Poor hit hardest by UK govt. policies
According to a study by Trades Union Congress (TUC), Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation for the poorest 10 percent of households in February was 4.1 percent, compared with 3.6 percent for middle-income families and 3.3 per cent for the richest 10 percent.
“People have been getting poorer every month for the last two years as high inflation, tax rises and the dire state of the economy take their toll on family budgets,” said TUC general secretary Brendan Barber.
Patients ‘treated in corridors’, claims Royal College of Nursing
‘Huge stress’
By Nick Triggle Health correspondent, BBC News
Patients are being left stranded on trolleys for hours and forced to have treatment in corridors due in part to the loss of hospital beds, nurses say.
The Royal College of Nursing says feedback from more than 1,200 staff paints a “worrying picture”, with patients regularly being in ambulances or held in a queue.
The union warned the NHS risked going backwards unless ministers got a grip.
The government said there were enough beds for this not to be happening.
Of the 1,246 nurses and healthcare assistants who replied to an RCN request for feedback, a fifth said providing care in corridors had become a daily occurrence.
Norfolk NHS conference sees vision of improved mental health care
A vision of improved nursing training and care to prevent a repeat of recent scandals involving dementia and mental health patients was delivered at an NHS conference in Norfolk yesterday
By dominic bareham
Saturday, May 12, 2012
12:02 PM
The NHS Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust wants to revitalise the traditional caring and supportive role of nurses following recent reports over a failure in the most basic care given to dementia and mental health patients.
In October, a report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) revealed inspectors made 100 unannounced visits to hospitals across the country to assess dignity and nutrition standards and found 55 cases where the care received by elderly patients was “alarming.”
Particular areas of concern were a lack of support for those who needed help eating, poor hygiene and curtains not being closed properly.
Locally, the CQC has given the James Paget University Hospital in Gorleston three warnings about the standard of patient care.
