurses, nurse leaders, universities and lecturers came together last week at the St Paul’s Grange Hotel in London to celebrate student nursing across the UK.
'The lovely thing about A&E is that, although you see some horrible things, you also see real love'

A&E nurse Hannah Headden volunteers at a clinic for people who have been trafficked and fled perilous countries.
'The most valuable learning resource you have are the people you are caring for'

We talk to Ian Hulatt, the Royal College of Nursing’s mental health adviser, who qualified as a nurse in 1979.
'There’s something fishy about pledging allegiance to a logo'

It began as a simple trip to the pet shop, Fish-R-Us.
Top nurse to lead influential NHS group

Former nurse Dame Julie Moore is to become chair of the Shelford Group, which represents the 10 most prestigious and powerful acute trusts in England.
Trust introduces pledge as part of new nursing strategy

Nurses are to be put at the heart of patient care at a mental health and learning disability trust in East Anglia, according to a new strategy.
Unhappy members force RCN to halt structural review

The Royal College of Nursing has been forced to put a major review of its structure on hold after an outcry on the final day of congress.
'Ward matrons' to manage care 24/7 at Sandwell trust

Sandwell and West Birmingham Trust is planning to create “ward matrons” in a bid to balance budgets and improve care quality.

Nursing TimesMay 2012

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Nursing Times
May 2012