A new study by oral health brand Aquafresh has revealed how the societal pressure of having the "perfect" Hollywood smile affects children's self-esteem.
The study, which included 2000 parents and children aged 4-11, found that nearly 1 in 2 British children have experienced low confidence because of how their
teeth look.
More than 80 per cent of children reported feeling less confident with their smile due to missing teeth (20 per cent), teeth not being "white" (20 per cent), wonky
teeth (19 per cent), and gappy teeth (13 per cent).
An additional 36 per cent have experienced embarrassment when smiling or laughing because of their dental appearance.
The pressure for perfect teeth not only affects children but it's also a concerning issue for parents.
The results of a national NHS staff survey, published recently, revealed that frontline healthcare workers are facing record levels of discrimination at
work, with 58,000 respondents reporting that they experienced "unacceptable" levels of unwanted sexual behaviour from the public last year.
Concerningly, 8.67 per cent of 675,140 NHS workers who responded to the poll said they suffered sexual harassment from patients, patients' relatives, or other
members of the public in 2023.
Particularly, ambulance staff were affected, with nearly 25 per cent of staff reporting unwanted sexual behaviour from the public last year.
According to the survey findings, 3.84 per cent of staff also encountered unwanted sexual behaviour from their colleagues.
Dr Navina Evans, Chief Workforce, Training and Education Officer, described the survey results as "very distressing" and said that "such conduct should not be
tolerated in the NHS."
On the positive side, more NHS workers reported being happier at work and experiencing less burnout than before. Over half of the participants stated they look
forward to coming to work, the highest number since 2020, as per the NHS.
Dr Evans attributed this improvement to initiatives such as flexible working hours, clinical support squads to help menopausal women at work, and human resources
stay advocates.
A new report, published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), has revealed worrying statistics about the mental health of children and young people
in England.
The report is based on NHS survey on Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2023, which showed that one in five children and young individuals
aged eight to 25 were grappling with probable mental disorders.
The report highlighted that 20.3 per cent of eight to 16-year-olds showed signs of mental distress in 2023. Among 17 to 19-year-olds, the proportion rose to
23.3 per cent, while in 20 to 25-year-olds, it stood at 21.7 per cent.
The rates of probable mental disorders were similar for boys and girls, while for 17- to 25-year-olds, rates were twice as high for young women than young men.
London's Great Ormond Street Hospital and Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool are poised to introduce groundbreaking gender-related services in
England, following the closure of the Gender Identity Development Service (Gids) operated by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
Amid concerns expressed by hospital executives regarding the closure of Gids, with leaked emails revealing apprehensions about appointment cancellations and
inadequate communication with the new services, the National Health Services England (NHSE) has confirmed "its commitment to ensuring continuity of care for
patients already accessing endocrine care in GIDS."
NHSE's decision to transition to regional services stems from a 2022 interim review, led by Dr. Hilary Cass, which highlighted the need for improved support
structures for gender-distressed youth.
It emphasized a significant increase in referrals to Gids, surpassing 5,000 in 2021/22, compared to less than 250 a decade ago.
A recent survey conducted by the British Society Attitudes (BSA) and published by the King's Fund and the Nuffield Trust highlighted people's satisfaction
with the National Health Services (NHS) to be a new record low since the survey's inception in 1983.
The latest findings that are based on the public satisfaction and opinion with the NHS and social care, and funding in the context of prominent national debate
about taxation and healthcare spending reveal the satisfaction with the NHS to have dwindled across all services and demographics in 2023.
Public contentment has sharply declined, with only 24 per cent expressing satisfaction in 2023, a significant drop from 2020.
Factors contributing to this dissatisfaction include prolonged waiting times for GP and hospital appointments, staffing shortages, and perceived inadequate
government spending.
More than 7,000 hospitalisations and deaths in the UK could have been averted in summer 2022 if people had received their recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses,
a new study published in The Lancet has revealed.
The largest ever study carried out in the UK found that between a third and a half of the UK population had not had the recommended number of COVID vaccinations and
boosters by summer 2022.
In Northern Ireland, nearly 50 per cent of the population were under-vaccinated, while the proportion of under-vaccinated people in England was 45.7 per cent,
34.2 per cent for Scotland and 32.8 per cent Wales.
Researchers from the Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) and the University of Edinburgh analysed the electronic health records of 67 million residents aged 5 and
older from across the four countries during June 1 to September 30 2022.
The NHS England is rapidly expanding the targeted lung health check programme (TLHC) across England to detect lung cancers at an early stage.
Launched in 2019, it is a national scheme that identifies people aged 55-74 at increased risk of lung cancer to invite them for a lung health check and chest
CT scan, if appropriate.
Since then, it has heled detect over 3,000 lung cancers, mostly at an early stage when the condition is more treatable, Dr Jason Page, Clinical Director of South
Yorkshire and Bassetlaw targeted lung health checks, revealed in a blog on the NHS website.
The decision to initiate the programme follows a study that showed CT screening reduced lung cancer mortality by 26 per cent in men and between 39 per cent and
61 per cent in women.
In a move to make healthcare more accessible, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has announced plans to empower pharmacy technicians, dental
therapists, and hygienists with enhanced authority following two public consultations run by the government in 2023.
Revealed by Primary Care Minister Andrea Leadsom on Thursday 28th March, this strategic decision promises to usher in "a faster, simpler, and fairer access to
primary care" by granting pharmacy professionals "the ability to both supply and administer medications".
Based on the public consultations that garnered widespread support, with 97% backing the empowerment of dental hygienists and therapists and 84% favouring similar
rights for pharmacy technicians, the new reform is aimed to cut through bureaucratic red tape and bolster efficiency in patient care.
Dental hygienists and therapists, under the proposed change, will be empowered to administer select medications, including pain relief and fluoride, without the
need for dentist approval.
The UK government has decided to ban disposable vapes to tackle the rise in youth vaping and protect children's health, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
announced on Sunday (28 January 2024) during a visit to a school.
Official figures revealed that the number of children using vapes has tripled in the past three years, with nine per cent of 11 - to 15-year-olds now affected
by this rising trend.
Disposable vapes are believed to be mainly driving the worrisome rise in youth vaping, with the number of 11- to 17-year-old vapers using disposables estimated
to have increased by almost ninefold in the last two years.
Sunak said: "As any parent or teacher knows, one of the most worrying trends at the moment is the rise in vaping among children, and so we must act before it
becomes endemic.
"The long-term impacts of vaping are unknown and the nicotine within them can be highly addictive, so while vaping can be a useful tool to help smokers quit,
marketing vapes to children is not acceptable."
Global healthcare company Mundipharma and Vectura, an inhalation contract development and manufacturing organization, have entered into a collaboration
agreement aimed at reformulating an asthma inhaler as part of their commitment to reducing the product's carbon footprint.
The companies will be working together on incorporating an environmentally friendly propellant into the formulation of flutiform, a pressurised metered-dose
inhaler (pMDI) used for asthma treatment, to achieve a near-zero-emissions product.
Currently, the product uses the approved apaflurane hydrofluoroalkane 227 (HFA-227), a type of fluorinated greenhouse gas, as its propellant.
The European Union's regulation on these types of greenhouse gases targets a two-thirds reduction in their usage and subsequent emissions by 2030.
In a joint statement, companies revealed that work is already in progress to find an alternative to the HFA-227 gas.
Yuri Martina, Chief Development and Medical Officer at Mundipharma, said: "This is the first step in our long-term plan to develop a near-zero-emissions asthma
inhaler.
The NHS's latest report on ambulance services in England for March 2024 reveals significant progress in response times for emergency calls across all
categories compared to recent months.
The Ambulance Quality Indicators (AQI) Statistical Note, released in April, underscores both improvements and persistent challenges within the sector.
Recent figures obtained from the Liberal Democratic party suggest ongoing struggles with response times, particularly for category two patients, which may
include individuals experiencing strokes or heart attacks requiring a response within 18 minutes.
Similarly, in November last year, ambulance waits for category 2 calls surged to their highest level since December 2022, reaching 93 minutes, after dropping
to 32 minutes in January 2023 according to the British Heart Foundation.
However, according to the latest statistical figures obtained from AQI, March 2024 witnessed the shortest average response times for all four categories of
emergency calls since August 2023.
For the first time, Covid-19 vaccines will be available for purchase from pharmacies in Britain from April 1.
As revealed by The Times, Boots is set to launch a private vaccination service next week to ensure that people "remain ready to respond to this constantly
evolving and unpredictable virus."
Under the NHS national immunization programme (NIP), Covid booster vaccines are only offered to those at high risk, including over-65s or patients with weakened
immune systems.
From April 1, anyone aged 12 or over can get the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at 50 Boots stores for £98.95.
While it's highly unlikely for healthier young adults to experience severe Covid-19, getting the single-dose vaccine can protect them from discomforting symptoms
like coughs and sore throats.
A spokesperson for Boots told the publication that their private service is the extension of their existing delivery of Covid-19 vaccinations for the NHS.
Boots registered a twelfth consecutive quarter of retail market share growth, with a reported retail sales increase of 5.9 per cent for the three months
ending on 29 February 2024.
This impressive growth comes on top of a 16 per cent increase recorded during the same period in the previous year, the UK's leading health and beauty retailer
revealed.
Strong growth was observed across digital platforms, namely Boots.com and the Boots app, with a 16.8 per cent surge in digital sales, particularly driven
by "strong sales of beauty and personal care products."
The growth of in-store sales remained consistent, registering a 4.5 per cent increase, with flagship, shopping center, and travel stores demonstrating
particularly strong performance.
In 2023, almost 14,000 people in England are estimated to have died due to excessive waits in emergency departments, averaging more than 260 deaths per week,
according to new figures from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM).
The RCEM estimate is based on a large study of NHS patients published in the Emergency Medicine Journal in 2021, which found one excess death for every 72 patients
who spent eight to 12 hours in an A&E department.
Following a Freedom of Information audit of NHS trusts, the college has found that 65 per cent of people waiting 12 hours or more in A&E were patients waiting for
a hospital bed.
NHS data for England revealed that over 1.5 million patients waited 12 hours or more in major emergency departments last year. Based on the RCEM calculation, this
indicates that over a million of those patients were waiting for a bed.
The outbreak of Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) in the UK, which is associated with contaminated eye gels imported from India, has led to the death of
one person, and many others falling ill, according to a government report.
Bcc is a group of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that are widely found within the environment. Although it rarely causes infection, it can result in severe ones in
individuals with compromised immune systems and those living with cystic fibrosis, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.
Between January 2023 and February 2024, there were 52 confirmed and six probable cases across the UK linked to the bacteria outbreak, as revealed in the Health
Protection Report published by UKHSA.
Forty-one of these cases were hospital inpatients, 38 of which were in critical-care settings.
Twenty-five cases were considered to have "clinically significant infections attributable to Bcc", out of which 11 had eye infections, nine had respiratory
infections and four had bacteremia (bacteria entering the bloodstream).
Two individuals with cystic fibrosis (CF) were infected, and while one was treated, the other died, with the report indicating Bcc infection to have "contributed
to the death."
In response to the concerning surge in youth vaping, the UK government in January announced its decision to ban disposable vapes as a measure to safeguard
the health of children.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated that while the long-term impacts of vaping were uncertain, the nicotine present in these products can be highly addictive.
Therefore, he emphasised that "marketing vapes to children is not acceptable."
Now, there's a stronger reason to crack down on vape sales as a new study has revealed that vaping or the use of e-cigarettes may increase the risk of developing
heart failure.
The study, which involved 175,000 adults in the United States, found that those who use e-cigarettes were 19 per cent more likely to develop heart failure over a
four-year period.
Dr Yakubu Bene-Alhasan, lead author of the study, from MedStar Health in Baltimore, underscored that an increasing number of studies are linking e-cigarettes with
harmful effects, suggesting vaping "might not be as safe as previously thought."
With further research, Dr Bene-Alhasan's team plans to uncover "a lot more about the potential health consequences and improve the information out to the public."
In a significant move aimed at improving patient care and alleviating hospital pressures, the National Health Services (NHS) has expanded its same day
emergency care services across the UK.
This has resulted in thousands more individuals receiving rapid tests and treatment, effectively avoiding overnight hospital stays.
Recent data paints a promising picture, revealing an 11 per cent increase in the number of patients discharged on the same day they were admitted as emergencies.
This advancement translates to several patients receiving urgent care within hours, subsequently freeing up beds for others in need.
Over the past year alone, an impressive 206,446 more patients have been discharged on the same day, amounting to 2,024,129 individuals in the year leading up to
January 2024, compared to 1,817,683 in the preceding year.
The successful rollout of same day emergency care to every hospital in England has played a pivotal role in easing bed congestion and reducing hospital admissions
by up to 30 per cent in certain NHS Trusts.
The severity of the ADHD medication shortage in the UK has been exposed as former Hollywood extra Lee Cato revealed that he was forced to quit his job but
hasn't been able to access his medicine.
A resident of Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, Lee had worked as a film extra in big movies like 'Thor' and 'Edge of Tomorrow'.
The 48-year-old told Mirror that he has been taking Concerta for years to manage ADHD symptoms, but he hasn't been able to get the drug or any alternatives for
over a month.
He said that he first experienced shortages of the medicine in December 2023 but was initially able to take Delmosart, which he took to maintain focus despite
experiencing its side effects such as headaches, nausea, tooth erosion, and a dry mouth.
But now, he can't get access to any of these ADHD drugs as "they're completely out-of-stock and it's been over a month now."
His chemist also tried to get hold of his medication but failed.
Adding to the growing evidence of global medicine shortages, a new study has revealed that the European generic medicines market is "not in shape" to help
Europe meet its public health priorities.
In the past decade, the rate of generic medicines withdrawals has risen by 12 per cent, while there has been a three per cent decrease in the launch of generic
products, as per Teva Pharmaceuticals' recent analysis of IQVIA data.
Within the mental therapeutic area, seven per cent of generic products disappeared between 2013 and 2023, while there was a seven per cent decrease in the
availability of generic cancer medicines in just six years (2017-2022).
These medicines were listed on the Union List of Critical Medicines to help avoid potential shortages, as the European Commission (EC) said this could cause
"significant harm to patients and pose important challenges to health systems."
While mature generic products constitute the majority of the List, they remain susceptible to withdrawals, despite containing products crucial for safeguarding
Europe's public health, the Teva analysis report noted.
Since 2013, the number of generic products for the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder has declined by 25 per cent, with Hungary and Bulgaria
experiencing the biggest loss at 83 per cent and 58 per cent respectively.
Campaigners have submitted an open letter to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), urging the Minister for Primary Care and Public Health to
freeze prescription charges to keep people with long-term conditions alive and well.
The campaign is led by the Prescription Charges Coalition, which represents over 50 organisations, including Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) and Pharmacists'
Defence Association (PDA).
Currently, the prescription charge is £9.65 per item, and campaigners have asked the government to freeze it for 2024 and 2025 as people living with long-term
health conditions in England are "being forced to choose between heating, eating, and taking their vital medication on a daily basis."
In 2023, a study conducted by the Prescription Charges Coalition revealed that almost 10 per cent of survey participants had skipped medication in the previous
year due to the cost of prescriptions. This led to increased physical and mental health problems, as well as impacted the time they took off work.
Laura Cockram, Chair of the Prescription Charges Coalition and Head of Campaigns at Parkinson's UK, expressed deep concern that a further rise in the charge this
year will lead to people skipping or not taking the full dose of their medication, which will affect their health and put more pressure on the already under
pressure NHS.