National and International News

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£12m plan to fight superbug deaths

The Government is launching its latest efforts to tackle hospital "superbugs" which affect thousands of hospital patients every year.

The Guardian 05/12/03

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Antibiotics not solution for children

Prescribing penicillin to children with sore throats does not reduce their symptoms or help them get well quicker, according to research just published.

The Guardian 05/12/03

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Asda to replace sweets with fruit at checkouts

The supermarket giant Asda is to place fresh fruit instead of confectionery at checkouts to help parents resist the demands of children and help tackle Britain's obesity crisis.

The Guardian 05/12/03
The Independent 05/12/03

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Asthma risk from baking

People who bake their own bread and cakes were warned yesterday they face a health hazard from flour inhalation.

The Guardian 05/12/03

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Dance drug ecstasy falls out of favour as young clubbers find new highs

The popularity of ecstasy appears to have peaked and it may now be regarded as "yesterday's dance drug" by Britain's teenagers, according to new official figures. Home Office ministers claimed yesterday that ecstasy use has fallen for the first time and that wider class A drug abuse among young people, including cocaine use, has stabilised after rising in the late 1990s.

The Guardian 05/12/03
The Independent 05/12/03

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Doctors who 'steal' organs face jail

Doctors who remove and retain organs without the consent of families face up to three years in prison and unlimited fines under legislation unveiled yesterday.

The Times 05/12/03
The Guardian 05/12/03
The Independent 05/12/03

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Even a little tipple shrinks your brain

Just a few alcoholic drinks a week may be enough to shrink the brain, according to US research.

The Times 05/12/03

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Gifting organs is no different to their sale

Commenting on my proposals for a regulated ethical market in live organs, your leader (December 4) selects for special praise perhaps the worst argument that has ever been levelled against organ sales. You quote Alastair Campbell as saying: "Our body is not a piece of property, in the sense that our house is. We inhabit our house and, if we own it, we can sell it. But we are our body, we are embodied selves. So it is right that the law regards the body as not a marketable commodity to be traded away at will."

The Guardian 05/12/03

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Health goes hand in hand with wealth, IQ and class

There have always been differences in ageing relating to the nature of someone’s employment, their intellectual prowess when young and their social background.

The Times 05/12/03

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Horns of a dilemma: which is Jenner's cow?

Two respected museums of medicine have locked horns over a relic of the most important cow in history.

The Times 05/12/03

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Nurses' Christmas tips go to Scrooge taxman

The Inland Revenue has been accused of playing Scrooge after taking a hospital ward’s entire £900 in tips left by patients during the year.

The Times 05/12/03

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Pensioners help the next generation

Chesea Pensioners at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea have learnt that one of the ways to stay alive is to remain intellectually active. Among the many activities at the hospital there is a flourishing bridge club. Each year the players collect for a Christmas party. At the beginning of this year the pensioners resolved to donate to Great Ormond Street a pound each for every game they played. On Tuesday four pensioners, Bill Cross, late of the Life Guards and Scots Greys, Ed Shellam, who was a Grenadier, Jim Townsend from the Royal Artillery and Joe Brittan of the Royal Fusiliers (with more than 100 years of service between them), took a generous cheque to Great Ormond Street.

The Times 05/12/03

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Professor resigns in dispute over HRT cancer risk

A leading expert in osteoporosis has resigned from the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) over its recommendation that hormone replacement therapy should no longer be prescribed to prevent the bone-weakening disease.

The Times 05/12/03
The Guardian 05/12/03
The Independent 05/12/03

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Smoking should be a crime, says The Lancet

A call for smoking to be made a criminal act has come from The Lancet, a leading medical journal.

The Times 05/12/03
The Guardian 05/12/03
The Independent 05/12/03

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Walking back to happiness

The pain in the ball of her foot was excruciating — so severe, in fact, that despite having been in serious training for six months, Denise Capstick pulled out of the London Marathon at the last minute.

The Times 05/12/03

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We should give a monkey's

The government is backing research on non-human primates for economic reasons, to the detriment of public health.

The Guardian 05/12/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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A&E docs call for drink ban

Casualty doctors today demanded a total ban on drinking alcohol before getting behind the wheel of a car.

Liverpool Echo 04/12/03

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Jail threat to doctors who keep body parts

Rogue doctors who keep body parts without the consent of relatives will be jailed to prevent a repeat of the Alder Hey scandal, it will be announced today.

Daily Post 04/12/03

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New ID scheme is big success

Barcoded wristbands are being introduced to reduce mix- ups at Fazakerley hospital.

Liverpool Echo 04/12/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Drugs bungles in tragic gran's nursing care

A nursing home matron told an inquest she was "devastated" after a nurse in her charge wrongly ordered drugs for an 82-year-old grandmother who later died.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 04/12/03

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Ex-editor appointed to NHS trust board

A new member has been appointed to the board which runs Calderstones NHS Trust.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 04/12/03

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Greater Manchester News

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Cancer alert for women on HRT

Hormone replacement therapy should no longer be used by doctors as their first choice treatment to prevent women suffering brittle bone disease, government health advisers said today.

Manchester Evening News 04/12/03
Liverpool Echo 04/12/03

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Hospital parking fees are necessary

Those people who complained in the Bolton Evening News report about the increase in parking charges at the Royal Bolton Hospital should ask themselves why this is necessary.

Bolton Evening News 04/12/03

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Life after care homes is hard

Teenagers find it hard enough looking for work but what about youngsters who have lived most of their lives in the care system?

Bolton Evening News 04/12/03

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Purify don't poison water

That fluoride is a poison has never been disputed. To add it to our water supply and say it has beneficial properties for our teeth, especially our children, is yet not proven.

Bolton Evening News 04/12/03

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National and International News

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50% rise in cost of NHS drugs

The cost of drugs prescribed under the NHS has risen from £4.9bn in the financial year 1999-2000, to £7.13bn in the year ended in April, a 50% rise.

The Guardian 04/012/03
The Independent 04/12/03

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A simple solution to transplant tourism

The news that Professor John Harris of Manchester University (Doctors back cash for organs, December 3) is suggesting liberalising laws on the sale of human organs will alarm many people, but also flies in the face of current political developments. The European parliament recently voted by 432 to nil in favour of my report to make it illegal for any European to go elsewhere in the world to buy an organ from a healthy live donor.

The Guardian 04/012/03

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Basic instinct

Charles Darwin in On the Origin of Species said that natural selection is daily scrutinising every variation in all species: rejecting that which is bad; preserving all that is good. It was working whenever and wherever opportunity offered itself for the improvement of each organic being. So effective has evolution been that every reader of The Times is descended from stock that has survived centuries beset by famine. For more than 99 per cent of the time that mankind has been in the world, the ability to survive alternating cycles of feast and famine has been an important, if not the most important, factor in determining which families survived and which died out.

The Times 04/12/03

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Financier to police foundation hospitals

The government appointed a banker as the regulator of the first wave of foundation hospitals last night, prompting criticism that health ministers were more concerned about finances than improving patient care.

The Guardian 04/012/03
The Guardian 04/12/03

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Five figure sum for race slur

An Asian woman hospital consultant has been paid substantial compensation and reinstated after 18 months' leave, in a last-minute settlement before the start of a race discrimination tribunal.

The Guardian 04/012/03

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Health body sets limit to use of HRT

Hormone replacement therapy should no longer be used as the first choice of treatment to prevent osteoporosis, the Government’s health advisers said yesterday.

The Times 04/12/03

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HIV sufferers to be classed as disabled

Cancer, HIV and multiple sclerosis sufferers will be classed as disabled under far-reaching legislation published by ministers yesterday.

The Independent 04/12/03

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Junk food 'top threat to health'

The worst health problem facing the world is not Aids, but chronic illness caused by processed food such as crisps and fizzy drinks, Alan Milburn, the former Health Secretary, said yesterday.

The Times 04/12/03
The Independent 04/12/03
The Independent 04/12/03

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Mental health trust faces strike threat

A mental health trust, which was heavily criticised by government inspectors, is in crisis, with nurses and psychologists threatening to strike amid growing concern that debts and staff shortages are seriously compromising the health and safety of severely ill patients.

The Guardian 04/012/03

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Not for sale

The problem may not be new, but it has become no less painful for patients and clinicians. There is an acute shortage of organ donations in the UK. Every year several hundred people die while on a waiting list, and many more spend months in a debilitated and deteriorating state. There were over 6,000 patients waiting for an organ - kidney, liver, heart - in the year ending in March, with 400 of them having died before being given a transplant. Many more will have died without reaching the waiting list. The frustration and despair is not restricted to patients and their relatives. For the specialist medical teams, who have the skills and facilities to carry out more operations than currently are completed, the shortage must be exasperating. In the four decades since the early transplants, the success rates of the operations have improved dramatically.

The Guardian 04/12/03
The Guardian 04/12/03
Manchester Evening News 03/12/03

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Soothing breakthrough in treatment on eczema

Eczema, frequently known as dermatitis, leaves patients distracted and sleepless and their skin itchy and inflamed. Once scratched, it becomes sore and bleeds. A huge advance was made in the treatment of dermatitis when corticosteroids were introduced for its treatment in the 1950s. Steroids revolutionised the life of those people, including children, whose days and especially nights had been turned into hell by their itching skin.

The Times 04/12/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Bishop's cancer fight

The former Bishop of Liverpool today (Wednesday, December 3) told of his remarkable fightback in his battle with lung cancer.

Liverpool Echo 03/12/03

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Fatal error costs hospital £135,000

A Merseyside man has been awarded £135,000 in compensation from a hospital after staff failed to spot his wife 's fatal brain haemorrhage.

Liverpool Echo 03/12/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Head shave by friends for tragic pal Mark

Seven magnificent friends of Mark McMurray rallied round when they found out he was battling leukaemia. In a show of solidarity, they all had their heads shaved so they would blend in with their pal when he loses his hair after chemotherapy.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 03/12/03
Greater Manchester News

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GP ops help to cut waiting times

More operations are being carried out in GP surgeries and out patient clinics, reducing waiting times.

Manchester Evening News 03/12/03

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MP backs alcohol health warning

Bolton MP David Crausby has thrown his support behind a campaign for alcoholic products to carry health warnings.

Bolton Evening News 03/12/03

National and International News

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Calls to axe TV drama on MMR

Channel Five is facing demands to pull the plug on a hard-hitting drama favourable to the disputed view that the MMR jab may be linked to autism.

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Controversy at the cutting edge

Private sector treatment centres are coming to the NHS to help cut waiting times - but, finds John Carvel, problems lie in store

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Doctor died after 'birth blunders' by colleagues

A hospital doctor who tried for years to have children died hours after giving birth to twins conceived by IVF treatment as she was operated on by colleagues, an inquest was told yesterday.

The Times 03/012/03

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Doctors back cash for organs

A radical change in medical law to allow the NHS to buy organs from live donors in Britain and Europe will be debated in closed session today by the British Medical Association, the powerful organisation representing doctors throughout the UK.

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Doctors feel the weight of progress with doorstop ethical guide

Medical paternalism is dead - but doctors must still take decisions that may be unpopular with their patients, according to an ethical guide published yesterday.

The Independent 03/12/03

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Does a cleft palate justify an abortion? Curate wins right to challenge doctors

Two of the country's leading judges yesterday paved the way for an important high court test case to examine the criteria necessary for an abortion to go ahead. In a decision which focuses on the human rights of foetuses and could undermine a law which supporters insist has served women well for 35 years, Lord Justice Rose and Mr Justice Jackson gave a Church of England curate permission to challenge a decision by police not to prosecute doctors who carried out an abortion on a foetus which had a cleft lip and palate.

The Guardian 02/12/03
The Guardian 03/12/03
Liverpool Echo 02/12/03
Manchester Evening News 02/12/03

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Most GPs planning to end after-hours care

Eighty-three per cent of GPs are planning to withdraw care for their patients outside normal hours when a new contract is introduced in April, a survey published today found.

The Times 03/012/03
The Guardian 03/12/03
The Guardian 02/12/03
Daily Post 02/12/03

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NHS success concealed by poor data

If there is no clarity about how good we are at treating the most feared disease, cancer, is it any wonder that there is so much confusion with respect to other diseases. Until last year's report from two of Britain's most eminent scientists - Sir Richard Doll and Sir Richard Peto, of Oxford University - Britain was perceived to have one of the worst records in the treatment of cancer in the developed world. But Doll and Peto showed that in two of the most fatal forms of the disease - breast and lung cancer - Britain had recorded the world's biggest decreases.

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Retiring at 70 'would trap more in poverty'

Plans to tackle the pensions shortfall by raising the retirement age to 70 could plunge even more older people into poverty, experts have said.

The Times 03/012/03

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Ryanair in court battle over fee for wheelchair

A man forced to pay £18 to use a wheelchair at Stansted airport began a landmark court case yesterday against the airport and the budget airline Ryanair.

The Independent 03/12/03

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Six children die in Fujian flu outbreak

Health officials are "watching very closely" the rate at which an unexpected form of flu is striking children, the chief medical officer, Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, said yesterday.

The Guardian 02/12/03
The Guardian 02/12/03
The Guardian 02/12/03

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Targets hinder NHS efficiency, says thinktank

Excessive government targets and bureaucracy are preventing healthcare professionals and NHS managers from running an effective health service, a thinktank warned today.

The Guardian 02/12/03

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Think Tank

When you alight from a train at New Street Station Birmingham, one of the first messages you hear is that smoking is not allowed anywhere in the station. You are unlikely to hear the same message in any of Birmingham's hospitals - or, indeed, many of the hospitals in the rest of the country. I think this is a real shame.

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Vital signs show NHS is making a good recovery

Waiting times for operations on the National Health Service have been cut, staff numbers are up and deaths from cancer and heart disease are down, according to an NHS report.

The Times 03/012/03

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Women's plasma in surgery ban

Blood plasma donated by women will no longer be used in thousands of operations because of the risk that it may trigger a life-threatening complication in some patients.

The Guardian 03/12/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Fears for tot's mum

The family of a mother who left her baby boy on a building site should not try to protect her identity, police said today.

Liverpool Echo 02/12/03

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Gloom on hospital waiting times

The region's health bosses have issued a gloomy warning about accident and emergency waiting times this winter.

Daily Post 02/12/03

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Heart centre leads way in speedy care

A new centre tackling heart disease in Birkenhead will be hailed today for helping to boost the number of patients receiving fast treatment.

Daily Post 03/12/03

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NHS fraud costs optician £150,000

An optician who conned the health service out of cash has been spared a jail sentence.

Daily Post 02/12/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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£2m action plan as doctors' hours cut

A £2 MILLION plan to help East Lancashire's hospitals cope with reductions in junior doctors' hours brought about by EU rules has been revealed.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 02/12/03

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Alison wages war on junk food

A third World nutritionist who has helped to improve diets in stricken countries has been appointed to turn the tide on East Lancashire's unhealthy eating.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 02/12/03

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Surgery a boost for staff and patients

A health centre in Blackburn is due to open its doors for the first time on Monday. St George's Surgery, in Preston New Road, has moved to a new £1m site in Haslingden Road.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 02/12/03

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Greater Manchester News

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Acne-curing laser 'should be on NHS'

Acne sufferers should be given pioneering laser treatment on the NHS, according to the director of a Bolton clinic.

Bolton Evening News 01/12/03

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Hospital's £1m loss as cancer patients miss out

Patients needing life-saving bone marrow transplants are being turned away due to a staff shortage costing Manchester's Christie Hospital £1m.

Manchester Evening News 02/12/03

Another 15 Minutes Health News From Fade

National and International News

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Curb on junk food adverts to combat child obesity

The government is to intervene in Britain's obesity crisis by asking the new television regulator Ofcom to draw up a tough code on junk food and drinks advertisements directed at children.

Guardian 01/12/03
The Times 01/012/03

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Deaths prompt review of policy on child flu jabs

Concern over the number of healthy children who have died in recent weeks after contracting flu has prompted experts to consider whether a change of policy is needed to offer vaccination to all children before next winter.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Depression costs over £9bn a year

Depression, suffered by 2.6 million adults in England, is costing the country more than £9bn a year, researchers said yesterday. Most of the burden comes from time off work because of the illness.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Desperately seeking the perfect walker

In the summer, being rather poorly, Rosemary's mother returned from living in the US, where there is no National Health Service, but where the walkers (Zimmers with wheels, we call them) are of a fabulously high standard. They have brakes, seats, shopping baskets and cost an arm and a leg. Mother brought her beloved walker home with her.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Exercise is as addictive as booze and fags, say scientists

It's now official. Some joggers may become addicted to running just as other people become hooked on cocaine, tobacco or booze, according to new research today.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Four out of five new prisoners test positive for drugs

Up to 80 per cent of prisoners test positive for hard drug use when they begin their sentences, the Director General of the Prison Service says.

The Independent 01/012/03

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Hospital bidder accused of interests conflict

The private consortium made preferred bidder for the £900m redevelopment of St Bartholomew's and the Royal London hospitals has been accused of a conflict of interest.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Joint growth gives hope to arthritis sufferers

---

Scientists have turned bone marrow cells into a ball of bone and cartilage of the kind found in the joint of a human jaw, they report today.

Guardian 01/12/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Ambulances on the mend

Ambulance officials have hit back at claims that the service is in disarray by announcing a host of new measures.

Daily Post 28/11/03

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HIV rise warning to clubbing generation

The number of new cases of HIV in Cheshire and Merseyside has increased by almost 70pc, new figures have revealed.

Daily Post 28/11/03

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Killed by superbug

A retired accountant died after contracting the "superbug" MRSA at a Merseyside hospital. Wirral Coroner's Court yesterday heard how Clyde Coltart was admitted to Arrowe Park Hospital on February 2 suffering from hyperglycaemia.

Daily Post 28/11/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Fears revived over closure of hospital A&E

Fears that Fairfield General could lose its accident and emergency department have been voiced again after the hospital trust refused to fund a study into a new emergency access road.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 28/11/03

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First step to new status

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has been given the green light to proceed with an application for Foundation status.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 28/11/03

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Greater Manchester News

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Health chiefs' bogus charity alert

Hospital chiefs are warning the public to be aware of people in pubs and restaurants who claim to be raising money to boost medical funds.

Bolton Evening News 28/11/03

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National and International News

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Consultants told to dust their own rooms

Consultants at a hard-up NHS hospital have been asked to dust their own shelves and empty their bins as part of an economy drive.

The Independent 27/08/03

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Dental care 'cuts early births'

A simple dental treatment may reduce a woman's risk of giving birth prematurely, research suggests.

BBC News 27/08/03

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Embolism risk is greater in elderly

PULMONARY emboli, which Sir Edward Heath is said to have suffered, occur when clots break off from a deep vein thrombus in the leg or pelvis and are carried to the lungs.

The Times 27/08/03

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Heart disease deaths fall by a third but treatment still varies

The number of deaths from heart disease has dropped by a third in a decade, according to a study published yesterday.

The Independent 27/08/03

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Heatwave death toll may be as high as 900

The death toll in England and Wales caused by record temperatures this month may have been as high as 900, according to official figures showing that nearly 10% more people died at the peak of the heatwave than was normal for the time of year.

The Guardian 27/08/03
The Independent 27/08/03

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Hospital accused of missing DVT

A woman who died from deep vein thrombosis after a family holiday in Turkey was sent away from hospital with a handful of paracetamol, her husband has claimed.

The Guardian 27/08/03
The Times 27/08/03

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How was it for you? Viagra can leave a trail of ruined lives and shattered hopes, says expert

When it was launched five years ago, Viagra was hailed as a wonder drug that would revolutionise the sex lives of millions of men and women.

The Independent 27/08/03

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IVF rules welcomed – but who will pay?

FERTILITY experts and would-be patients yesterday welcomed new guidelines designed to make IVF treatment more widely available on the NHS — but opposition MPs questioned where the money to pay for it would come from.

The Times 27/08/03

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Making drugs pay

Patients suffering from rare and fatal diseases are desperate for life-saving drugs, while pharmaceutical companies are reluctant to provide them

The Times 27/08/03

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More people are out of work than in 1997, says think-tank

More people are out of work than when Labour came to power in 1997 despite a fall of about 500,000 in official figures, a think-tank report claims.

The Independent 27/08/03

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New drug offers hope to heart patients

A new drug could help as many as five million people in the UK with a condition that doubles the risk of dying from heart disease.

The Times 27/08/03

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Nip'n'tuck on Irish fatties with tax squeeze

Ireland is to consider a "fat tax" on foods thought to be contributing to rising levels of obesity.

The Guardian 27/08/03

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Passage from India

Many of the generation of Asian doctors who have long been propping up the NHS faced racism and slow promotion. Anita Pati takes their histories

The Guardian 27/08/03

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Salmonella outbreak inquiry

Health officials are investigating the possible causes of a rare form of food poisoning which has been confirmed in 31 people and is suspected in four others.

The Guardian 27/08/03
The Times 27/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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'Don't-care' Trust is taking our lifesaver

MENTAL health patients at Birch Hill Hospital have hit out at plans to close the industrial therapy unit in 12 weeks.

Rochdale Observer 27/08/03

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More funding for counselling

FAMILIES of fatal road crash victims are to get counselling from people who have lived through similar tragedies.

Liverpool Echo 27/08/03

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Scare over rare food poisoning outbreak

ONE case of a rare form of food poisoning has been discovered in the North West, health chiefs said last night.

Daily Post 27/08/03

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Single jab will avoid epidemic

Health chiefs are warning of a huge measles epidemic if parents continue to refuse to have their children vaccinated with the controversial triple MMR jab.

Newton News 27/08/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Free blood pressure tests

PRESSURE stations are being set up across the country so that people can check on their blood pressure.

Bolton Evening News 27/08/03

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Green health plot plans

Plans are in the pipeline to transform a plot of disused allotments in Preston into a 'green' therapy centre.

Leyland Citizen 27/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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Patients claim they lack any confidence in GPs

Patients in south Manchester quizzed for a major health survey said they lacked confidence in local GPs and other health workers.

South Manchester Reporter 27/08/03

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Salford nurse arrested as police probe patient’s death

A nurse has been arrested in connection with the death of a patient at Hope Hospital 12 months ago.

Salford Advertiser 27/08/03

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National and International News

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Private firm to open 'instant' A&E unit

Patients with minor illnesses and injuries will soon be able to pay £29 to attend private casualty units and avoid long waits at NHS accident and emergency departments, a private healthcare company said last night.

The Guardian 19/08/03
Independent 19/08/03

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Private surgery centres 'may destabilise NHS hospitals'

Plans for privately-run "fast track" surgery centres, staffed initially by overseas doctors from South Africa, the US and elsewhere, could destabilise local National Health Service hospitals, the Royal College of Surgeons has warned.

Financial Times 19/08/03

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Watchdog steps in over fears of NHS computer disaster

Fears that a £2.3bn scheme to computerise huge sections of the NHS could descend into chaos have prompted the Government's spending watchdog to take the unusual step of reviewing the scheme at its start.

Independent 19/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Greater Manchester News

International, National & Local News

Available now - more than 200 ways in which to offend your patient

When a doctor says he is going digging for worms in the yummy scrummy mummy, his fellow medics will know exactly what he is about to do.

The Indpenedent 18/08/03

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Clue to infant heart disease risk

An abnormal gene may explain why small babies are more likely to develop heart disease later in life, say scientists.

BBC Health News 18/08/03

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Heart drug may cut risk of blindness

HEART drugs could reduce the risk of developing the commonest cause of blindness in elderly people, a study in the British Journal of Ophthalmology has indicated

The Times 18/08/03

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HSC seeks cash to lift nation's productivity

The health and safety watchdog is to make a bid for more cash in the next spending review by arguing that its work boosts the country's productivity and competitiveness.

Financial Times 18/08/03

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Medical body under fire after diet claim

The Medical Research Council is facing questions over its scientific independence after it was forced to admit that a nutrition expert who criticised the Atkins diet had accepted cash to investigate the benefits of a high carbohydrate diet.

Financial Times 18/08/03

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New arrivals 'should take health test'

HEALTH tests for immigrants would be a practical, cost-effective policy that would stop the spread of diseases in Britain, a former Australian Health Minister has said.

The Times 18/08/03

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Pizza Hut imposes total ban on smoking

A PIZZA restaurant company with 350 branches across Britain has become the first popular chain to impose a ban on smoking on its premises.

The Times 18/08/03
ITV News 18/08/03

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Sinus problems link to ME

Chronic fatigue could be linked to sinusitis, scientists have suggested.

BBC Health News 18/08/03

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Smallpox vaccines ‘appear to last for life’

AN INTERNATIONAL smallpox epidemic, caused by terrorists releasing the virus, is less likely than had been feared because vaccinations have been found to give protection for longer than expected.

The Times 18/08/03

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Surgery may help stop migraines

People who suffer from chronic migraines could benefit from surgery, it has been suggested.

BBC Health News 18/08/03

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Workplace watchdog 'in safe hands'

The much-maligned health and safety watchdog, the favourite bugbear of tabloids, free-marketeers and the fulminating captains of the small business community, is a victim of "misrepresentation", its head insists.

Financial Times 18/008/03

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National and International News

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Britain prepares for next alert on virus

A meeting is to be held next month to discuss how Britain will deal with suspected cases of Sars in the winter.

The Times 16/08/03
The Independent 16/08/03

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Employers prepare to cut healthcare benefits

Employees should be on alert about the future of health insurance plans offered by their employers. A survey from Mercer Human Resources Consulting last week showed that nearly half of employers are monitoring the financial viability of this benefit. About 44 per cent of companies will 'cut eligibility for healthcare benefits if costs continue to rise,' says Mercers. 'Confidence in the NHS has waned and more employees now turn straight to private healthcare which can treat increasingly complex conditions,' says Steve Clements of Mercer. 'As a result, the number and size of medical claims have escalated, and company schemes are feeling the strain.'

The Observer 17/08/03

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For richer, for poorer, for fatter

Amid the toasters, knives and towels that dominate wedding lists, expect a new gift to loom large: Dr Atkins' New Diet Revolution.

The Independent 17/08/03
The Independent 17/08/03

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Gehry leads tribute to architect with cancer centre 'gift'

The architect Frank Gehry has finished his first building in Britain - a cancer centre he designed for free.

The Independent 16/08/03

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Holiday clubbers to be given earplugs

Young holidaymakers heading to the nightclubs of Ibiza and Ayia Napa are to be issued with earplugs to protect them from the effects of loud music.

The Independent 16/08/03

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Key workers have their say on the proposals

Can the government convince public service workers to move? Jobs and Money talked to the workers and unions about John Prescott's proposals.

The Guardian 16/08/03

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Missing doctor is spotted confused and lost at airport

A leading paediatrician who mysteriously vanished from his office more than three weeks ago has been spotted at an airport in a confused and disorientated state, police said yesterday.

The Times 16/08/03

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Probation staff left to cope with mentally ill

More than a fifth of the 150,000 offenders currently on probation have mental health problems and are likely to pose a serious risk to themselves or to others, according to a new study.

The Independent 17/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Doctor sacked at Women's Hospital

A doctor working at the Liverpool's Women Hospital has been sacked after it was revealed he is facing a string of allegations over patients' treatment.

Liverpool Echo 15/08/03

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Hospital did this to me

Grandmother Edith Williams is suing the Countess of Chester hospital after she went in a visitor but came out a patient.

Chester Chronicle 15/08/03

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Paramedic who assaulted colleague escapes jail term

A former paramedic who punched and kicked an emergency worker at Chester ambulance station has been ordered to do 150 hours community service.

Chester Chronicle 15/08/03

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Respite care opportunities for disabled people on offer

Exciting opportunities for disabled people are opening up in Newton thanks to a unique package of respite care services launched by St Helens Council.

Newton Guardian 15/08/03

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Green light for hospitals in survey

East Lancashire's hospitals have scored well in an annual survey of cleanliness and food standards.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 15/08/03

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Help for depressed mums

A first of its kind health campaign to raise awareness of perinatal depression has been welcomed by a former sufferer of the debilitating illness.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 15/08/03

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Mothers fury over empty A&E

A mother stormed out of Fairfield's Accident and Emergency department with her sick daughter after waiting 20 minutes without seeing ONE member of staff.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 15/08/03
Lancashire Evening Telegraph 16/08/03

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New nurse led ward opens

The Fylde Coast's first nurse-led ward has opened at South Shore hospital.

Lancashire Evening Telegraph 15/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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CCTV man was not missing doctor

Police searching for missing doctor Richard Stevens say an apparent sighting of him has proved a case of mistaken identity.

Manchester Evening News 16/08/03

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Nurse quizzed over patient death

A 34-year-old male nurse from Salford has been arrested in connection with the death of a patient at Hope Hospital in Salford, it has emerged.

Bolton Evening News 16/08/03

National and International News

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Diabetes epidemic fails to arrive

The feared surge in adult-onset diabetes, linked to Western lifestyles has not happened, say researchers.

BBC Health News 15/08/03

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GSK urged to warn on asthma drugs

The US health regulator has told GlaxoSmithKline to include a warning of a small risk of asthma-related death on its Serevent and Advair treatments for the disease.

Financial Times 15/08/03

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Heatwave has killed 3,000 people, France admits

Up to 3,000 people have died as a result of extreme temperatures that have scorched France for the past two weeks, the French government admitted yesterday as it finally ended its silence on the explosion in heat-related deaths.

The Guardian 15/08/03
BBC Health News 15/08/03

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Hormone could treat heart failure

Testosterone helps heart failure, seen in right-hand image
Giving the hormone testosterone helps men with heart failure be more active, researchers say.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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Leukaemia survivors reassured

Most people who survive a common form of childhood cancer are likely to have a normal lifespan, according to the latest figures.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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New breast hope for cancer women

Scientists in Australia claim to have grown breast tissue on a pig - raising hopes that they can find new ways to help cancer patients who have lost theirs.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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Painkillers increase chance of miscarriage

WOMEN taking painkillers such as aspirin or ibuprofen when they become pregnant have a higher risk of miscarrying than those who are not, or are taking another type of painkiller, a study has shown.

The Times 15/08/03
BBC Health News 15/08/03

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Smoking feeds India TB scourge

Hundreds of thousands of TB deaths in India can be directly linked to smoking, say expert researchers.

BBC Health News 15/08/03

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Time to pool your weight

"Swimnastics" is a tough new water workout that is gentler on your joints

The Times 15/08/03

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Tower block's rats linked to spread of Sars virus

RATS may explain one of the mysteries of the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars), the pneumonia-like disease that killed more than 800 people earlier this year.

The Times 15/08/03

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Twins have lower suicide risk

Someone who has a twin may be less likely to kill themselves, say researchers - pointing to the benefits of close family relationships.

BBC Health News 15/08/03

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Weight of evidence on low-carb diets

The Atkins diet was not developed by Robert Atkins in the 1970s (Atkins diet is 'pseudo-science', say experts, August 13). It was actually first written about by a Londoner, William Banting, in 1863.

The Guardian 15/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Scarred for life after a routine tonsil operation

A WARRINGTON teenager is demanding answers after she ended up on a life support machine following a routine operation to remove her tonsils.

Warrington Guardian 15/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

Patients claim they lack any confidence in GPs

PATIENTS in south Manchester quizzed for a major health survey said they lacked confidence in local GPs and other health workers.

South Manchester
Reporter 15/08/03

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National and International News

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Aspirin may treat cancer tumours

The common painkiller aspirin could be used to treat certain types of cancer, according to scientists.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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Brain 'remembers' drug triggers

Scientists have pinpointed a part of the brain that processes memories of addictive behaviour.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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Cancer use found for wonder drug aspirin

Research reveals painkiller could be used to treat rare tumours

The Guardian 14/08/03

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Fighting back

Attacks on healthcare workers are increasing despite initiatives to stop them.

The Guardian 14/08/03

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Heart man jokes as surgeons cut

New technique keeps patients awake for operations

The Guardian 14/08/03
The Independent 14/08/03
BBC Health News 14/08/03

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New mothers could be offered MMR

New mothers could be offered the controversial MMR jab if supplies of the single rubella vaccine run out, the government has said.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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NHS shortlist sets up a fight

The companies aiming for a slice of the £2.3bn IT budget have been cut to 11. But concerns are mounting that the national process will undermine local initiatives

The Guardian 14/08/03

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Opposition disputes claim of cleaner hospitals

The number of hospitals in England with top ratings for cleanliness and food standards has more than doubled in the last year, the government said yesterday.

The Guardian 141/08/30
The Independent 14/08/03
BBC Health News 14/08/03

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Pigs that suffer human problems

The feral pigs of Ossabaw Island, Georgia, mimic the health problems of obese humans so well that they could help researchers study diabetes and heart disease.

The Guardian 14/08/03

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Probing the way your mind works

New techniques aid treatment of brain diseases such as Parkinson's

The Times 14/08/03

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Rising hospital standards claim challenged

The number of hospitals achieving high standards in cleanliness and food has more than doubled since last year, the Department of Health said yesterday.

Financial Times 14/08/03

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Scientists to check whether deer can get BSE

Scientists are to feed and inject deer with BSE- infected tissue to establish whether they can contract the disease that ravaged Britain's cattle industry and is blamed for killing 133 Britons and fatally infecting six others.

The Guardian 14/08/03

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Screening would cut death rate from aneurism

ANEURYSMS of the aorta were one of the topics that created most interest at a meeting of the US Society of Vascular Surgery in Chicago last month.

The Times 14/08/03

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Vaccine hope for travel diarrhoea

Holidaymakers could soon be able to take a single pill to stop them from having tummy trouble when they go abroad.

BBC Health News 14/08/03

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When facts go belly up

Atkins fans may have to eat their words

The Guardian 14/08/03

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When sun goes to your head

NINE-YEAR-OLD Jemima Bunting spent last Saturday, not quite the hottest day of the century, bicycling furiously with her friends up and down the hilly and rugged track behind her family’s Sussex house.

The Times 14/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Pigeons are 'killing my girl'

A PIGEON lover was today accused of putting a neighbour's life at risk because his birds are affecting her incurable lung condition.

Blackburn Citizen 14/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

National and International News

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The comfort zone

A unique cancer centre is helping sufferers by design

The Times 13/08/03

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Eating red meat 'improves memory by boosting key compound in the brain'

Followers of the Atkins diet have been fed another excuse to eat large amounts of red meat - it contains a substance shown to boost memory and intelligence.

The Independent 13/08/03

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Health watchdog defends inspections

The health and safety watchdog has hit back at criticism of a new pilot programme that would reduce the number of investigations by inspectors.

Financial Times 13/08/03

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IT suppliers vie for £2.3bn deal to modernise NHS systems

BT Group, IBM Global Services and Lockheed Martin yesterday entered a three-way race to oversee the £2.3bn modernisation of the National Health Service's computer systems, one of the largest public sector contracts ever awarded.

Financial Times 13/08/03

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Laundry worker died of heat inside giant washing machine

A laundry worker died of heat exhaustion after climbing into a giant industrial washing machine to free some sheets and getting stuck, an inquest heard yesterday.

The Guardian 13/08/03

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NHS aims to shorten queues at dentists' surgeries

Patients should have greater access to dentists under plans for primary care trusts to take over management of dental services in England, the government has said.

Financial Times 13/08/03
The Guardian 13/08/03
The Times 13/08/03

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On track for brain power increase

A COMMONLY used sports supplement taken to improve performance on track and field may also increase intelligence, according to research.

The Times 13/08/03
BBC Health News 13/08/03

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Patients on holiday taken off hospital waiting lists

Patients are being suspended from hospital waiting lists while they go on holiday.

The Independent 13/08/03

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Scans spot dementia differences

A simple brain scan could soon transform the treatment of patients with dementia.

BBC Health News 13/08/03

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Shortfall in services for vulnerable

Thirty social services departments - a fifth of the total in England - are not serving children well and have "poor or uncertain capacity for improvement", the chief inspector of social services, Denise Platt, said yesterday.

The Guardian 13/08/03

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A shot in the dark

According to a new book, it is not just MMR that parents should be wary of - evidence is mounting that other vaccines may have dangerous side effects

The Guardian 13/08/03

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Teenage mumps on increase

Health experts are warning that many older teenagers are at risk of catching mumps.

BBC Health News 13/08/03

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Too-hot staff in hospital walkout

STAFF at a flagship hospital which opened only six months ago staged a walkout yesterday in protest at stifling temperatures inside the building.

The Times 13/08/03

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UK scientists grow stem cells from IVF embryo

British medical researchers have grown human stem cells derived from spare IVF embryos for the first time.

The Independent 13/08/03
The Times 13/08/03
BBC Health News 13/08/03

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The unpalatable truth about the Atkins diet: it's just fat-headed nonsense, claim scientists

For those who have found the trials of other weight loss programmes rather too difficult to stomach, the Atkins Diet appeared to provide a more comfortable solution.

The Independent 13/08/03
The Times 13/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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BOY, 3, DIES OF RARE FORM OF MENINGITIS

A THREE-year-old Cumbrian boy has died from an extremely rare form of meningitis.

Bury News & Star 12/08/03

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Trust is taking our lifesaver

MENTAL health patients at Birch Hill Hospital have hit out at plans to close the industrial therapy unit in 12 weeks.

Rochdale Observer 13/08/03

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National and International News

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Ban lifted on adverts for some pharmacy drug sales

The advertising ban on certain over-the-counter drugs, such as remedies for bone and heart diseases, is to be lifted, the government said yesterday.

Financial Times 12/08/03
BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Bodies left unburied in Paris as heat toll soars

French mortuaries in crisis and mafia blamed for Italy's forest fires

The Guardian 12/08/03

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Clot-buster coating for blood cells

Red blood cells could be tailored to carry lifesaving drugs into the heart of clots forming in blood vessels, say scientists.

BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Emergency calls at record as ambulance services feel the heat

A RECORD number of emergency calls were made to ambulance services over the weekend as people collapsed in the heat.

The Times 12/08/03

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Iraqi 'messenger of peace' ready for his artificial limbs

An Iraqi war orphan who lost both arms in a US missile attack was seen yesterday by doctors in Britain who hope to give him a near-normal life with a set of artificial limbs.

The Independent 12/08/03
BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Master class in glass

Making glass eyes is a rare skill - and Britain has only one practitioner left

The Times 12/08/03

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The older, the better

British children may be getting more obese, but their parents and grandparents seem to be getting much fitter

The Guardian 12/08/03

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Parkinsons drugs linked to gambling

COMPULSIVE gambling may be a rare side-effect of some drugs prescribed for Parkinson’s disease, according to researchers in America.

The Times 12/08/03
BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Pregnancy poverty gap revealed

Some first-time mothers in affluent areas of Glasgow are older than grandmothers in the city's poorest communities, studies have shown.

BBC Health News 12/08/03

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'Quick hit' research ignores health promotion

The Guardian 12/08/03

Research aiming to prevent and reduce ill health is being ignored in favour of short-term, politically high profile "quick hits", a report claimed today.

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Syphilis is back

It had been virtually wiped out in Britain but one of the deadliest sexually transmitted infections is once again spreading at an alarming rate. We should be worried

The Guardian 12/08/03

US pupils get obesity reports

Pupils' weight and fitness details are being added to school reports in the US, in an effort to reduce obesity levels.

BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Warning over extreme diets

People who go on extreme diets could be seriously damaging their health, experts have warned.

BBC Health News 12/08/03

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Why Madonna's favourite yogic exercises are in danger of bringing Britain to its knees

They are the A-list exercise fads followed by everyone from Claudia Schiffer to Madonna. But now, it seems, yoga and Pilates could be bad for you.

The Independent 12/08/03

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Cheshire and Mersey News

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Cumbria and Lancashire News

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Paramedics to get new uniforms

PARAMEDICS in Bolton will be kitted out in new uniforms later on in the year.

Bolton Evening News 11/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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International, National & Local Health Care News

A spoonful of sugar helps microbes do the work

It is needed to feed the bugs that eat the nitrate, which live in the rock strata through which water permeates. In normal circumstances there is only a tiny amount of nitrate and a small colony of bugs.

The Guardian 11/08/03

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Can day surgery save the NHS?

DAY SURGERY makes sense. For patients, it means less stress, less time in intimidating hospitals, less chance of hospital-acquired infections and less chance of an operation being delayed.

The Times 11/08/03

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Cells 'reverse heart attack damage'

The body's master cells can repair the damage caused by a heart attack, a study suggests.

BBC Health News 11/08/03

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Chaos in surgeries as official HRT advice fails to arrive

Doctors have accused the Government of mishandling the latest health alert over hormone replacement therapy.

The Independent 09/08/03

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Gene map of cough killer

The complete genome of a bacterium which kills hundreds of thousands worldwide each year has been published by researchers.

BBC Health News 11/08/03

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GM in $3bn health fund move

Strong cashflow in the first half of the year allowed General Motors to pump $3bn into a special trust used to pre-fund retired employees' healthcare expenses.

The Financial Times 11/08/03

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Health and schools

Three Spanish doctors have been recruited by the NHS in Enfield in the drive to reduce the waiting time to see a GP. They will be ready for duty in health centres in January.

The Guardian 11/08/03

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Immune system 'fights allergies'

The immune system - often seen as the enemy in severe allergic reactions - could be harnessed to fight them, scientists have suggested.

BBC Health News 11/08/03

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Nitrate pollution raises water bills

The underground water which feeds Britain's springs and rivers and provides a third of its drinking water is becoming seriously polluted with nitrates, causing a threat to wildlife and landing consumers with a big purification bill.

The Guardian 11/08/03

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No mumps vaccine left

SINCE questions were raised about the triple vaccine, more parents have decided against it. But what happens if, like many, you start your child on single vaccines only to find that you cannot complete the course because there no supplies of the mumps vaccine?

The Guardian 11/08/03

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Plans to make IVF free on NHS

Fertility experts last night welcomed draft guidelines from a government health watchdog suggesting couples should receive free infertility treatment on the NHS.

The Independent 10/08/03

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Pubs unite to stub out smoking ban threat

PUB and club bosses in Manchester have launched a "third-way" bid to head off a total ban on smoking in the workplace.

Manchester Evening News 09/08/03

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Scientists must win public confidence

The loss of public confidence in science threatens to have serious health consequences in Britain. A study published yesterday showed that measles - virtually eradicated in the 1990s by the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine - is making a comeback, as parents withdraw their children from vaccination for fear of side-effects that almost every medical expert says do not exist. If the disease does become endemic again, people will die from its complications.

The Financial Times 11/08/03

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Scientists study media coverage of their research

The Royal Society, Britain's most eminent academy for scientific research, yesterday announced an inquiry into whether the public is being dangerously misled by the way new research is carried out and publicised.

The Guardian 11/08/03

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Superbugs spread to GP surgeries

The march of superbugs resistant to antibiotics might be moving out of hospitals and into GPs' surgeries, a senior public health official has warned.

The Guardian 11/08/03

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The online sites you can't do without

href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,170-773930,00.html">The Times 11/08/03

They are heart attacks waiting to happen. And the season has barely even started

A study reveals one in three football managers has heart trouble.

The Independent 11/08/03

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Unmentionables: hair loss

MALE-PATTERN BALDNESS, or androgenic alopecia, the most common type of hair loss, is associated with testosterone — specifically, a by-product called DHT. This hormone “strangles” hair follicles, cutting off the blood supply to them until the individual hair gets thinner, less pigmented and eventually falls out.

The Times 11/08/03

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US healthcare fraud convictions up 22%

The number of criminal convictions for healthcare fraud by companies and individuals rose 22 per cent in the US last year amid a crackdown by federal authorities.

The Financial Times 11/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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A DOCTOR accused of interfering with an 11-year-old girl has been cleared of serious professional misconduct.

Manchester Evening News 09/08/03

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Ambulance 'doc' Steve says goodbye

FLEET manager Steve Lawley has shaped the design of ambulances and kept over 400 of them on the road for more than 132 million miles.

Manchester Evening News 09/08/03

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International, National and Local health and Social Care News

Employers' liability for stress at work

From Lord Herschell Sir, I was surprised to read (report, August 5) that hospitals that are found guilty of “failing to protect doctors and nurses from stress at work” will be fined, possibly heavily, by the Heath and Safety Executive.

The Times - Letters 08/08/03

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Employers warm to heatwave legislation

Hot and bothered employees may scoff at the idea that their bosses could be so understanding.

The Independent 08/08/03

Fast lane to fitness

ONE MORNING, about five years ago, I left the Today programme flat out on a stretcher. The ludicrous circumstance that caused this indignity still makes me blush.

The Times 08/08/03

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Gene therapy could slow motor neurone disease

A potential breakthrough in the treatment of motor neurone disease has been announced by scientists in the US who have prolonged the survival of mice suffering from the same fatal disorder of the nervous system.

The Independent 08/08/03

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Health alert as heat causes worst air quality in a decade

Health warnings were issued to asthmatics and the elderly yesterday as it was revealed that air pollution in London has risen to its highest level for a decade during the heatwave.

The Guardian 08/08/03
The Times 08/08/03

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History of alarms raised by scientists

The Guardian 08/08/03

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HIV student to be deported 'to her death' in Malawi

David Blunkett, the home secretary, was accused last night of signing the death warrant for an HIV-positive student from Malawi by ordering her deportation.

The Guardian 08/08/03

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HRT treatment doubles risk of breast cancer

Doctors and women on hormone replacement therapies are being advised to review the use of treatments following powerful new evidence that they increase the risk of breast cancer.

The Guardian 08/08/03
The Independent 08/08/03
The Independent 08/08/03
The Times 08/08/03
BBC Health News 08/08/03

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Measles menace looms as parents shun vaccine

Measles could be about to make a comeback. According to research published today outbreaks in England and Wales have grown since 1998 as more parents have refused the triple-jab MMR vaccine for their babies.

The Guardian 08/08/03
The Independent 08/08/03
The Times 08/08/03
The Times 08/08/03
BBC Health News 08/08/03

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Panic alarms to be fitted in schools and hospitals

Schools and hospitals will be equipped with panic alarms and swipe card doorlocks to protect them from intruders and violent attacks on staff in pilot schemes starting next month prove effective

The Guardian 08/08/03

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Protein caused brain damage in boy

THE parents of a boy suffering from a rare medical condition were told by doctors that they were the unwitting cause of their son’s brain damage.

The Times 08/08/03

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Sars scare hammers hotels group

The collapse in business and tourist travel in the Far East due to the outbreak of Sars drove Millennium & Copthorne Hotels to a first-half pre-tax loss of £6.3m, the company said yesterday.

The Guardian 08/08/03

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Warning over pregnancy gap

Doctors have warned women against getting pregnant soon after giving birth.

BBC Health News 08/08/03

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Cheshire & Merseyside News

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You Say

SIX weeks ago the Hospital Trust moved children's A&E from Southport to Ormskirk.

The Liverpool Echo 07/08/03

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Cumbria & Lancashire News

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Fiver says it pays to eat healthily

MEET Fiver the bunny, who is set to spearhead a campaign to get people in Bolton to eat more fruit and vegetables.

Bolton Evening News 08/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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International, National & Local Health & Social Care News

Bowel diseases linked to bug in milk

Changes to the way milk and water are prepared for human consumption may be needed to fight "a public health tragedy" linked to a bug causing illness in hundreds of thousands of people, it was claimed last night.

The Guardian 07/08/03

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Breakthrough on Ebola vaccine

Scientists have developed a fast-acting Ebola vaccine that protects monkeys after a single shot.

BBC Health News 07/08/03

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Couch potatoes are born idle, say scientists

Couch potatoes may be born, not self-made. Research from New Zealand suggests that overeating and sluggish behaviour could begin in the womb.

The Guardian 07/08/03

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Gel 'reverses poor eyesight'

A revolutionary gel could soon replace the need for reading glasses or laser eye surgery.

BBC Health News 07/08/03

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Health warning to Atkins dieters as the heat goes on

PEOPLE following the Atkins diet during the current heatwave could be endangering their health, a leading dietician claimed yesterday.

The Times 07/08/03

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India orders an inquiry into 'toxic soft drinks' claim

The Indian government has ordered in investigation into why an analysis of 12 brands of cold drinks owned and marketed by Coca-Cola and Pepsi allegedly found that they contained on average more than 30 times the EU legal limit for pesticides.

The Guardian 07/08/03

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Longer holidays for longer hours

BRITONS could have longer annual holidays under compromise proposals designed to head off a row between Tony Blair, Europe and the trade unions over rules imposing a maximum 48-hour working week.

The Times 07/08/03

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Most hospital doctors plan to leave early

More than three-quarters of NHS hospital doctors plan to quit the health service before normal retirement age because of long hours, stress and depression, according to a survey of the profession published today.

The Guardian 07/08/03
The Times 07/08/03

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Pfizer threat on Canada's US drug sales

Pfizer threatened to cut drug sales to Canadian pharmacies if they sell them at a discount into the US, where drugs are more expensive.

The Financial Times 07/08/03

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Search for stress inducers will go on

Sir, You report ("Stress blamed for public sector's lead in lost days", August 6) on the Health and Safety Executive's "landmark" enforcement notice against West Dorset Hospitals NHS Trust - requiring it to assess its doctors' and nurses' stress levels and to introduce a programme to reduce these or face prosecution if it fails.

The Financial Times - Letters 07/08/03

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Secret recipe of quack ointment revealed at last

The Poor Man's Friend, which was sold all over the world as a miracle cure for aches and pains for more than 200 years, gave up its secrets yesterday when its recipe was disclosed.

The Guardian 07/08/03

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Underlying rise as Galen sales show good lift

Galen, the specialist pharmaceutical group, beat expectations yesterday by reporting a 73 per cent increase in sales to $135.7m (£80.7m) for the third quarter.

The Financial Times 07/08/03

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Vitamin cuts passive smoke damage

Vitamin C may help to reduce the risks associated with being exposed to second-hand smoke, a study suggests.

BBC Health News 07/08/03

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Weird and dangerous: the side-effects of a heatwave

Warmer weather means an increased incidence of food poisoning of 5 per cent (an extra 4,000 cases) for each 1C.

The Times 07/08/03

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Cheshire & Merseyside News

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Hunt for patient

A PATIENT has escaped from a secure psychiatric unit in Merseyside. The unnamed man vanished from the Scott Clinic in Rainhill yesterday afternoon.

The Liverpool Echo 06/08/03

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Mission to raise alarm for diabetics

BIG-HEARTED Winsford carnival queen Rebecca Yearsley is devoting her time to helping her big sister Jenny and other diabetes sufferers in the region.

Cheshire Chronicle 06/08/03

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PALS working well for patients

A GROUP set up to give confidential advice to patients in Southport has bucked a national trend and claims it is working.

The Liverpool Echo 05/08/03

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Stressed doctors 'plan to quit NHS'

Many hospital doctors intend to leave the health service before retirement age because of long hours, stress and depression, a new survey has showed.

The Liverpool Echo 07/08/03

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Trust equiped with specialist unit

SOUTHPORT and Ormskirk NHS Trust has been equipped with a decontamination unit so that it can treat people who have suffered anything from petrol burns to chemical warfare exposure.

The Liverpool Echo 05/07/03

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Cumbria & Lancashire News

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Cash crisis threat to old folk's home

A RESIDENTIAL home is facing possible closure because of a cash shortage.

Bolton Evening News 07/08/03

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Colour conscious in the surgery

I WAS filling in a questionnaire to help my new general practitioner. It mentioned ethnic origin and you had to tick the appropriate one from a list which said: white, black Caribbean, black African, black other, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Chinese, Vietnamese, other.

Accrington News 06/08/03

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Increase in accidents due to hot weather

STAFF at the Royal Bolton Hospital say they have seen an increase in the number of accident and emergency admissions due to weather related incidents over the past weeks.

Bolton Evening News 06/08/03

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Town to get £3m health centre

A NEW health centre costing nearly £3 million is being planned for Atherton. The centre, which will house three GP surgeries, eight doctors and a pharmacy, will be based on the former St George's infants school off Bag Lane.

Bolton Evening News 07/08/03

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Greater Manchester News

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