Did you know?

You can access the Health Management Information Consortium (HMIC) database with your NHS Athens Account. It contacins information, mostly with a UK focus, on health management and services, service development, NHS organisation and administration. Contact the Library for further details or assistance.

The impact of clinical librarian services on patients and health care organisationsfrom
Health Information & Libraries Journal, Alison Brettle, Michelle Maden, Clare Payne
This study is unique in taking a wide view of potential and specific impacts to which CLs contribute across health care organisations. It is the largest UK evaluation of CL services to date and demonstrates CLs affect direct patient care, improve quality and save money. Future researchers are urged to use the tools presented to collect data on the same outcomes to build a significant and comprehensive international evidence base about the effectiveness and impact of clinical librarian services.

Junior doctors’ contract should be ‘consistently’ implemented – Health Service Journal
The chief executive of NHS Improvement has called for the new junior doctors’ contract to be implemented “consistently” across the health service.
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FOI release: FOI Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust – enforcement action in 2015 and position of the trust’s chair – HM Government
Monitor received a request for disclosure of documents concerning the position of the chair of Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust produced between the end of July and end of October 2015. Monitor disclosed a letter from Monitor to the chair of the trust dated 16 October 2015, but withheld the annexes which contained the proposed enforcement action and timetable. Monitor was asked to conduct an internal review of the decision. The review noted that the proposed enforcement action has now been finalised and published, with only minor amendments. The review also decided that the timetable should be disclosed.

What is happening to NHS waiting times? King’s Fund Blog
On 11 February NHS England published its Combined performance summary, which provided data on a number of key waiting times commitments. Here we take a closer look at the statistics on 18-weeks, diagnostics and A&E. What does the data tell us?

Community hospitals face closure under CCG’s plans – Health Service Journal
Five community hospitals in Surrey could have services changed, and two could close, under plans drawn up by their clinical commissioning group.
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A Refresher on Statistical Significance – Harvard Business Review
When you run an experiment or analyze data, you want to know if your findings are “significant.” But business relevance (i.e., practical significance) isn’t always the same thing as confidence that a result isn’t due purely to chance (i.e., statistical significance). This is an important distinction; unfortunately, statistical significance is often misunderstood and misused in organizations today.

The impact of long term conditions on employment and the wider UK economy – The Work Foundation
This report looks at the economic implications of six long term conditions (psoriasis, diabetic macular oedema, asthma, schizophrenia, heart failure and multiple sclerosis) in the UK, focusing specifically on the effects on employment for those of working age. It presents data on the direct and indirect costs to the UK society and, where the data exists, projects the likely impact the condition will have in the future.

Recommendations include:

• Government should examine the use of tax incentives, national rebates or tiered VAT charges for employers who implement policies to support employees with long-term conditions.
• The NHS to prioritise the early diagnosis of long -term conditions and commit to providing patients with earlier access to new, innovative treatments and medicines.
• More specialist employment support programmes should be commissioned for people with long-term and mental health conditions.
• Clinicians should have a greater focus on patients’ aspirations to stay in or access work while managing their condition.
• All employers should make reasonable adjustments to support employees with long-term and fluctuating conditions.
• Workplaces should provide an open and supportive environment so individuals feel comfortable about disclosing their condition and seeking support.

There’s a Proven Link Between Effective Leadership and Getting Enough Sleep – Harvard Business Review
In our hyper-connected, 24/7 world, many of us are losing sleep — literally. Our own survey of more than 180 business leaders found that four out of 10 (43%) say they do not get enough sleep at least four nights a week. Such sleep deficiencies can undermine important forms of leadership behavior and eventually hurt financial performance. This article will explore the link between sleep and leadership before discussing solutions that can improve both individual well-being and organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

One in three trusts reject financial targets for next year – Health Service Journal
One in three NHS providers have rejected their nationally dictated financial targets for next year, HSJ has learned. Monitor and the NHS Trust Development Authority last month issued a financial “control total” to every trust in England for 2016-17, which they must agree to secure their share of the £1.8bn “sustainability and transformation fund”. Trusts were asked to respond by 8 February.

• Regulators issued a financial “control totals” to every trust in England for 2016-17, which they must agree to, to secure their share of the £1.8bn sustainability and transformation fund
• NHS Providers says two-thirds of trusts have accepted their offer, but many have done so with conditions and caveats
• Finance director says regulators made it “very clear that if we don’t accept we won’t have access to loans and cash”

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