Learning from deaths
The Care Quality Commission has published Learning from deaths: a review of the first year of NHS trusts implementing the national guidance.  This report provides a first assessment of NHS trusts’ implementation of national guidance on learning from deaths.  The report acknowledges it is early days and that it will take time to change attitudes and culture, including how the NHS engages with families. The report includes examples of good practice to support NHS trusts improve how they review and learn from deaths.

Reducing perinatal mortality
NHS England has published Saving Babies’ Lives version two: a care bundle for reducing perinatal mortality.   This document provides detailed information for providers and commissioners of maternity care on how to reduce perinatal mortality across England. This second version of the care bundle includes a greater emphasis on continuous improvement with a reduced number of process and outcome measures.

Caring in later working life
The Office for National Statistics has published Living longer: caring in later working life.  This article examines the interplay between caring and working in later life in the UK.  It examines the differences between men and women who work and care, and how who is being cared for drives the number of hours a carer provides and their ability to work.

Changes to the NHS Standard Contract: comparison documents
NHS England has published comparison documents showing the changes made from the NHS Standard Contract 2017-19 (May 2018 edition) to the NHS Standard Contract 2019/20:

• Particulars full length comparison
• Service Conditions full length comparison
• General Condition full length comparison
• Particulars shorter-form comparison
• Service Conditions shorter-form comparison
• General Condition shorter-form comparison

NIHR Signals
The following research summaries have been added to the National Institute for Health Research website:

• Brain scan may predict long-term disabilities in babies with brain injury
• Antimicrobial stewardship programmes reduce antibiotic use in long-term care homes
• Cognitive behavioural therapy may help ease depression in the workplace

Payments and contracting for integrated care
The King’s Fund has published Payments and contracting for integrated care: the false promise of the self-improving health system.  This paper questions whether the latest financial incentive schemes will be any more successful than their predecessors.  It suggests there are significant unresolved difficulties in applying the type of incentive scheme developed for accountable care in insurance-based health systems to tax-funded health systems with state-owned providers and limited choice of provider.

Infection control precautions
NHS Improvement has published Standard infection control precautions: national hand hygiene and personal protective equipment policy.  This national policy is a practice guide for NHS healthcare staff of all disciplines in all care settings.  It covers responsibilities for organisations, staff and infection prevention and control teams.

Review of the National Autism Strategy ‘Think Autism’: call for evidence – Department of Health and Social Care
In April 2014 the government published ‘Think Autism’, a strategy for meeting the needs of autistic adults in England. The strategy supports the Autism Act 2009. This year the Department of Health and Social Care, working with the Department for Education, will review the strategy and extend it to cover children as well as adults. The results of this consultation will be used to find out where people think progress has been made and where more needs to be done in the future. The closing date for comments is 16 May 2019.

NICE surveillance reports
NICE has published the Surveillance Reports below.  These provide a summary of new evidence published related to a NICE guideline and include the decision that NICE has taken about the need to update the guideline.

• Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease and dyspepsia in adults: investigation and management (CG184, 2014) – surveillance decision: NICE will not update the guideline.
• Sepsis: recognition, diagnosis and early management (NG51, 2016) – surveillance decision: NICE will amend the guideline.
• Acutely ill adults in hospital: recognising and responding to deterioration (CG50, 2007) – surveillance decision: NICE will amend the guideline.
• Metastatic spinal cord compression in adults: risk assessment, diagnosis and management (CG75, 2008) – surveillance decision: NICE will update the guideline
• Neutropenic sepsis: prevention and management in people with cancer (CG151, 2012) – surveillance decision: NICE will not update the guideline.
• Intrapartum care for healthy women and babies (CG190, 2014) – surveillance decision: NICE will update the guideline.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder and body dysmorphic disorder: treatment (CG31, 2005) – surveillance decision: NICE will update the guideline.
• Atopic eczema in under 12s: diagnosis and management (CG57, 2007) – surveillance decision: NICE will update the guideline.
• Physical activity: walking and cycling (PH41, 2012) – surveillance decision: NICE will not update the guideline.

Primary care networks
The King’s Fund has produced a long-read Primary care networks explained.  This briefing examines how primary care networks will be formed, funded and held accountable.  It also looks at what differences the networks will make for patients.

The state of ageing in 2019 – Centre for Ageing Better
This report brings together public data across four areas: work and finances, housing, health and communities. It reveals vast differences in how people experience ageing depending on factors such as where they live, how much money they have or what sex or ethnicity they are. Today’s least well-off over 50s face far greater challenges than their wealthier peers and are more likely to die younger, become sicker earlier and fall out of work due to ill health.

The wider public health workforce: a review – Public Health England
This review identifies three broad categories of work completed by the wider public health workforce: leading and advocating for health; influencing the wider determinants of health; and direct contact with individuals and communities. It reports on progress to date to engage and develop the wider public health workforce across a range of sectors: healthcare; social care; emergency services; VCSE; education; employment; criminal justice; housing; and planning.

Specialised services quality dashboards

NHS England has published the 2019/20 metric definitions for its Specialised Services Quality Dashboards.  The dashboards are designed to provide assurance on the quality of care by collecting information about outcomes from healthcare providers.

Statistics

• Children living with parents in emotional distress: 2019 update
• National Data Opt-out – March 2019
• Referral to treatment waiting times statistics for consultant – led elective care – January 2019
• Shingles vaccine coverage report, England – April to September 2018
• Routine reports of gastrointestinal infections in humans, England and Wales – January and February 2019.
• Wheelchair services: Operational Data Collection – Quarter 3 dataset (October – December 2018)
• An overview of workforce data for nurses, midwives and health visitors in the NHS
• Patient Safety Alert compliance data – March 2019
• Nuffield Trust Combined Performance Summary – January-February 2019

• Provisional Monthly Hospital Episode Statistics for Admitted Patient Care, Outpatient and Accident and Emergency data – April 2018 – January 2019
• Provisional Accident and Emergency Quality Indicators for England – January 2019, by provider
• Acute Patient Level Activity and Costing – Data Quality and Analysis of Expanded Pilot, 2017-18
• Quarterly Epidemiological Commentary: Mandatory MRSA, MSSA and Gram-negative bacteraemia and Clostridium difficile infection – data up to October to December 2018
• Community Services Statistics for Children, Young People and Adults – November 2018
• Out of Area Placements in Mental Health Services – December 2018
• Psychological Therapies: reports on the use of IAPT services, England – December 2018 final, including reports on the IAPT pilots and quarter 3 2018-19 data
• Mental Health Services Monthly Statistics – Final December 2018, Provisional January 2019
• Combined Performance Summary – March 2019