By Public Health England (October 2013)
The plan aims to prevent avoidable harm to health, to help prevent excess winter deaths in England.
Category: Health Protection (Emergency planning
By Quality Watch (2013)
This QualityWatch Focus On report examines trends in emergency
admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions. Focus On reports
provide snapshots and longitudinal analyses of aspects of quality in a
particular area or areas of care.
Categories
Accident Prevention Care of the Elderly Community Safety Health Protection (Emergency planning Healthy Child including NCMP & CDO Healthy Settings Licensing Local Government Planning Public Health Advice to NHS Commissioners Public Mental Health seasonal mortality) Secondary Care Social Care Well-Being
Is the quality of care in England getting better?
By the Nuffield Trust (October 2013)
This report, in partnership with the Health Foundation, provides an overview of initial research into the quality of health and social care services in England. The assessment draws on analysis of nearly 150 quality indicators spanning primary care and community services, hospital care, mental health services and social care. These have been evaluated in relation to six domains of care quality: access; safety; effectiveness; person-centred care and experience; capacity; and equity. A longer version of this report will be published later this autumn.
By House of Commons Health Committee
In this report the Committee gives its view on the principal recommendations of the report of the public inquiry into the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust undertaken by Robert Francis QC.
By WHO (2013)
This review of inequities in health across the 53 Member States of the Region was commissioned to support the development of the new European policy framework for health and well-being, Health 2020. The report builds on the global evidence and recommends policies to reduce health inequities and the health divide across all countries, including those with low incomes.
By The British Council (2013)
This think piece suggests that a solution to tackling inequalities in public health lies with creating co-produced services which utilise the assets within people. It draws from findings of the People Powered Health project, as well as horizon scans from around the world to explore the capacity within people and communities to help themselves and each other.
By Health & Social Care Information Centre (2013)
The NHS Safety Thermometer is a local improvement tool for measuring, monitoring and analysing patient harms and ‘harm free’ care.
Steptoe, A. et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United States of America, March 25th 2013; doi: 10.1073/pnas.1219686110
Both social isolation and loneliness are associated with increased
mortality, but it is uncertain whether their effects are independent
or whether loneliness represents the emotional pathway through
which social isolation impairs health. We therefore assessed the
extent to which the association between social isolation and
mortality is mediated by loneliness. We assessed social isolation
in terms of contact with family and friends and participation in
civic organizations in 6,500 men and women aged 52 and older
who took part in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing in
2004–2005. A standard questionnaire measure of loneliness was
administered also. We monitored all-cause mortality up to March
2012 (mean follow-up 7.25 y) and analyzed results using Cox proportional
hazards regression. We found that mortality was higher
among more socially isolated and more lonely participants. However,
after adjusting statistically for demographic factors and
baseline health, social isolation remained significantly associated
with mortality (hazard ratio 1.26, 95% confidence interval, 1.08–
1.48 for the top quintile of isolation), but loneliness did not (hazard
ratio 0.92, 95% confidence interval, 0.78–1.09). The association
of social isolation with mortality was unchanged when loneliness
was included in the model. Both social isolation and loneliness
were associated with increased mortality. However, the effect of
loneliness was not independent of demographic characteristics or
health problems and did not contribute to the risk associated with
social isolation. Although both isolation and loneliness impair
quality of life and well-being, efforts to reduce isolation are likely
to be more relevant to mortality.
By World Health Organisation (2013)
WHO calls on all countries to invest in and produce research to develop universal health coverage tailored to their country needs. “The world health report 2013: research for universal health coverage” is launched today.
By Public Health England (2013)
This report presents observations from routine mortality surveillance work done by the Respiratory Diseases Department (RDD) within PHE. It shows that excess all-cause mortality has been high among elderly people in 2012 to 2013.