Oliver Brown

Concerns over damaging impact of staff shortages on children’s social care

On 27 July 2022 Ofsted published a report entitled ‘Children’s social care 2022: recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic’ (“The Report”). The report investigates the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to children’s social care, using focus groups, inspections, and interviews with inspectors to aid the investigation. The report concluded that the pandemic has …

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Government opens consultation in relation to Down Syndrome Act 2022 guidance

The Department of Health and Social Care (“DHSC”) has opened a consultation, inviting people with Down’s syndrome, including their families, professionals and charities to share their experiences and expertise. The evidence gathered will help to develop the new Down Syndrome Act 2022 statutory guidance which authorities will follow. The new legislation and supporting statutory guidance …

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Government announces delays to social care reform by 18 months

Care Minister Gillian Keegan has announced that the Government is delaying self-funders access to lower local authority fee rates by 18 months. In a statement on Thursday 7 July 2022, Gillian Keegan outlined that following consultation on the implementation of change with local authorities, the Government has decided to utilise the extension of section 18(3) …

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NHS patients in England to be offered chance to travel for surgery

NHS patients in England who have been waiting for more than two years for surgery are being offered hospital treatment in alternative parts of the country. Subsequently, more than 6,000 long term waiting list patients are being offered travel costs and accommodation costs in an attempt to tackle the NHS backlog. The aim of this …

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Polio virus detected in London sewage samples – will this result in an influx of Vaccinations for GPs?

On 22 June 2022, the UK’s Health authorities declared a national incident regarding the detection of the polio virus in London sewage and as such, have informed the World Health Organisation (“WHO”). This is following the United Kingdom’s Health Security Agency (“UKHSA”) finding traces of the polio virus in samples collected from the London Beckton …

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Pharmacies criticised over amending pill boxes affecting the elderly

Some pharmacies in the UK have been criticised for informing patients using multiple different drugs that they will no longer have blister pack boxes, otherwise known as dosette boxes. The dosette boxes are a form of multi-compartment compliance aids (“MCCAs”) and are delivered to patients addresses. Why are pharmacies removing them? Some pharmacies are removing …

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NHS Nurse Shortages continuing to pose a threat to patient safety

On 6 June 2022, the Royal College of Nursing (“RCN”) general secretary, Pat Cullen, spoke at the RCN’s annual conference in Glasgow. She discussed the current impact of the UK’s nurse shortages. This was expanded upon in depth in The Royal College of Nursing Report (“the Report”) published also on 6 June 2022 prior to …

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