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Holly Thackeray

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Behind the headlines: can adding extra salt to food cut your life expectancy?

Can adding extra salt to food cut your life expectancy?

Several recent media reports suggest eating extra salt may shorten life expectancy by more than two years. Can adding salt to food at your table really lead to a higher risk of early death? We look behind the headlines and provide the BHF view.

People who always add salt to their food after cooking are 28% more likely to be at risk of an early death, when compared to those who never or rarely use extra salt on meals, according to new rese

Behind the headlines: does eating chocolate help you live longer?

Does eating chocolate help you live longer?

Several newspapers report that eating chocolate “slashes the risk of dying young by 12 per cent”. We look behind the headlines.

People who eat 12g of chocolate a day – roughly the equivalent of two pieces of a bar of chocolate - have a 12 per cent lower risk of dying, compared to those who don’t eat chocolate at all, according to new research published by the US National Cancer Institute. They were also 16 per cent less likely to die from heart disea

Behind the headlines: can brisk walking reduce your biological age?

TV and newspaper reports claim regular brisk walks can make “you look and feel 16 years younger by middle age” , based on recently published research . Is this true? We look behind the headlines.

A lifetime of walking at a brisk pace could reduce your biological age by 16 years by the time you reach midlife, according to news headlines based on a recent study from the University of Leicester.



Walking speed is widely considered to be a good indicator of overall health. The researchers say
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NHS England publishes digital priorities for 2022/23

NHS England has published its digital priorities for the next 12 months, as part of a wider release on operational planning guidance across a number of areas.

Entitled ‘2022/23 priorities and operational planning guidance’, the 40-page document was released on 24 December 2021 and sets out NHS objectives for the next year. These span a wide range of topics, including digital, and are based on ‘a scenario where COVID-19 returns to a low level’, allowing health and social care services to ‘make s
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Swansea scoops £2.4 million in funding renewal for dementia data portal

Swansea University has been awarded a funding boost of £2.4 million to continue its development of a dementia data portal.

The Dementias Platform UK (DPUK) Data Portal – a Trusted Research Environment (TRE) – aims to be a ‘world-class data repository’ to support research into dementia.

Its goal is to ‘accelerate progress’ within the research sector through a focus on the identification of early signs of disease, and by supporting the translation of discoveries into new treatments and preventat
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Video: Shuri Network, Somerset CCG and Dorset Hospital share thoughts on transforming care services

For the lunchtime session of our final HTN Now Focus event of 2021, we were joined by a panel of guests from across the NHS, who shared their experiences of digital transformation in social care and care in the community.

As well as discussing learnings, best practice and practical approaches from programmes of work in Somerset and Dorset, to help inform the national conversation, speakers from a number of organisations also explained their personal stories and routes to working in health tech.

NHS to pilot 15 specialist clinics for child obesity

NHS England is to open 15 specialist clinics to support children and young people with severe obesity.

The new pilot will see children and young adults, aged between two and 18, offered services to help them lose weight, including diet plans, mental health treatment and coaching, as part of care packages that can be developed with families.

Group sessions and specialist support and treatment from clinicians and professionals such as dieticians, psychologists, specialist nurses, social workers,

Manchester set for £105.9 million mental health unit

Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH) has received final approval to build a new £105.9 million mental health unit for adults.

The construction, which was given the green light by the UK Government as part of its plans to commitment to upgrading 20 hospitals, will take place at North Manchester General Hospital (NMGH).

The new addition will replace the current Park House mental health inpatient unit at NMGH, with £91.3 million set to be funded by central government, and
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News in Brief: NHSX backs digital back pain pathway, home test for breast cancer patients, mental health videos

This week we’ve covered a range of health tech news, including nine projects being announced to support analytics research into COVID-19, a new tender put out for work on Equality Impact Assessments in innovation, and the publication of the first research paper to use data from the Greater Manchester Care Record.

We also shared the experiences of health and tech professionals from industry and the NHS, as part of our live HTN Now November sessions, which you can begin to catch up on as the vide

Trust’s new fellowship to address under-representation in senior leadership roles

Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust has launched a new fellowship programme – the Kofoworola Abeni Pratt Fellowship – to help address under-representation in senior leadership roles.

Aiming to tackle ‘the gap in senior leaders’ amongst staff who ‘identify as being from a Black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds’, the programme will select five fellows in December 2021, with the posts due to begin in March 2022.

The one-year programme, which will provide personal and professional devel

Adult eating disorder clinicians to benefit from new £471k training model

A training programme, which has been co-developed by King’s College London (KCL) has been awarded a three-year, £471,000 contract to design and deliver up-skilling for adult eating disorder services.

The Maudsley Model of Anorexia Nervosa Treatment for Adults (MANTRA) programme, which is being contracted by Health Education England, will be rolled out across the country, aiming to help with the training of experienced clinicians.

MANTRA is described as a “structured individual psychotherapy wi
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Northern Care Alliance aligns Green Plan with digital transformation

The Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust (NCA), which brings staff and services together from two trusts, has announced that it is to align its ‘Green Plan’ with other ‘existing priorities’, including digital transformation.

According to the NCA, which is comprised of Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust (SRFT) and The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (PAT), the move is intended to help it meet its net zero carbon emissions ambitions.

The NCA, which provides care to one million people in

News in brief: new non-exec director posts, motorcycle paramedics, first carbon literate trust

It’s time for the news brief and, in a week when COP26 – the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference – is dominating the headlines, NHS trusts and staff are also stepping up to engage with change.

Elsewhere, we’ve covered plenty of appointment updates this week – from a second medical director at Imperial College to a new non-executive director at Hampshire Hospitals.

But there’s been plenty more stories happening within healthcare, so we’ve rounded up the best of the rest below…

Switch
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NHS app news: UK and EU agree COVID pass deal, half of people in England can access digital healthcare

NHSX has revealed the details of a new COVID-19 vaccination pass agreement, which aims to help simplify travel across Europe.

A deal has been made for the UK and EU to digitally verify each other’s COVID vaccination certificates, which should make it easier for UK citizens to be admitted to museums, restaurants, and other venues across the EU where proof of vaccination is required for entry.

Most countries in the union do currently accept the UK’s COVID vaccine certificates but only a few are
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NHS England and NHS Digital create new cancer quality of life dashboard

A new data dashboard, which illustrates quality of life levels for cancer patients in England, has been launched by the NHS.

Teams from NHS England and NHS Improvement, and NHS Digital, worked on the project, which uses data from national surveys.

People with cancer are being asked to complete the ‘cancer quality of life survey’ around 18 months after diagnosis, sharing their experiences through two questionnaires that measure overall health and quality of life.

It’s hoped that the survey res

New Health Innovation pilot to support NHS leaders with digital skills and development

Health Education England (HEE) is promoting a new pilot scheme to help NHS leaders develop greater digital skills and awareness.

The Health Innovation Placement (HIP) Pilot is described as a ‘new personal development offering’ aimed at boosting decision-makers’ knowledge and understanding, as part of a move to increase know-how across the NHS workforce.

HEE states that ‘the influx of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the proliferation of the Internet of Things (IoT) is revo

The Health Foundation calls for whole government approach to improving health

The Health Foundation has released a new briefing that calls for a whole-government approach to improving health.

As well as calling for a government-created ‘strong national framework for action’, strong accountability, and a greater emphasis on ‘levelling up’, the paper also provides recommendations of ‘evidence-based policies’ to help improve health equity.

Important points from the briefing include a call for “coordinated action across government to improve health and health equity and gen

Barts Health celebrates staff ahead of Allied Health Professions Day

Ahead of Allied Health Professions (AHPs) Day, which takes place on 14 October 2021, Barts Health NHS Trust has released details of a number of celebratory and informational events.

The trust says that the dedicated day is “an opportunity to shine a light on our AHP colleagues at Barts Health who provide vital services to our patients.”

Explaining that the AHPs workforce is made up of 14 different professions – which include a wide range of careers and roles such as arts therapists, paramedics
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New 'digital ways of working' at Leeds Children's Hospital

Leeds Children’s Hospital has announced the launch of new ‘digital ways of working’ at the site, as it aims to improve data accuracy and the care it provides, as well as reduce manual workloads.

The specialist hospital, which is part of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, introduced ePAWS in July, which it describes as a ‘new way of monitoring paediatric patients.’

Paediatric Advanced Warning Score (PAWS) is an alert system that can help identify paediatric patients who are at risk of deterior
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Chelsea and Westminster milestone as trust uses thermal imaging to scan two million visitors

Chelsea and Westminster NHS Foundation Trust has hit a unique milestone – successfully scanning two million visitors for COVID-19 and other infections at its hospitals over the past year.

As previously reported by HTN, the trust has been using thermal imaging technology to scan those entering its hospital sites for the last 12 months.

Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust first introduced ThermaFY Protect, a bespoke thermal screening technology that builds a heat map of a perso
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Interview Series: Niamh McKenna, CIO at NHS Resolution shares her leadership learnings

As part of HTN Now September 2021, as well as sharing live webcast sessions from health tech experts and industry voices, we’re also releasing a three-part series formed from interviews with leaders within the NHS.

Here, we chat to Niamh McKenna, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at NHS Resolution about how she joined the organisation, her tips for applying to leadership roles, and her learnings so far – plus a few podcast recommendations to inspire aspiring NHS leaders.

Hi Niamh, tell us about
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New Leeds Centre for HealthTech Innovation announced

The University of Leeds and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) have linked up to launch a new centre for the development of health technology.

The Leeds Centre for HealthTech Innovation is one of three initiatives that have been announced to support the development of novel ideas ‘from the point of discovery’ to where they can then be ‘transformed into new products and devices’ to treat patients or be used to prevent ill health in the population. The other two initiatives, which will com
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