This guest blog was contributed by Jo Swinson MP, Minister for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs. Despite the excellent work carried out by Trading Standards and other enforcers, far too many rogue traders still get away without paying any money back … Continue reading →
Audit finds 'unacceptable variations' in quality of care for over-65s in England, Wales and Northern Ireland Elderly people who fracture bones after a fall are being let down by the NHS in many parts of the country where treatment and prevention of falls is substandard, according to a major audit. A report from the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) finds that there are "unacceptable variations ...
Charity says recognition of carers through proposed scheme could help increasing numbers of families struggling to manage work and care responsibilities.
Carers UK has responded to a move by Ministers to include families with full-time caring responsibilities in a proposed childcare benefit for working parents.
New detail released as the Government launches a consultation on its new Tax-free Childcare scheme outlines support for families with both parents in work – but also says families with a parent in work and a parent who is caring full-time and receiving Carer's Allowance should also be eligible.
Across the UK today there are 6.5 million people caring – a number that is rising rapidly. Over three million juggle work with caring responsibilities for older or disabled loved ones (1). But Carers UK research has indicated that as many as 2.3 million have given up work at some point to care for ageing parents or a disabled friend or relative; many end up struggling to make ends meet and return to work when caring comes to an end.
Among these are also a rising number families who are 'sandwich caring' – juggling work with raising dependent children and caring for an older, ill or disabled loved one.
Carers UK says inclusion of carers is an important first step in recognising the benefits for both families and the economy of supporting families with work and care responsibilities to stay in employment.
Heléna Herklots, Chief Executive of Carers UK said: "More and more families are juggling childcare, work and caring for older or disabled loved ones. With an estimated 2.4 million of these 'sandwich generation' carers, it is essential that supporting carers of older relatives and disabled loved ones becomes as big a priority for Government, employers and workplaces as supporting parents of young children. As we respond to this consultation, we hope to work with the Government to further develop ways of supporting struggling families to manage caring responsibilities alongside childcare and work."
Overall the cost to the economy of carers giving up work is estimated at £5.3 billion (2) a year. Carers UK also points to the increasing challenge for employers as additional Census figures show that 1 in 8 workers are juggling work with caring for older or disabled loved ones.
(2) Age UK (2012) Care Crisis wipes out over £5.3 billion from the economy
We may have big brains (at least some people I know do) but we seem to be losing brain density. It's nice to know that we're more peaceful these days, although a quick glance at the News might seem to...
Figures published today by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) suggests the use of zero hours employment contracts is far more prevalent than previously thought, with more than 1 million UK workers employed on the controversial contracts. Last month, figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) claimed approximately 250,000 – less than 1 per cent of all workers – consider themselves to be on a zero hours contract, however the CIPD’s figures suggest this is a significant underestimate. However just 14 per cent of those surveyed said their employer regularly failed to provide them with a…
An elderly husband and wife were seriously injured when they were crushed in the car park of a Co-op store in Shropshire.
Our outdated and inflexible system was not able to manage my cancer properly, says Dr Andrew Lawson
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Background: career intentions of medical students may impact on education and workforce planning. We sought to determine (i) career choices of senior medical students; (ii) interest in geriatric medicine; (iii) factors influencing such choices; and (iv) the impact of a 6-week Medicine in the Community module.
Methods: cross-sectional survey of all senior UCD medical students, before and after completion of a ‘Medicine in the Community’ module, 2009–11.
Results: eighty-two per cent (274/336) completed the survey at module's end. Two-thirds (174) had chosen a future speciality, most frequently general practice (32.1%) and internal medicine (17%). Half (49.8%) believed career selection is made during medical school. Thirty-one per cent would consider a career in geriatric medicine; reasons cited were interesting field (34.5%), clinical variety (25%) and perception as emotionally rewarding (20.2%). Commonest deterrents were perceived slowness-of-pace and not wanting to work with older patients. Female students (adjusted OR: 1.89, P = 0.05) and those prioritising travel opportunities (adjusted OR: 2.77, P = 0.01) were more likely to consider geriatric medicine. Half (51.5%) reported that the community medicine module increased their interest in geriatric medicine; 91.3% that it would positively influence how they treated older patients. Students reporting a positive influence of the module were more likely to consider a career in geriatric medicine (OR: 1.62, P = 0.02).
Conclusion: two-thirds of students had already chosen a future speciality. One-third would consider geriatric medicine. This may have important implications for workforce planning and development of geriatric medicine. Undergraduate exposure to the discipline may increase interest in geriatric medicine as a career, and positively influence management of older patients.
Hydatid cyst, a human parasitic disease, remains a clinical problem in undeveloped and developing countries. Although liver and lungs are regular sites of infection, rarely other organs such as the heart can be involved. Herein, we report an isolated cardiac hydatid cyst in an 87-year-old man. He had a history of dementia for 5 years and no history for cardiac or pulmonary disease. He presented with exertional dyspnoea which continued up to 6 months. The diagnosis was made by echocardiography and computed tomography (CT). The patient was inoperable and was treated with albendazole 10 mg/kg for 6 months. After a 6-month follow-up, echocardiography revealed reduction in the size of the cyst. We believe this is the first documented case of cardiac hydatid cyst which regressed with only medical treatment in an older adult with dementia.
Background: with continued ageing, levels of frailty are an increasing concern. Women live longer than men, but how life expectancies (LE) with frailty differ between men and women and whether sex differences are the same for all European countries is unknown.
Objective: to compare sex differences in LE in phenotypic frailty categories and disability at age ≥50 between European countries.
Design: the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE).
Subjects: a total of 50,351 people aged ≥50 from SHARE wave 4 (included countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden).
Methods: the SHARE Frailty Instrument for Primary Care and the Global Activity Limitation Indicator were combined to define four phenotypic frailty and disability categories: robust, pre-frail, frail and severely limited. LEs with each state by sex and country were calculated using Sullivan's method.
Results: at age 70, the LE robust ranged from 4.1 to 10.4 years (men) and 3.0 to 8.9 years (women), LE pre-frail from 0.8–3.1 years (men) and 2.2–5.5 years (women), LE frail from 0.1–1.8 years (men) and 0.4–5.5 years (women) and LE with severe activity limitation from 1.9 to 4.4 years (men) and 2.9 to 7.5 years (women). At all ages and both sexes the fewest years were spent frail.
Conclusions: this study is the first to compare differences in LE in frailty categories across European countries. In most European countries, years spent robust (free of frailty or limitation) are significantly less for women than men, perhaps due to socio-economic as well as biological factors.
The 65-year-old man was held by police following the incident at an Asda supermarket car park in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, on Saturday. The victim, from Sandy, was taken to Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge, where he died yesterday afternoon, a spokesman for Bedfordshire Police said.
A pensioner arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after a 64-year-old man was killed in a row over a disabled parking space in Bedfordshire, has been released on bail, police said.
