Health & Social Care

Health inequality spending blow

It is unclear how much money has been spent on tackling causes of ill-health and narrowing the gap between rich and poor, a report said today.

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Government consider 10% care levy

The health secretary has said proposals for a 10% levy to fund care for the elderly are still under consideration....

Social care funding deal unlikely

A political deal on social care funding looks increasingly unlikely amid fresh rows between the main parties....

Social care enjoys employee boom

Newly released figures have revealed that more than 28,000 people have registered their interest in a job in social care via a Government-funded website since the beginning of February....

Panorama: Hospital Trusts providing incorrect information on performance

More than half of hospital trusts inspected last year provided the public with incorrect information on their performance and quality of care, a Panorama investigation will reveal tonight in Panorama: Trust Us – We're An NHS Hospital (BBC One, 8.30pm, Monday 8 March). ...

NHS waiting times to be legal right

NHS waiting times for treatment are to be legislated for, the Government has announced....

Mobility riders face fitness tests

Mobility scooter users may have to take a "fitness to drive" test and obtain insurance under proposals which would affect up to 100,000 vehicles....

Care service helpline launched

A new helpline that provides information on care services for the elderly has been launched in Scotland....

Report calls for nursing pledge

A report has called for nurses and midwives to make a public pledge to deliver high-quality care....

Weight loss diets 'reverse damage'

Weight-loss diets can reverse life-threatening artery damage in obese individuals, a study has shown....

£1,000 for Employers giving young jobless starts in Social Care

Social Care employers across Britain can get £1,000 for taking on a young person who is struggling to find work. ...

Fifth of men fail to get prostate test

A fifth of men in at-risk age groups who ask their GP for a test used in the diagnosis of prostate cancer have their requests turned down, a survey revealed today....

Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Nick Clegg urged to reveal Autism Plans in the General Election

The UK Autism Foundation has urged the leaders of the Labour Party, the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats to reveal their Autism Plans in the run up to the General Election of 2010. ...

Assisted suicide laws clarified

New guidelines on assisted suicide have not "opened the door to euthanasia", and each case will be judged on its merits, the chief prosecutor in England and Wales has said....

Authorities 'failing deaf children'

Research has suggested that deaf children are being let down by some social care services. ...

Call to Shake up Social Care Laws

Laws which govern the provision of adult social care need a shake-up to make them more simple and current, it has been suggested....

Stress 'raises' mental decline risk

Older people with diabetes are more likely to suffer mental decline if they have high levels of stress, according to research....

Credit plan to aid carers' pensions

Carers looking after someone for more than 20 hours a week without pay have been urged to take advantage of a new credit scheme counting towards pension entitlements....

Andy Burnham: Put patients before system

Bringing services into patients' homes is key to a "great NHS", according to the health secretary has....

Cancer care costs 'set to soar'

Cancer costs more than £18 billion a year, but the figure could rise to almost £25 billion over the next decade, a report published today said....

NHS Trusts 'ignore patient alerts'

A total of 300 NHS Trusts have not complied with at least one patient safety alert issued to tackle problems which can cause injury or death, according to a report....

Tories threaten care forum boycott

Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley has threatened to boycott an emergency conference on care reform for the elderly....

Commons row over adult care plans

A report urging major changes to maintain care for adults in the face of increasing demands sparked a Commons row, with David Cameron accusing Gordon Brown of using the plans to promote "cheap dividing lines" between the parties ahead of the general election....

NHS rejects "expensive" cancer drug

A drug which is claimed to give advanced cancer patients a longer and better quality of life will not be made available on the NHS because it is too expensive....

PM Gordon Brown unveils elderly home care pledge

People aged over 65 could be given a right to up to six weeks' support to enable them to remain in their own homes after a stay in hospital or residential care, a fall or an illness, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said....

PM vows to personalise healthcare

All cancer patients are to be offered free one-to-one care in their homes as part of a Government shake-up of healthcare services....

Foreign GPs 'must prove competence'

Overseas doctors will have to prove their competence of the English language, a review into the out-of-hours GP system is to say....

Benefits take-up campaign urged

Benefits take-up must be improved to tackle poverty through ambitious Government targets, as more than £16 billion of means-tested benefits and tax credits go unclaimed each year, charities have said....