Uniting for patient safety
Like the rest of the country, Kent and Medway and Surrey and Sussex are working towards consistently high quality care. The opportunity for further improvement across England has been reinforced consistently in the recommendations of the Francis and Berwick reports.
In response, the Government has announced that 15 Patient Safety Collaboratives (PSC) will be established across England. Each will have the same footprint as its local AHSN. It’s expected that there will be some consistency nationally, with every PSC being asked to focus on four likely core areas:
• Leadership for patient safety
• Measurement for patient safety
• Pressure ulcers
• Medication errors.
Our current expectation is that the bidding process will be communicated in January, bids will be reviewed in April and the PSCs launched summer 2014.
Involved
With this timetable in mind, we have started to mobilise our local response working with, amongst others, the two NHS England Area Teams, Health Education KSS and staff in provider, commissioner and Higher Education organisations.
We will hold an inclusive and participative briefing event to shape the KSS bid on 27 January at Gatwick. We hope all patient safety leads and interested parties will to join us at this event. Invites to this event will be out shortly.
There is already a strong patient safety culture in KSS. The collaborative will be a chance to further strengthen that culture with new funding, agreed goals and joint working.
Please contact s.wales@nhs.net for more information about the meeting on 27 January.
Opportunities
Job opportunity
The Research Design Service (RDS),part of the infrastructure of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), is looking for a Director, NIHR Research Design Service South East. Please see http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/health-news-events/2013/12/23/director-nihr-research-design-service-south-east/ for more details.
News
Cameron: UK will double its dementia research – The Guardian
In a keynote address at the launch of the G8 dementia summit later today, Prime Minister David Cameron is due to announce that the government will double investment in dementia research from £66 million in 2015 to £122 million by 2025. Calling on UK researchers to lead the fight against dementia, and for worldwide collaboration and data-sharing between researchers, Mr Cameron will also urge the pharmaceutical and voluntary sectors to significantly increase their own investment in dementia research. Speaking in advance of today’s launch, Mr Cameron said: “If we are to beat dementia, we must also work globally, with nations, business and scientists from all over the world working together as we did with cancer, and with HIV and Aids.”
Dementia patients and carers to benefit from new research at University of Ulster http://www.healthcanal.com/brain-nerves/brain-diseases/dementia/46045-dementia-patients-and-carers-to-benefit-from-new-research-at-university-of-ulster.html – Health Canal
Dementia patients around the world could benefit from new research being undertaken by the University of Ulster, in collaboration with University College London (UCL). UCL has just secured over £3 million of funding for a project focusing on managing and treating the effects of agitation in dementia – one of the most distressing symptoms of the illness. Ulster’s Professor Gerard Leavey, Director of the Bamford Centre for Mental Health & Wellbeing at the University’s Magee Campus, will lead on part of this research with UCL.
The funding announcement follows the recent commitment made by Prime Minister David Cameron at the G8 dementia summit to double levels of UK funding into dementia research. Professor Leavey said: “Agitation occurs when a dementia sufferer loses the ability to communicate and becomes distressed because they cannot communicate basic needs such as hunger or pain. “This is possibly one of the most demanding and distressing aspects of dementia, affecting around 50% of sufferers globally. The commitment by the UK Government to double funding is really encouraging and will hopefully bring us closer to finding a cure for this progressive and debilitating illness. Over the next 5 years, the research carried out by my team at Ulster will help to build knowledge on agitation and focus on how to enhance the quality of life for dementia patients and their carers.”