Doctor articles from November 2005

Doctor archives from November 2005

PCT shuts 'failing' nurse-led practice.
November 1, 2005... Complaints Exclusive Cathy Comerford A NURSE-led practice has been served with three months' notice of termination of its contract over failure to deal with patient complaints. The Cresswell Primary Care Centre, in a deprived area of...

GPs could face 400 flu consultations.
November 1, 2005... Services A GP with a medium-sized list could deal with nearly 400 extra consultations during a 15-week flu pandemic, according to Government estimates. The Department of Health's contingency plan warns that across the UK, there could be...

Complaint reviews double in one year.(patient complaints about medical professionals)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Complaints The number of patients demanding that a complaint be independently reviewed, because it was not resolved at local level, has more than doubled in the past year, the Healthcare Commission says. The commission received more than...

How to target bowel screening.
November 1, 2005... Screening Bowel cancer rates could be cut by up to 80% if patients with a moderate family history of the disease were screened using colonoscopy, researchers say. They also found that most patients, even those with more than one relative...

GPs reject plans to report underage sex.
November 1, 2005... Confidentiality fears could prevent teenagers seeking help Doctor reporters Proposed changes to sexual health confidentiality rules for young people will undermine their trust, with serious consequences for public health, GPs warn....

All surgeries face ; police checks over controlled drugs.
November 1, 2005... Health Bill NEW powers for police to inspect GP premises for compliance with controlled drugs regulations were included in the Government's Health Bill last week. The bill incorporated the Department of Health's res-ponse to the Shipman...

Ban on GP joint injection referrals.
November 1, 2005... Services GPs in part of west London will have to administer all joint injections themselves, as they will no longer be able to refer patients to local hospitals for such procedures. The move is the latest in the Government's drive to...

GPs told to broaden contraceptive choice.
November 1, 2005... NICE demands women get option of long-acting contraception but GPs say funding for primary care training is inadequate Steve Ford GPs have been told to offer all women requesting contraception the choice of opting for long-acting...

GPs alerted to work-related asthma.
November 8, 2005... Respiratory disease GPs MUST consider work-related asthma in all adults with symptoms of limited airflow or where childhood asthma re-appears, say updated national guidelines. The recommendation comes in revised joint guidelines from the...

GPs welcome delay to Choose and Book.
November 8, 2005... NHS bosses admit IT glitches have delayed Choose and Book as GPs criticise 'unrealistic' and 'politically driven' targets Paul Stephenson The Choose and Book (CaB) system will not be fully operational until the end of next year, a...

Minister turns the screw on GP access.
November 8, 2005... Hewitt rounds on GPs as patients draw up wish list Cathy Comerford and Steve Ford The Health Secretary has attacked GPs for failing to offer flexible appointments and given the clearest signal yet about the shape of expected radical...

New GMC code 'will; deny GPs private life'.
November 8, 2005... GMC Cathy Comerford proposed CHANGEs in the GMC's Good Medical Practice have raised concerns that doctors' rights to privacy are being eroded. The GMC has been holding Question Time-type seminars on proposals to change the guidance...

BMA acts over PCT merger chaos.(British Medical Association and health reforms)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... PCTs GPs have been left confused and frustrated by PCT merger plans, the BMA has warned MPs. The association has expressed its concerns in a letter to the Commons Health Committee, which has just started an inquiry into PCT restructuring....

Cash crisis sparks referrals hold-up.(general practioner referrals in British hospitals)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... Referrals GP REFERRALS are being put on hold by a hospital trust because local PCTs have run out of money to pay for the work. United Lincolnshire Hospi-tals Trust has told consultants that no patient referred for a routine outpatient...

NICE to launch fast-track assessments.
November 8, 2005... Prescribing NICE IS to start work immediately on a new programme of fast-track assessment for life-saving drugs, ministers have announced. The rapid process, called single-technology appraisal, will sit alongside the standard process and...

Physician assistant; plan nears roll-out.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... Working practices The use of US-style physician assistants has moved a significant step closer to being introduced in the NHS. A consultation framework has been published on developing the role of the 'medical care practitioner' (MCP)....

Coffee risk-free for BP.
November 15, 2005... Hypertension Drinking large quantities of caffeinated coffee does not appear to increase the risk of hypertension in women, say researchers. But they found a highly significant association with cola intake. US researchers said there was...

GPs fight privatisation of their PCT.
November 15, 2005... Services Oxford GPs are fighting 'unique' plans to fully privatise management of their PCT. Thames Valley Strategic Health Authority is proposing to tender out the management of Oxfordshire PCT, which has an annual budget of [pounds...

GPs make strides; in chronic disease.
November 15, 2005... Quality THE care patients with coronary heart disease, asthma and type 2 diabetes receive from their GP showed 'substantial improvements' over five years from 1998 to 2003, according to the National Primary Care Research and Development...

GPs to refuse PCT demands on choice.
November 15, 2005... LMCs across the country condemn stop-gap move to offer all referral patients a choice of four providers by next January Paul Stephenson GPs should not use manual booking systems to offer patients a choice of four provi- ders for...

NICE drops treatment threshold for primary prevention of CVD.
November 15, 2005... Cardiovascular disease GPs could soon be prescribing statins as primary prevention to patients with a 20% or greater ten-year cardiovascular risk. The proposed new threshold from NICE is equivalent to 15% ten-year risk for CHD and sets the...

Nurses given full prescribing rights.
November 15, 2005... Doctors' leaders voice fears over training and patient safety as Health Secretary hands new powers to nurses and pharmacists Doctor reporters Doctors' leaders have branded government moves to give full prescribing rights to nurses and...

Sedatives harm elderly patients.
November 15, 2005... Insomnia The risks of using sedative hypnotics to treat insomnia in older patients outweigh the benefits, according to an evidence review. Canadian researchers said as many as a third of elderly people in the UK were being prescribed a...

No future for 'corner shop' GP practices.
November 22, 2005... Majority of practices too small to meet Goverment agenda to shift work from secondary care, says former ministerial adviser Paul Stephenson and Steve Ford SMALL PRACTICES have come under renewed attack this week from an influential...

Stroke prevention is boosted by contract.
November 22, 2005... Cardiovascular Lisa Hitchen The new GMS contract has already improved stroke prevention, says a report from the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO said the contract's introduction last year meant patients were more likely to have...

Deans freeze flexible posts.(flexible work situations for general practitioners)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... Careers Hundreds of GPs wishing to take up flexible career posts have been left in the lurch after the majority of deaneries froze new entries to their schemes. Deaneries have found they are unable to fund the new places following...

Suspended doctors foot own retraining bill.
November 22, 2005... Performance GPs with complaints made against them are facing retraining at their own expense, warn medico-legal advisers. The National Clinical Assessment Service (NCAS), set up in 2001 to speed up the investigation of suspended doctors,...

Most GPs oppose; nurse scrip plans.
November 22, 2005... Survey highlights widespread concern over patient safety Doctor reporters THE VAST majority of GPs are against Government plans to give nurses and pharmacists full prescribing rights, according to a survey commissioned by Doctor. A...

BMA fights for care continuity.(British Medical Association)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2005... Access Any move to introduce dual registration must not diminish the registered list system, the GPC has warned. While it shares the public's desire for more convenient GP access, continuity of care must be protected, it says. 'The...

Old school ties into medical specialty.
November 22, 2005... Education THE TYPE of secondary school he attended is likely to affect whether a male doctor ends up working as a GP or as a hospital doctor, research suggests. Male GPs are more likely to have attended a comprehensive or secondary modern...

Risk of cervical cancer persists.
November 22, 2005... Oncology WOMEN WHO have had treatment for early stage cervical neoplasia remain at raised risk of cervical cancer in the 20 years following treatment, says a new study. Finnish researchers followed 7,564 women who had been treated for...

[pounds sterling]6 gift cap means teacup - but no pot.
November 22, 2005... Ethics GPs ARE advised not to accept gifts worth more than [pounds sterling]6 from drug companies, under a new code of practice from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. The rules, revealed last week, update restrictions...

CBT trials show no long-term benefits.
November 29, 2005... GPs' main psychotherapy option falls short in evidence review in spite of NICE recommendations backing its increased use Adam Legge Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) may only provide short-term benefits in treating mental health...

Doctors to carry; no liability for; new prescribers.
November 29, 2005... Prescribing Plans to extend prescribing are far less radical than first suggested, according to doctors' leaders. BMA members held urgent talks with Health Minister Jane Kennedy last Monday to discuss the proposals. Dr Paul Miller,...

Nebulisers not a; flaming liability.
November 29, 2005... Respiratory medicine Home nebuliser users can be reassured this winter if they notice a strange change in the appearance of their gas fires. Respiratory specialists in Salford have had reports from a number of patients that gas flames in...

College's white paper warning.(warnings on UK health care reform)(Brief Article)
November 29, 2005... Reform The Government's primary care reform plans must not be allowed to 'fragment' traditional core services, the RCGP has warned. The college said it was essential the primary care white paper built on the strengths of UK general...

E-booking divulges patient details.(Brief Article)
November 29, 2005... Confidentiality The personal data of everyone living in England is available to all practice staff able to access Choose and Book. The system allows anyone using the relevant access card to find an address and NHS number, simply by typing...

GPs put price on longer opening.
November 29, 2005... Access Extending surgery opening hours will push up practice bills and increase staffing needs, say GP leaders. GPC chairman Dr Hamish Meldrum said the committee was 'not absolutely against' working outside normal working hours, but he...

Patient records set for quality checks.
November 29, 2005... Technology Cathy Comerford PRACTICES ARE to be paid to bring patient records up to accredited standards, as part of a Government drive to implement NHS IT reforms. Practices will have to gain PCT accreditation of their records before...

Plan to strip GPs of; control over flu jabs.
November 29, 2005... Warning that central procurement could hit vaccination pay Steve Ford GPs in England and Wales may have to order flu vaccine from a government-controlled central supply in future. Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt told the Commons last...