WIREDGOV NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE

CQCSo it is not just a question of funding! - The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has set out its concerns around the lack of communication between care homes & hospitals in preventing infections passing between these two settings

The CQC found that there was a need for hospitals & care homes to provide information about infections to each other, to make sure that people with, or recovering from, an infection are cared for properly and to reduce the chances of other people being infected.

But the report highlights that this information is not provided in a coordinated way with 17% of the care homes participating in the study saying that they received no information on infections at all when people were discharged from a hospital to their care.  Even when information was received, this could be weeks late, incomplete or illegible.

Other areas of concern included:
* Care home managers raised concerns about illegible or incomplete discharge information
* Most common route for supplying information between hospitals & care homes was verbally
* Ambulance crews are often left out of the information loop
* Care homes have not fully implemented national guidelines (2006) designed to prevent & control infections

CQC was concerned that care homes were not fully prepared & knowledgeable on the forthcoming regulatory changes that will affect the industry from October 2010 (1 April 2010 for all hospitals & healthcare settings).
Press release ~ 'Working together to prevent and control infections' ~ Code of practice for the prevention and control of healthcare associated infections ~ Healthcare associated infection ~ Healthcare Registration

Newswire – CPS:  Can we really put ourselves in their position? - Launching his interim policy on prosecuting cases of assisted suicide, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer QC, called for public participation in a consultation (closes on 16 December 2009) on the factors he has identified which will be taken into account when considering whether prosecutions will be brought for this offence.

The Suicide Act 1961 is applicable when a substantial part of the aiding, abetting, procuring or counselling of the suicide occurs in England or Wales.  The suicide itself can be committed in any country.

As with every other case, the test set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code) will be applied: there must be enough evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction.  If the case does not pass that evidential stage, it must not go ahead no matter how important or serious it may be and consideration must be given to whether a prosecution is needed in the public interest.

The Code sets out a substantial number of factors both for & against prosecution in all types of cases.  The interim policy sets out further factors which are more directly related to cases of assisted suicide, which also need to be considered.  The interim policy includes the public interest factors in favour of prosecution and against a prosecution.  The public can feedback their comments directly and a finalised policy will be issued in Spring 2010.
Press release ~ A public consultation on the DPP's interim policy for prosecutors on assisted suicide ~ Read the key facts about the Assisted suicide interim policy ~ Code for Crown Prosecutors ~ Publicity and the Criminal Justice System protocol ~ How CPS decide whether to charge a suspect ~ Private prosecutions

DECC:  Less controversial than Nuclear - Wave & tidal developers are invited to bid for £22m in new government funding to accelerate the commercial development of marine energy in the UK.  The Marine Renewables Proving Fund, announced in July 2009 as part of the Government’s Renewable Energy Strategy, will be designed & delivered by the Carbon Trust and will provide finance for the demonstration of wave & tidal technologies.

The funding follows demand from industry & analysis by the Carbon Trust, which has shown that extra support is needed to take marine devices successfully from initial prototype development through to early–stage commercial generation, where they are eligible for funding from the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund.
Press release ~ Marine Renewables Proving Fund ~ Marine Renewables Deployment Fund ~ Marine Energy Accelerator initiative ~ Pelamis Wave Power ~ Marine Current Turbines ~ Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) ~ Technology Strategy Board ~ UK Renewable Energy Strategy ~ European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney ~ DECC’s Strategic Environmental Assessment ~ Marine Estate at The Crown Estate ~ NaREC's technology innovation centre ~ DECC – Severn Tidal Power

DefraWhat would happen if we actually had ‘Barbeque Summers’? - Britain is a nation of water wasters, according to a new Defra campaign.  The average household uses over 100,000 litres of water a year – that’s the equivalent of 317 pints or 150 litres per person per day.  Fronted by TV presenter Kate Humble, the Act on CO2 campaign aims to help people to save 20 litres a day each with simple tips to reduce everyday water usage.

Despite being an island – and our reputation for wet weather – the UK actually has less available water per head than many European countries including France, Italy and Greece.  London, for example, has less annual rainfall than Rome, Paris or Naples.

Research shows that 87% percent of people don’t use a water-saving bag in their toilet cistern yet this could save 1 litre of water per flush with minimal outlay or effort.  Similarly only 3% percent use an aerated/water efficient shower head which could save up to 6 litres of water a minute. Defra’s water strategy for England – Future Water – outlines a vision to reduce daily water consumption by 20 litres per person by 2030.
Press release ~ Future Water ~ Public Understanding of Sustainable Water Use in the Home ~ Defra – Water Conservation ~ Act on CO2 - Water ~ Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat)

HAPretty country roads can be pretty dangerous - As autumn approaches, the Highways Agency and partners in The Deer Initiative are asking drivers to watch out for deer as part of a new campaign - DeerAware. 

Every year, people are killed or injured in road collisions with wild deer around England and there have been over 1,000 deer-vehicle collisions recorded by the Highways Agency since September 2007 on the motorway and A-road network alone.

The Deer Initiative estimates that there are up to 74,000 deer-vehicle collisions every year in the UK – 80% in England.  Most deer are killed, but thousands are left to die of injuries. Periods of highest risk are Autumn & Spring, and around dawn & dusk.  A key to reducing the number and severity of these incidents is to get drivers to be ‘deer aware’ – to slow down and watch out when they see deer signs.
Press release ~ HA: DeerAware ~ The Deer Initiative ~ The British Deer Society ~ The Deer Collisions web site ~ RSPCA ~ Forestry commission ~ WildCRU at the University of Oxford

WAGLooking after their future - First Minister Rhodri Morgan recently said the importance of ‘investing in our Children’s eyes’ was the key theme at the annual Welsh Eye Care Conference at Cardiff University’s School of Optometry this year. 

The First Minister said: 
“As part of our Welsh Eye Care Initiative we are funding the Children’s Low Vision project, which enables children and young people with Low Vision to access the services provided by health, education, social care and third sector organisations.  It also encourages multi-disciplinary working between professionals from health, education, social care and third sector organisations. We also look forward to the launch of the Children’s Low Vision Toolkit in a few months time”.
Press release ~ WAG - Health and social care ~ WAG - Children and young people ~ Cardiff University’s School of Optometry ~ Children’s Low Vision project ~ RNIB Cymru ~ Welsh Eye Care Conference

Newswire – ECWhat issues would get their interest? - According to Electoral Commission, British citizens living abroad can register as overseas voters if they have been registered to vote in the UK at any time within the past 15 years.  Yet of the estimated 5.5m British citizens living abroad, less than 13,000 overseas voters are currently on a UK electoral register.

Brits living overseas can vote by post or arrange for a proxy to vote for them in a UK Parliamentary election and the Commission has launched a campaign to encourage British citizens abroad to register to vote ahead of the next general election.
Press release ~ British Citizens living Abroad ~ Electoral Commission

Forthcoming eventsHow Project & Resource Management helps you to ‘work smarter’ – Free Seminars - With even Gordon 'the Investor' Brown joining the other major political parties in forecasting 10%+ cuts in public sector  organisation (PSO) budgets, the immediate future looks bleak for PSO’s trying to decide how & what services to deliver next year.

A concern that is magnified when one remembers that the government's budget figures already include £bns in savings from its 2009 Operational Efficiency Programme (OEP) review.  So how can Ministers like Ed Balls achieve even more £bns in efficiency savings?

Asta Development is holding a number of breakfast seminars throughout the UK for the public sector.  They will be taking a look at some of the current government programmes & processes aimed at maximising resources & delivering efficient services and explaining how effective project & resource management systems can support organisations in achieving these goals.

Using case studies from Wandsworth Borough Council and The Hyde Housing Group, as well as references from our most recent customers (Denbighshire County Council and Lancashire Constabulary), they can illustrate how Asta Teamplan has been effectively implemented within their organisation.

Click here to register your interest in these events and receive further information as it becomes available.
2009 Operational Efficiency Programme (OEP) review ~ Improvement Network ~ The Official PRINCE2® website ~ Best Management Practice website ~ NAO: Delivering successful IT-enabled business change ~ Chief Information Officer Council ~ OGC Gateway Review process  ~ IDEA - Project, programme and change management toolkit ~ CIO – Reliable Project delivery ~ CIO – Delivering Success ~ Programme and Project Management Skills for Government

For information on other forthcoming public sector events please click HERE to visit the WGPlus Events Calendar

For other Industry News please click HERE
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