Guidance Notes and Best Practice Guides
ICO: The Information Commissioner has recently publisheda new plain English Guide to Freedom of Information to help public authorities better understand what the Act says and how to apply it. The guide takes a straight-forward look at the law and explains in simple terms what organisations need to do to comply, including how to respond to requests and deciding what information they should routinely publish.
NICE: A project to improve the care of newborn babies with brain injury has seen dramatically improved results, after championing NICE's guidance on therapeutic hypothermia. Babies who are deprived of oxygen around & during the time of birth can develop hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) - brain injury leading to death or permanent disability.
Until recently, there has been no specific treatment for babies with HIE. However, research shows that cooling the body temperature of babies within 6 hours of birth - therapeutic hypothermia - leads to a significant number of babies showing normal development at 18 months, who would have otherwise have developed brain injury.
Sharing your story of putting NICE guidance into practice can give you the chance to present your work at the NICE annual conference in May 2012. The closing date for submissions to be considered for the 2012 Shared Learning Awards was last week. However, submissions will continue to be taken for consideration in next year's awards.
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has updated its list of product ranges that do not contain the 6 food colours associated with possible hyperactivity in young children. Another 2 manufacturers producing product lines free of the colours have been added to the list, they are: Atkins and Potts, and On the Menu.
CIPD: New guidance from the CIPD will help employers across the entire UK ensure that government funding for apprenticeships delivers for employers, individuals & society. The guidance, which is designed to cement high quality apprenticeships as a viable alternative route into professions & occupations and give employers greater ownership of their delivery, was launched ahead of National Apprenticeship Week, taking place in England from 6-10 February 2012. .
NICE: NICE is to produce a best practice guide to help trusts develop local formularies, as part of a move to ensure that all patients in England have access to clinically and cost-effective drugs. Local formularies provide a list of selected or preferred drugs available to local prescribers and have an important role in underpinning safe & effective use of medicines.
A recent report into innovation in healthcare by the Department of Health has highlighted that not all local formularies are including all of NICE's technology appraisals. This can lead to a postcode lottery where patients miss out on drugs approved by NICE.
