HEALTH DIRECT

England’s NHS regulator will name some officials accused of covering up a failure to investigate deaths of babies at a Cumbria hospital.Pressure is mounting on the Care Quality Commission to name managers who apparently blocked publication of a critical report. The Information Commissioner said the Data Protection Act does not overide public interest in releasing […]

A cover up by England’s NHS regulatory body after a series of baby deaths at a Cumbria hospital is unacceptable warns the Health Secretary.Jeremy Hunt was speaking after a review of the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) response to complaints about several deaths at Furness General Hospital. The review has shown a senior manager may have […]

The standard of care provided for people with dementia is “patchy”, the National Institute for Curbing Expenditure (NICE) has said. Some people with the condition were not getting even basic levels of care, it added. The warning came as NICE unveiled new standards for dementia care in England, covering issues such as housing and access […]

Former NHS trust executive Gary Walker claimed he was put under pressure to meet non emergency targets.The former boss of a hospital which is being investigated over high death rates has told MPs there was a culture of “sheer bullying” in the NHS. Gary Walker, former United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust chief, said he was sacked […]

Calls for the resignation of Sir David Nicholson- the chief executive of the NHS, were growing after it emerged he misled MPs over how he dealt with a ‘whistleblower’.Sir David was forced to issue a correction over evidence he gave to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), after part of it was revealed to be untrue. […]

Children’s congenital heart surgery at Leeds General Infirmary has been suspended as a review is carried out.There are concerns about the number of deaths at the hospital, which is at the centre of a long dispute over the future of children’s heart services. The medical director of the NHS, Bruce Keogh, said it was “a […]

Campaigners trying to keep child heart surgery in Leeds have won a key legal challenge to keep the facility open.The High Court has ruled the consultation over changes to children’s heart surgery in England and Wales was flawed. Legal action was brought by campaigners trying to save operations at Leeds General Infirmary but the ruling […]

A quarter of home care services provided to the elderly in England are failing to meet quality and safety standards, inspectors say.More than 700,000 people above the age of 65 rely on home help for activities such as washing, dressing and eating. But the Care Quality Commission found evidence of rushed appointments and botched assessments […]

The main health regulator quango  “cannot guarantee” it will spot another scandal on the scale of Mid Staffs- its new chairman has admitted.David Prior said the Care Quality Commission was “going to have to change” to provide the level of inspection demanded by the Francis report. He also said it was a “no brainer” that […]

Five other hospitals trusts are to be investigated in the wake of the public inquiry into failings at Stafford Hospital.Neglect and abuse at the hospital led to hundreds of unnecessary deaths between 2005 and 2008. In response to the inquiry, Prime Minister David Cameron announced that five other hospitals with persistently high death rates would […]