ECONOMIST: BEST COUNTRIES
2) AUSTRALIA
3) NORWAY
4) SWEDEN
5) DENMARK
6) SINGAPORE
7) NEW ZEALAND
8) NETHERLANDS
9) CANADA
10 HONG KONG
16) GERMANY & USA
80) NIGERIA (LOWEST)
25 December 2012
UK ECONOMIST: SWITZERLAND BEST COUNTRY
2) AUSTRALIA
3) NORWAY
4) SWEDEN
5) DENMARK
6) SINGAPORE
7) NEW ZEALAND
8) NETHERLANDS
9) CANADA
10 HONG KONG
16) GERMANY & USA
80) NIGERIA (LOWEST)
24 December 2012
MENTALLY ILL NURSE employed by King Edward VII Hosp
From UK DAILY MAIL
Royal nurse found hanged after taking DJs' hoax call about pregnant Duchess of Cambridge had tried to kill herself twice before last year
- Jacintha Saldanha made two attempts to kill herself last winter
- The nurse took an overdose during visit to India
- She survived but tried to jump from a building nine days later
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Nurse Jacintha Saldanha, pictured with her husband Ben Barboza, is believed to have tried to commit suicide twice previously
Jacintha Saldanha, who took her own life days after the call from Australian DJs pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles, attempted to commit suicide last December with an overdose of pills during a family visit to India.
She survived after being rushed to hospital but tried to commit suicide again just nine days later by apparently jumping from a building.
Ms Saldanha, 46, spent several days in intensive care before receiving psychiatric treatment and being prescribed a course of powerful antidepressants for nine months.
Along with the previous suicide attempts, reported in an Indian newspaper, members of Ms Saldanha’s family have revealed that the nurse was so ashamed after taking the hoax call earlier this month that she did not tell her husband or children about it before her death, despite speaking to them by phone several times.
Ms Saldanha was found hanged with a scarf at her living quarters at the King Edward VII’s Hospital in Central London on December 7.
Three days earlier, Ms Saldanha was the duty nurse who answered the prank call from Mel Greig and Michael Christian, and transferred it to a colleague.
That nurse revealed confidential medical information about the pregnant Duchess, who was being treated at the hospital for acute morning sickness. The call was broadcast in Australia and made headlines around the world.
23 December 2012
UK GP exam results 63% foreign docs FAIL
From UK DAILY MAIL
Scandal of the failing foreign doctors who demand right to sit GP exams a staggering SIX times
- 63 per cent fail compared with nine per cent of British
- Language revealed as one of the problems
- Patients can't check how many attempts they had
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Hundreds of foreign doctors working in the NHS are routinely failing key medical exams, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Success rates are so poor that medical associations want doctors to be allowed six attempts at passing the tests rather than the current four.
The revelation raises fears the trainee medics, mainly from India, Pakistan and Nigeria, are not suitably qualified to treat patients despite spending three years working for the NHS before taking the exam.
21 December 2012
UK DISSEMINATED TB
From UK DAILY MAIL
Killed by TB, aged 21:Student had rare form of illness that doctors thought was meningitis
- Craig White, from Boston, Lincs, suffered from headaches and nausea but assumed it was linked to his medication for Crohn's disease, his family said
- His condition deteriorated on Dec 5 and he died a week later in hospital
- He tweeted 'Head feels like it's going to explode!' just weeks earlier
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Craig White died from tuberculosis after suffering crippling headaches for a week
Craig White, 21, suffered from intense headaches and nausea in the months leading up to his death.
The aspiring sports journalist, from Boston in Lincolnshire, initially dismissed his symptoms as side effect of the steroids he was taking for Crohn’s disease, his family said.
When his condition worsened after a meal with friends on December 5, he was admitted to Boston's Pilgrim Hospital two days later but died on December 12.
Mr White, an aspiring sports journalist, had tweeted friends just weeks before he died asking if anyone knew of a pill more effective than paracetamol, as his 'head feels like it's going to explode!'
The Health Protection Agency said a post-mortem examination this morning identified disseminated tuberculosis - a rare form of the disease - as the provisional cause of death.
Further investigations into Mr White's case will now be carried out by Professor Robert Forrest, the coroner for South Lincolnshire.
Adjourning the inquest, Professor Forrest said: 'There are still a lot of details we need to establish into the tragic death of Craig Adam White. This may take a few months.'
The HPA said it was likely he contracted TB by breathing in infected droplets from a sufferer several months ago as it takes a long time for symptoms to develop.
TB, which was rife in Britain until the 1950s, is an increasing and worrying problem in urban areas. Rising immigration has seen a surge in cases in the last 20 years.
Cases dropped from 50,000 a year in the 1950s to 5,000 in the 1980s.
Last year there were just over 9,000 cases. London has the highest rate of infection, followed by Birmingham.
Seventy per cent of cases occur among recent migrants to Britain from countries where the disease remains prevalent such as the Indian sub-continent and sub-Saharan Africa.
Craig White, 21, had suffered from crippling
headaches for weeks preceding his death. A post-mortem examination found
disseminated tuberculosis as the provisional cause of death
The last tweet sent by Craig White. He died two weeks later
The HPA is now offering screening for the infection to his friends at the University of Lincoln.
Mr White was a keen supporter of Manchester City football club and had a fan blog. He was in his third year of his journalism degree.
After his death, his girlfriend Laurie Caumette, who visited him in hospital, tweeted: 'Can't believe I'll never see you smile again or hear the sound of your voice and hear you laugh. I'm going to miss you so much.'
The official Manchester City twitter feed said: 'All at #MCFC send our condolences to the friends & family of City fan & @mcfcview blogger @cwhiteuk who sadly passed away recently.'
In a statement issued by the HPA, Dr Katie Geary said cases of disseminated TB were rare but not unheard of in the UK.
Dr Geary said: 'Our thoughts are with the family at this sad time.
'As part of normal practice, all close contacts considered to be at risk of contracting the disease will be offered screening to see if they’ve been exposed to the infection.'
She added: 'Exposure to the infection through contact with someone who has the illness does not mean that an individual will go on to develop TB.
Disseminated TB develops in the small number of infected people whose immune systems do not successfully contain the primary infection.
Those who take immune-suppressing medications are at higher risk for disseminated TB, because of their weaker immune systems.
Disseminated disease can occur within weeks of the primary infection. Sometimes, it does not occur until years after you become infected.
Low doses of immune system suppressants are often administered for Crohn's disease.
Steroids are known to suppress the immune system.
The disease mainly affects the lungs, where it can cause calcium deposits which make it difficult to breathe.
It can also travel to other parts of the body including the brain, kidneys, bones and joints.
Symptoms can include fever and night sweats (both sometimes experienced by Crohn's sufferers), an unexplained prolonged cough, unexplained weight loss or blood in phlegm.
However, many people who are infected never develop symptoms - although the bacteria remain in the body, they are not infectious.
16 December 2012
NHS MDs to work 7/7
From UK DAILY MAIL
NHS doctors to be forced to work weekends for the first time in push for improved seven-day a week care
- Oupatients appointments and surgical procedures could be carried out on Saturdays and Sundays for the first time
- The shake up is part of plans by Sir Bruce Keogh, medical director of the new NHS Commissioning Board
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Seven days: Sir Bruce Keogh plans to introduce seven day working to the NHS
Until now, surgery, certain scans and screenings were only performed during the week, but in a shake up planned by Sir Bruce Keogh, medical director of the new NHS Commissioning Board, Saturday and Sunday hours will be written into medical professional's contracts.
Under the proposals, GPs would also be expected to treat patients at weekends.
Sir Keogh said that the NHS should no longer operate for the convenience of staff and not patients.
He told the Sunday Times: 'Our system has been based around providing as good a working environment as you can for the people who work in the health service, which isn't necessarily matched with what the people who want services have.
'If you wanted a day case operation, and you didn't want to take a day off work, why can't you have it on a Saturday or Sunday?'
'Tesco have had to go through this - it was a complex issue for them - we will need to look at the terms and conditions or service of people.'
He added that having empty clinics and operating theatres on a Saturday and Sunday is a wasted of NHS resources.
Research by the board found that a patient admitted to hospital on a Sunday was 16 per cent more likely to die than if they were admitted on a Wednesday.
Keogh can introduce the changes and implement financial rewards and penalties to ensure that hospitals follow the guidelines.
Contract changes: Many medical professionals will have to work Saturdays and Sundays for the first time
Medical professionals will not receive any extra money for working weekends but will be given days off in the week instead.
The proposals will be fully outlined in the NHS Commissioning Board's first planning guidance which will detail how health funds will be spent ahead and which will be released on Tuesday.
The British Medical Association (BMA) last night rejected the idea that that the medical profession could learn from private firms such as Tesco.
15 December 2012
UK Dr.Helen McGLONE PhD wins claim for Pap. smear errors.
UK from DAILY MAIL
£2m for victim of cancer unable to have children... but she wants even more following two botched smear tests by health board
- Helen McGlone (PhD Physics) had two smear tests but pre-cancerous cells not spotted
- The 33-year-old was forced to have a hysterectomy when it was discovered
- She sued for £20million for loss of earnings but was awarded £2million
- Lord Bannatyne rejected her claim at Edinburgh Court of Session
- Her lawyer said she is considering appealing the award
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Disappointed: Dr Helen McGlone, at Edinburgh
Court of Session, sued for £20million after two smear tests failed to
spot pre-cancerous cells
Helen McGlone, 33, claimed medical negligence ended her prospects of a high-flying career in the financial sector and will force her to use a surrogate mother to have children.
But the money given to her for loss of earnings at the Court of Session fell far short of the £20million for which she had sued.
In a written ruling issued yesterday, Lord Bannatyne rejected the physics graduate’s claim that a lucrative career was a certainty before her two botched smear tests. Instead, he said her chances of getting a top City job during the financial crash of 2008 were only 30 per cent.
Dr McGlone was said to be ‘disappointed’ by the award. She is still seeking compensation from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to pay for a surrogate mother in the US after being forced to undergo a radical hysterectomy when her cancer was discovered two years too late.
Following the decision, she said: ‘I am still working through the detail of what has been published today.
‘Only someone who has suffered a serious cancer and the resulting treatment can truly appreciate the pain, fear and loss that come with it.
‘I was fortunate in that I survived, but I certainly had to fight hard to do so. This case is about protecting other women from an atrocious, preventable cancer and I will continue to do everything I can for them.'
The 33-year-old, who was born in Falkirk, Stirlingshire, had planned to have as many as four children – but was left unable to become a mother by a double medical blunder.
She had two cervical smears in 2005 and 2006, both of which failed to spot pre-cancerous cells.
Her eventual diagnosis came by accident after she graduated with a particle physics doctorate from Glasgow University and moved to Switzerland to work for the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, CERN.
After cutting her hand, she discovered she had medical insurance and, as one of a number of medical checks, was given a smear test.
The cancer was caught so late that she was forced to have radical surgery. Her chances of survival during chemotherapy were given as just over 50 per cent, but she battled through – although she can no longer have children.
Then began a long-running legal fight to get the health board to take responsibility for this, ending in a judgment last year that it was to blame.
Dr McGlone listened to four weeks of evidence earlier this year on her loss of earnings from the cancer, which she claims has left her with post- traumatic stress disorder and unable to work.
Giving evidence, she said she was on the point of getting her first job as a quantitative analyst with a top financial institution. She claims she would have made £15-£20million over the course of her career.
Lord Bannatyne ruled at Edinburgh Court of Sessions said the chances of Dr McGlone getting a top City job was just 30 per cent
These considerations led to the compensation figure being downgraded.
Lord Bannatyne also said Dr McGlone was a woman who was ‘driven, highly competitive, calculating, committed to getting on and highly focused’ and that he believed she would find other work.
Taking into account her suffering, loss of earnings and pension, as well as plastic surgery to cover scars, she was awarded £2,026,750.
That may increase following a further hearing on other financial matters. No date has yet been fixed for damages relating to her surrogacy treatment – which, if awarded, would be unprecedented in British courts.
Stephen Hay, head of litigation at Gildeas Solicitors, which represented Dr McGlone, said she was considering an appeal.
He added: ‘She was initially disappointed when she heard the headline figure. She put forward a case where her income would be £300,000 a year until the age of 55 and to be told her loss of earnings will be £1.7million is clearly a significant difference.
‘But the main thing for her has always been that other women should not have to go through this.’
A spokesman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said yesterday that its legal team was still going through the 100-page written judgment and that any further statement at this time would be ‘inappropriate’.
14 December 2012
UK Lead poisoning from Chinese Face Paint.
From UK DAILY MAIL
LEAD POISONING from CHINESE FACE PAINTING KITS
Parents are being warned not to buy face painting sets for their children without checking them after thousands were found to contain lead.
More than 7,000 Tartan Collection paint pot sets have been imported from a factory in China by Chelford Ltd in Salford, Greater Manchester, and sold on to outlets throughout the UK.
The sets could cause brain damage in very young children - and only 324 out of the 7,200 sets have been recovered.
Chelford Ltd has been ordered to pay more than £14,000 at Manchester Magistrates' Court for breaching product safety laws.
Danger: The Tartan Collection sets which contain lead (left) and the UK boss who distributed them, Joel Cope
Boss Joel Cope, 39, was also hauled into court and fined £1,200 for putting the public's health at risk.
A Trading Standards investigation found the sets, which were discovered on sale at shops in Salford and Rochdale, included lead which can be absorbed through the skin.
It is not known how many painting sets have been bought or used.
Salford City Council is now warning parents to stay away from the face paint sets when buying Christmas presents.
Importer: Chelford Ltd in Salford, Greater Manchester, where the poisoned face painting sets were brought in
'It's
really important that the public are extremely vigilant. These sets can
be very dangerous, particularly to small children.'
Mr Cope admitted six breaches of product safety regulations in his role as managing director of Chelford Ltd, based at Agecroft Trading Estate in Langley Road, Salford, as well as a further six identical offences on behalf of the company.Cope, from Lancaster Drive, Prestwich, was in charge of the firm - which specialises in keyrings and stationery - when it sold the 7,200 Tartan Collection face paint and stencil sets, containing lead, to shops around the country.
Some were found on sale at Pound Paradise store in Gerald Street, Salford, and others in Budget Greeting Cards Ltd in Milnrow, Rochdale.
DANGERS OF LEAD POISONING
- Lead can be highly toxic - especially harmful to children - if it enters the body in large enough amounts
- Exposure to it can damage the heart, bones, intestines and kidneys. It can cause crippling pain, confusion, headaches, and even lead to coma and death.
- It has also been linked with infertility and nervous damage.
- Traditionally used as a pigment, the sale of lead-based paint was banned in the UK in 1992.
- It followed mounting evidence the substance was a serious risk to health.
The court heard that Salford trading standards officers were first contacted about Chelford Ltd last year by health officials in Ireland who had discovered the firm's paints on sale there contained lead.
The officials told Cope that the paints were potentially toxic, but he did not immediately recall the items in the UK, the court heard.
Laura Raine, prosecuting for Salford council, said: 'He used the excuse that he thought the laws were different in Ireland.'
Trading standards later issued a notice ordering Chelford to recall the paints.
Toby Sasse, representing Chelford Ltd and Cope, said his clients had co-operated with the investigation and admitted guilt.
Mr Sasse said Cope had been given misleading advice by consultants who suggested he was complying with the correct regulations.
He said Cope was carrying out further testing of the paints when trading standards became involved
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