About 1 in 1000 children are born each year with hearing impairment sufficiently severe to compromise speech and language development and communication. There has been much work in recent years to reduce the age of diagnosis and intervention for these children. The paper by Pimperton et al,1 provides important evidence to support the observations of those working clinically with these children, that early identification and habilitation of significant hearing impairment in children pays dividends in terms of education. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
The article presents the author's view on the issue of gender bias in the diagnosis of the psychological disorder known as autism. Topics discussed include a brief description of the psychological disorder as presented by the National Autistic Society, the opinions of cognitive scientist Liz Pellicano on the common perception of autism by the medical community, and the importance of conducting additional research in the study of autism among girls and women. To read the full article, log in using your NHS Athens
'This year, we've had encouraging news about integrated, comprehensive approaches for treating people with first episode psychosis, most recently from a major NIMH initiative, the Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode, or RAISE project. RAISE looked at coordinated specialty care for first episode psychosis.'
Young carers provide a significant contribution to society in their caring role, which is in line with the UK Government's Big Society agenda. In contrast with their contribution to society, young carers have huge associated costs related to poor outcomes and the numbers that end up not in employment, education or training (NEET). Missing school due to caring responsibilities is likely to have affect future education and job prospects. Understanding the impact of the caring role on the school experience of young carers will enable school nurses to provide appropriate support for young carers, improving their school experience and subsequent outcomes. To read the full article, log in using your NHS Athens
The head of NHS England today urged NHS managers to lead a new drive to stamp out discrimination in all parts of the health service as he published a new analysis showing wide variation across the country.
The article offers health information, guidance and resources on asthma for school nursing practice in Great Britain. Topics discussed include an overview of the study conducted by the nonprofit organization Asthma UK which investigates the respiratory disorder among children in Great Britain and the roles of the school nurse in providing support to children afflicted with the disorder. It also presents charts which list the available resources for asthma intervention. To read the full article, log in using your NHS Athens
NHS England’s National Clinical Director for Children, Young People and Transition to Adulthood reveals the progress is being made on transforming their mental health services
The article reports on the 2014/2015 flu vaccination program adopted by the British government for school children. Topics discussed include an overview of the progress made by the 2014/2015 flu vaccination program, an assessment of the delivery model used in the program, and the observed impact of the flu vaccination program in the country. To read the full article, log in using your NHS Athens
Person-Centred Care seems to be the latest thing the NHS has suddenly got excited about, but is it real, is it of value, will it last, or is it the latest fad?
A questionnaire called the ‘Patient Activation Measure’, previously developed and tested in the US to assess the knowledge, skills and confidence people have in managing their own health and healthcare, is currently being used by a select group of CCGs and the UK renal registry.
NHS England’s National Clinical Director for Long Term Conditions looks at what co-production means to the Long Term Conditions (LTC) Unit and how it is essential to supporting person-centred care, addressing such difficult issues as personalised care and support planning, information-sharing and workforce skills
'Over the last two years ‘Bradford Beating Diabetes’ (BBD) has contacted 2,300 people they knew to be at high risk of Type 2 diabetes and offered them help to reduce that risk.'
Background: Uptake of information and communication technology (ICT) by individuals with diabetes can assist nursing care delivery, and improve patient outcomes. However, it is unclear how such uptake relates to ethnic differences in diabetes risk. Aim: To assess the moderating effects of ICT uptake on South Asian excess diabetes prevalence over a specific elapsed timeframe, accounting for selected environmental, socio-economic, and behavioural risk factors. Method: Archived data from a UK Office for National Statistics household survey 2006-2011 (120 621 partly non-orthogonal participant records) were analysed using hierarchical binary logistic regression analyses. Results: ICT uptake qualified ethnic differences in diabetes prevalence. Non-smoking diabetes cases living in terraced housing with a home computer were more likely to be South Asian than Caucasian. By contrast, such cases were more likely to be Caucasian if a computer was unavailable (OR: 0.61; CI: 0.43-0.86; P=0.005). Furthermore, diabetes cases from low-income, mobile-dependent homes were probably South Asian (OR: 0.05; CI: 0.00-0.50; P=0.012). Conclusions: Home computing was linked to better tobacco control among South Asians with diabetes living in terraced properties. Mobile phone dependence was pronounced in those that received income support. Implications for nursing care are considered. To read the full article, log in using your NHS Athens
'More than three-quarters (168) of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), in partnership with 132 local authorities, have submitted 66 joint Expressions of Interest to become part of the first phase of roll-out of the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NHS DPP).'