Health professionals urged to have swine flu vaccine
NHS bosses have reiterated their call for health professionals to have the swine flu vaccine, saying that the jab will protect both themselves and their patients from swine flu. Andrew MacCallum, Director of Nursing at NHS Chelsea and Westminster Hospital said that he has written to senior nurses and midwives at his hospital encouraging them to get vaccinated as soon as possible. The Royal College of Nursing has urged frontline staff to have the vaccine.
NHS to publish its management consultant spending
The Department of Health is to publish how much it and the NHS spend on management consultants. The move comes as part of the formal response to the Commons Health Committee's report, with figures showing the 2009-10 spending of each NHS organisation expected to be published next summer.
Blood donor ban to be reviewed
The Times reports that the Government has said that the ban preventing gay and bisexual men from giving blood is to be reviewed and that it may be lifted in 2010. The Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs (Sabto) is to discuss the issue of the exclusion of high-risk donors.
Increase in number of Down's syndrome pregnancies
Research from a team at Queen Mary, University of London has found that the number of Down's syndrome pregnancies in England and Wales has increased significantly over the last two decades, with numbers rising from 1,075 pregnancies in 1989-90 to 1,843 pregnancies in 2007-8.
Parliamentary Update
• Adjournment debate: treatment of Fabio Alves-Nunes by the NHS (Crispin Blunt)
• Welfare Reform Bill: Report stage (Day 2)
Other business
• Care Quality Commission published report suggesting that NHS must improve outpatient medication management
• Statistics published: NHS Maternity Services 2008/09 (DoH); UK Health Statistics 2009 update, Cancer Mortality - 2008 (ONS)
• Children, Schools & Families Secretary Ed Balls & Health Secretary Andy Burnham launch Healthy Child Programme for 5-19 Year Olds