A study has explored parent and staff perspectives on the role of parents in medication safety for hospitalised children. Researchers carried out observations and interviews on paediatric wards in three acute hospitals in Northern England. Three main themes were identified:
The report recommends further exploration of how parents contribute to resilience and safety for children in hospital and how health services can safely support increased engagement and involvement of parents.
Read more about the study and its recommendations via the Wiley website here.
A High Court judge has highlighted the key role of patient information leaflets in facilitating informed consent. Deborah Biggadike v Kamilia El-Farra and Sohier El-Neil offers important lessons about informed consent, clinical record-keeping, and patient safety. At the heart of the case was whether Ms Biggadike had received Montgomery-compliant consent before undergoing multiple urogynaecological procedures. The judgement found El-Farra had followed appropriate consent processes, supported by EIDO patient information leaflets. However El-Neil was found to be negligent for failing to disclose critical diagnostic results, invalidating consent. The judge highlighted the key role of patient information leaflets, referencing PIF member EIDO's documents as "gold standard". EIDO has now published a summary of the case highlighting the role of clear, authoritative patient information in supporting informed decision-making.
Read the full statement on the EIDO Healthcare website here.
The BMJ has published an opinion article from a researcher who says the US government is committing "digital genocide". The article highlights areas of concern including deleting datasets that do not fit with the government's ideology and insisting certain words are not used in federal documents, including federally funded research. The words that must not be used include bias, biased, women or female. Words that may lead to a grant being pulled include advocacy, biased, gender, LGBT, diversity, inclusion, marginalised, and underserved. The article also says the Center for Disease Control and other federal organisations with health datasets have been told to remove data that relates to “gender ideology”. The author, who has remained anonymous for fear of repercussion, says these decisions will mean the loss of evidence-based decision making and an inability to tackle health inequalities.
Read the full article via the BMJ website here.
PIF member Macmillan Cancer Support has updated a public statement on its use of AI. In line with PIF's framework for the development of AI use policies, the statement sets out how the charity does, and does not, use AI.
Read the full statement on the Macmillan Cancer Support website here.
A new study aim to define the gaps in the evidence for the efficacy of digital education for healthcare professionals. Researchers aimed to identify priority areas where future research has the potential to contribute to our understanding and use of digital education. A literature review and expert consensus resulted in the identification of five priorities including how to optimise the use of AI and exploring how the design of digital education affects outcomes.
Read more on the study and the results via the JMIR website here.
A new report explores how to ensure AI supports ethical, personalised care that enables people to live their lives their way. Think Local Act Personal (TLAP) developed Principles and priorities for the responsible use of Generative AI in care and support in partnership with the University of Oxford, the Digital Care Hub, and Casson Consulting. The report is based on the views of people who draw on care and those providing unpaid care. It sets out a series of principles to inform policy and practice, identifies practical issues that need addressing and highlights areas requiring urgent action from Government and regulators.
Find out more and read the full report on the TLAP website here.
Research by Dementia Carers Count has revealed more than three quarters of dementia carers do not have any contingency plans in place for when they are not there to care. The charity's survey also found a third of unpaid dementia carers can see a time when their physical health will impact their ability to care and a third can see a time ahead when their mental health will prevent them from being able to continue caring. Some respondents also reported challenges in accessing healthcare. The report makes a series of recommendations for change including improving information sharing, sensitive communications and signposting support.
Read more about the survey findings via Dementia Carers Count website here.
In this blog for The King's Fund, Frank Rigby says, despite the heat of debate, there has been little new evidence published about trans people's experiences of healthcare in recent years. Frank says, in the absence of informed knowledge, the void is too often filled with anger and anxiety. What data there is suggests trans people are more likely to experience issues with their mental health and have negative experiences of care. While data is limited, waiting lists for NHS gender identity clinics also appear to be disproportionately long. The blog calls for action to fill the gaps in evidence with data and patient stories.
Read Frank's blog on The King's Fund website here.
A universal patient record across health and care will be a central recommendation in the NHS 10 year health plan, according to reports in Digital Health News. The leaked report from the digital and technology working group recommends the adoption of a “universal record used across all settings”. Patients, researchers and policymakers would also be able to access the record with anonymised healthcare information. The report says professionals will work with the same facts and from an agreed and continuously updated care plan to reduce duplication and miscommunication.
Read more about the report via the Digital Health News website here.