News

23 July 2008
SKIN CANCER SUFFERERS AT RISK - GPS NEED MORE TRAINING ON SURGICAL EXCISION
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11 July 2008
HEALTHCARE WATCHDOG URGES NHS TO SEIZE OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE MATERNITY SERVICES AS IT PUBLISHES NATIONAL REPORT
The Healthcare Commission has urged the NHS to redouble its efforts to improve maternity services by enhancing the quality of clinical care and the experiences of women.
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11 July 2008
BRAIN-DAMAGED-BOY RECEIVES COMPENSATION FOR 30-HOUR-DELAY
It has been reported that in a case which took nine years to settle, a brain-damaged boy has finally received a substantial settlement for a 30-hour treatment delay.
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11 July 2008
DANGERS OF MALIGNANT MELANOMA
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09 July 2008
THE DARZI REVIEW - THE GOVERNMENT'S LATEST NHS OVERHAUL
Lord Darzi's plan for the next 10 years of the health service in England emphasises the importance of striving for high quality care from the NHS, rather than setting targets or calling for wholesale reorganisation of the way services are delivered.
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08 July 2008
ALAN JOHNSON'S NHS OF THE FUTURE
The Department of Health reports on the draft Constitution that enshrines the principles and values of the NHS for the future. It was published this week for consultation by the Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson.
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01 July 2008
"FIVE CHILDREN A DAY SUFFER FROM UNDIAGNOSED STROKES IN THE UK"
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27 June 2008
WILL 'SAFER SURGERY CHECKLIST' REDUCE SURGERY DEATH RATES?
Every year, an estimated 2000 NHS Patients die as a result of errors in treatment. Rosaline Wong comments on the new 'Safer Surgery Checklist' being piloted in London this week.
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27 June 2008
CERVICAL CANCER VACCINATION PROGRAMME FOR SCHOOLGIRLS
BBC News has reported on row over a new vaccination programme to protect schoolgirls from cervical cancer later in life, which campaigners say will be using the wrong vaccine.
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27 June 2008
RISE IN CHILD DIABETES
Figures show that the number of children in England needing emergency hospital care for complications of diabetes has risen. Nina Ali comments.
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27 June 2008
TREATMENT TOP-UPS TURNAROUND?
Health Secretary Alan Johnson has announced that the Department of Health is reviewing top ups of NHS treatment with privately-funded drugs after 20 years of disallowal.
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20 June 2008
APIL WARNS OF LASER TREATMENT COWBOYS
APIL launched a press campaign this week to warn against Government plans to deregulate cosmetic laser treatment. Lucy Norton comments.
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18 June 2008
STATINS MAY CUT CAESAREAN SECTION RISK
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16 June 2008
NO BENEFIT FROM POUNDS 1BN SPENT TO INCREASE NHS CHOICE
Sue Brown comments on this article which was published in The Daily Telegraph on June 12, 2008.
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16 June 2008
PATIENT CHOICE?
Rosaline Wong looks at the pros and cons of the Government's NHS Choice and initiatives to shorten waiting lists.
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09 June 2008
FAMILIES FIGHT FOR JUSTICE OVER BIRTH INJURIES
Health service is sued for £65m after mistakes in childbirth left children with paralysed arms.
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04 June 2008
NHS SCANDAL: DYING CANCER VICTIM WAS FORCED TO PAY
A woman dying of cancer was denied free National Health Service treatment in her final months because she had paid privately for a drug to try to prolong her life.
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04 June 2008
STILLBIRTH: HOW CAN WE PUT AN END TO THIS TRAGEDY?
The Times reported this week that nearly 4,000 babies are stillborn every year in the UK and propose that more post mortems could change that tragic figure. Nina Ali, a medical negligence lawyer at Boyes Turner comments.
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04 June 2008
RISE IN STILLBIRTHS
Alarming statistics published from SANDS show that 17 babies died from stillbirth or neonatal death syndrome in the UK every day.
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04 June 2008
HOSPITAL SURGERY DEATH RATES TO BE MADE PUBLIC
The Guardian reported this week that the government is preparing to publish for the first time the death rates of patients undergoing major surgery at NHS hospitals in England. Medical negligence lawyer Susan Brown comments.
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28 May 2008
FAILING TO REFER HEART PATIENTS
According to a Europe-wide survey led by the Sticares Cardiovascular Research Foundation in the Netherlands, many GPs, and even some hospital specialists, are failing to follow guidelines for managing heart failure.
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28 May 2008
PRE-ECLAMPSIA TESTS NOT ACCURATE ENOUGH
According to a recent study, tests for pre-eclampsia, a serious condition that causes high blood pressure in pregnancy, are not accurate enough. Lucy Norton comments.
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23 May 2008
NHS IN WALES QUIBBLING OVER WHO SHOULD PAY FOR TREATMENTS
Medical negligance lawyer, Susan Brown, comments.
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23 May 2008
MISSING MEDICAL RECORDS - CONCERNS OVER PATIENT SAFETY
Another issue regarding patient safety has been highlighted by a recent survey which reveals that thousands of outpatient appointments take place each year without the doctor having the patient's medical records. Susan Brown comments.
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22 May 2008
QUEEN'S SPEECH PROMISES TO REFORM LAW RELATING TO DAMAGES
The draft Queen's speech promised to reform the coroners system and the law relating to damages
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21 May 2008
CLASH OVER 24 WEEKS ABORTION LIMIT
MPs reject challenge to Britan's abortion laws to lower the 24 week time limit for abortions. Rosaline Wong of Boyes Turner comments.
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21 May 2008
FAILURE TO ACT UPON ABNORMAL FETAL HEART TRACE LED TO STILLBIRTH
Here we look at the case of a woman whose baby's stillbirth was caused by the hospital's failure to act upon abnornal fetal heart trace.
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21 May 2008
POSSIBLE MENINGITIS B VACCINE TESTED
A possible vaccine against meningitis B has shown "encouraging" results in preliminary clinical trials.
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15 May 2008
MOST INPATIENTS ARE HAPPY WITH THEIR CARE
Rosaline Wong looks at the Healthcare Commission's published survey which suggess that over 90% of patients treated in NHS hospitals are generally satisfied with their care.
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15 May 2008
MIDWIFERY ERRORS
Medical negligence expert Rosaline Wong looks at the effects of midwifery errors in medical negligence cases, including failure to detect early signs of pre-eclampsia; negligent management of ante natal care; failure to act upon abnormal fetal trace; failure to listen to baby's heartbeat and resusitate at home birth; failure to give Anti-D Immunoglobulin and errors made in injecting local anaesthesia intravenously.
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13 May 2008
BETA BLOCKERS INCREASE SURGERY RISK
The use of beta blocker drugs before surgery to cut the risk of heart problems may be counter-productive, a study suggests.
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08 May 2008
HEALTH CHARITIES CALL FOR REFORM OF PRESCRIPTION CHARGES TO END RISK TO PATIENTS
Health charities call on the Government to reform NHS prescription charges in England.
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08 May 2008
FAULTY WEIGHING SCALES - RISK TO PATIENT SAFETY
Another risk to patient safety has been identified following an inspection programme by trading standards offficers which found that hospitals were using inappropriate or faulty weighing scales to calculate the dosage of patient's medications.
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08 May 2008
CONFIDENTIAL ENQUIRY INTO MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH
Enquiry finds stillbirth rates are not falling, but neonatal death rates have reduced.
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06 May 2008
PRIVATISED DECONTAMINATION PUTS PATIENTS AT RISK
Criticising the government's policy on cleaning equipment, the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) says operations are being cancelled because equipment is being damaged and delayed by out-sourced private decontamination centres being rolled out across the NHS.
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06 May 2008
NEW GP SURGERIES TO OPEN AT WEEKENDS
Health Secretary Alan Johnson, has announced new Government plans that will see patients able to visit their GPs at evenings and weekends at 12 new surgeries around England.
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28 April 2008
PIONEERING GENE THERAPY IMPROVES SIGHT
A 18-year-old whose sight was failing has had his vision improved in a pioneering operation carried out by doctors at Moorfields Eye Hospital.
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28 April 2008
HEALTHCARE WATCHDOG LAUNCHES BIGGEST EVER INSPECTION PROGRAMME TO CHECK INFECTION CONTROL
The Healthcare Commission has launched the biggest inspection programme ever carried out in NHS acute trusts to check whether they are meeting standards on infection control.
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23 April 2008
NURSE STRUCK OFF AFTER FAILING TO FOLLOW NMC RULES
Medical News Today has reported that a registered nurse from a hospital in Poole has been struck off the register after failing to care for a patient properly.
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23 April 2008
NHS 'FALLING BEHIND' ON DIABETES
BBC News has reported that the charity 'Diabetes UK' is concerned that Government targets for improving diabetes care may be missed as local health providers are failing to offer key services.
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22 April 2008
NEW DRUG PRADAXA STOPS BLOOD CLOTS
BBC news has reported that wider use of Pradaxa, a new blood-thinning drug to stop blood clots could save thousands of lives a year.
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22 April 2008
THALIDOMIDE IS BACK
The European drug agency has given clearance for thalidomide to be sold on prescription in Europe as a powerful cancer treatment for the newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.
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17 April 2008
MATERNITY DEATHS INQUIRY LAUNCHED
BBC News has reported that an inquiry is under way at Northwick Park Hospital maternity unit after three more deaths were reported within the last 10 months.
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15 April 2008
PNEUMOCOCCAL BUG POSES NEW THREAT
BBC News has reported that a strain of bacteria which can cause pneumonia and meningitis in children is on the rise in England and Wales.
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11 April 2008
NHS REDRESS PLANS STALLED IN ENGLAND & GOING AHEAD IN WALES
Ministers in England are 'reconsidering' plans for the NHS Redress Scheme in England.
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11 April 2008
PLANS TO INTRODUCE TENDERING FOR CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS SHELVED FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS
It has been reported that as part of the settlement terms of the Law Society ending its judicial review proceedings against the Legal Services Commission (LSC), the LSC has given a commitment not to introduce Best Value Tendering before 2013.
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10 April 2008
HEALTHCARE WATCHDOG CALLS ON NHS TO LEARN FROM PATIENTS' COMPLAINTS
The Healthcare Commission is urging NHS trusts to learn from patients' complaints and improve complaints handling, with key proposals including apologising more often when they do make mistakes.
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10 April 2008
HEALTHCARE COMMISSION PUBLISHES RESULTS OF SURVEY OF STAFF AT EVERY NHS TRUST IN ENGLAND
More than 155,000 staff give their views on working for the NHS
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07 April 2008
UK FERTILITY SAFETY FOR WOMEN IS 'AMONG THE WORST IN EUROPE'
Mothers' health may be put at risk in the quest for high pregnancy rates at British IVF clinics, warn experts.
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03 April 2008
COMPENSATION AWARDED FOR INJUSTICE IN RESIDENTIAL CARE
A joint report published by the Local Government Ombudsman and the Health Service Ombudsman for England found that the level of care provided by Buckinghamshire County Council and the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Mental Health Partnership Trust for a man with severe learning disabilities was unacceptable. Susan Brown a leading medical negligence lawyer at Boyes Turner comments.
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02 April 2008
DRUGS FOR DEMENTIA 'KILLING THOUSANDS'
The Times online reported this week that the drugs prescribed to make dementia sufferers more manageable in care homes could be killing more than 23,000 people prematurely each year. Nina Ali, a medical negligence lawyer from Boyes Turner comments;
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26 March 2008
NHS GIVES UNTESTED CANCER DRUGS TO TERMINALLY ILL
BBC News has reported that in a bid to halve the time it takes to develop new drugs, the Department of Health has approved a move to allow the NHS to give cancer drugs which have not yet been tested on humans to terminally ill patients. Medical Negligence lawyer Nina Ali comments on the decision.
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18 March 2008
PROSTATE CANCER SERVICES VARY
BBC News online reported this week that health experts are calling for improvements in prostate cancer services to help tackle the wide variations in care seen across England. Boyes Turner medical negligence lawyer, Nina Ali, comments.
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10 March 2008
£100M PAYOUTS FOR CANCER NEGLIGENCE
The Times Online reported this week that over the past ten years the NHS has paid out almost £100 million in negligence claims due to medical errors in cancer treatment. Lucy Norton of Boyes Turner comments.
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04 March 2008
HOSPITAL WAITING TIMES UP
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29 February 2008
PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS CRITICISED
The National Audit Office has criticised Primary Care Trsust for not using the GP contracts introduced in 2004 to force better access for patients.
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27 February 2008
ANTI-DEPRESSANTS' 'LITTLE EFFECT'
BBC News recently reported that according to research, new generation anti-depressants have little clinical benefit for most patients.
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26 February 2008
NURSE STRUCK OFF FOR FALSIFYING RECORDS
Medical News Today recently reported that a 37 year old registered adult nurse from Wigan, Lancashire has been struck off the Nursing and Midwifery Council register after being found guilty of falsifying a patient's records in an attempt to cover up omissions in his care.
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25 February 2008
SWAB LEFT INSIDE CAESAREAN MOTHER
BBC News recently reported that a woman underwent an operation to remove a swab left inside her during a Caesarean delivery.
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21 February 2008
LIMITING OBESITY OPERATIONS
GP magazine "Pulse" reported this week that consultants undertaking "limiting obesity operations" such as gastric banding and gastric bypass, sent half the patients referred to them back to their GPs.
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14 February 2008
"PAYMENT BY RESULTS" SCHEME INTERFERING WITH CLINICAL JUDGEMENT
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12 February 2008
UNREGULATED BOTOX - 16 DEATHS
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07 February 2008
DELAYS IN DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT LEADING TO YEARS OF UNNECESSARY SUFFERING.
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07 February 2008
DELAYS IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS
BBC News recently reported that survival rates from cancer in the UK are poorer than in much of Europe. One reason is that the disease is often diagnosed later here.
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06 February 2008
UNLAWFUL KILLING VERDICT
Medical negligence lawyers Adrian Desmond and Rosaline Wong from Boyes Turner comment on the case of Mayra Cabrera who died after giving birth to her son Zac in 2004.
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29 January 2008
THOUSANDS OF NURSES LEAVING NHS IN SEARCH OF BETTER PAY AND CONDITIONS ABROAD
The Times online recenty reported that more than 10,000 nurses and midwives left the UK to work abroad in 2006-07, leaving the NHS just a few years away from a staffing crisis.
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29 January 2008
LONDON MATERNITY CARE - CONSISTENTLY POOR
Legal & Medical, a leading online magazine for the medico-legal profession, recently reported that according to a Healthcare Commission report maternity care in the North of England is far better than in London.
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28 January 2008
CLEGG SETS OUT ELDERLY CARE PLAN
As reported on BBC News recently, Nick Clegg, who became Liberal Democrat leader in December, has outlined a £2bn "care guarantee" plan for the elderly, as part of his proposals to reform the NHS.
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25 January 2008
FAILURE IN DIAGNOSING CANCER
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24 January 2008
MR CLEGG'S PROPOSALS FOR "PERSONAL CARE PAYMENTS"
Yet another politician chanting the "reform for the NHS" mantra
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21 January 2008
BREAST CANCER FOLLOW-UP 'LACKING'
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18 January 2008
IMPACT OF COURT OF APPEAL JUDGEMENT ON COMPENSATION CLAIMS
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17 January 2008
GOVERNMENT CONCERNED OVER NHS SPENDING ON PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
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16 January 2008
HOSPITAL DEEP CLEANING UNDER FIRE
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16 January 2008
CORONER 'INCREDULOUS' AT MEDICAL HISTORY CLERICAL ERRORS
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16 January 2008
DEADLY NEW FORM OF MRSA EMERGES
A deadly strain of the superbug MRSA which can lead to a flesh eating form of pneumonia has emerged.
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10 January 2008
NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH AND CLINICAL EXCELLENCE CRITICISED BY HEALTH COMMITTEE
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08 January 2008
SHOULD PATIENTS BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR OWN ENTITLEMENT TO NHS CARE?
The Prime Minister has announed an 'NHS Constitution' that could mean patients may have to change their lifestyle to recieve healthcare.
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06 December 2007
CAUTION FOR CARE HOME NURSE OVER CHARGES OF MALADMINISTRATION OF DRUGS AND POOR RECORD KEEPING
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27 November 2007
NURSE STRUCK OFF FOR MRSA FAILURE
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22 November 2007
TRAUMA CARE CONCERN
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22 November 2007
NEW SUPERBUG
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15 November 2007
C DIFFICILE HOSPITAL ESCAPES PROSECUTION
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22 October 2007
£9 BILLION DAMAGES OWED TO NHS PATIENTS
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18 October 2007
NHS COMPLAINTS SYSTEM FAILING PATIENTS
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18 October 2007
HEALTHCARE WATCHDOG PLEDGES TOUGH ACTION ON BEHALF OF PATIENTS ON FAILURES IN INFECTION CONTROL
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15 October 2007
UK HEALTHCARE SYSTEM FALLS FURTHER BEHIND
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10 October 2007
MAIDSTONE HOSPITAL DEATHS
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02 October 2007
CALL FOR NHS TRUSTS TO STEP-UP EFFORTS TO PROVIDE DIGNITY IN CARE OF OLDER PEOPLE
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15 August 2007
£27,000 FOR WOMAN WHO CHANGED MIND ON ABORTION
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13 August 2007
HOSPITAL ADMITS ERROR OVER CANCER TREATMENT DEATHS
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01 July 2007
NHS HYGIENE CRITICISED
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26 June 2007
SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS LEFT INSIDE PATIENTS
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26 June 2007
BETTER COVER NEEDED FROM GPS AT NIGHT TIME AND WEEKENDS ACCORDING TO GORDON BROWN
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04 June 2007
MORE PATIENTS GETTING INTO STROKE UNITS BUT 21ST CENTURY CARE STILL LACKING
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03 June 2007
HEALTHCARE COMMISSION - LAUNCH OF BIGGEST EVER PROGRAMME OF VISITS ON HEALTHCARE ASSOCIATED INFECTION
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