Concerns as mixed sex ward breaches more than double

Mixed sex breaches in September more than double compared to same month two years ago

NHS Providers warn hard fought gains are being lost

Month on month A&E waiting time data shows improvement

The number of mixed sex ward breaches more than doubled over the last two years, prompting concerns from senior NHS managers about care quality and patient dignity.

NHS England’s latest mixed sex breaches data showed there were 969 breaches in September – a breach rate of 0.6 per 1,000 finished consultant episodes.

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Healthy Workplace Toolkit for an Agency Workforce

This toolkit, from the RCN, has been developed following focused discussions with employment agencies and agency nursing staff. It provides a voluntary framework for organisations to follow in order to support the development and promotion of a healthy workplace.

Shortlist of nine inspirational nominations for Kate Granger Awards

Nine nominees make up the final shortlist for this year’s Kate Granger Compassionate Care Awards.

The finalists were selected from 117 entrants in the three award categories. The shortlist is made up of three nominees in each of the three award categories. The first award is for an individual working in the NHS or delivering NHS funded services. The others are for teams or organisations who are part of the NHS, or who deliver NHS funded services. These services can be delivered in hospitals, or in a primary care, community or residential setting.

Caring to change: How compassionate leadership can stimulate innovation in health care

This paper from the King's Fund looks at compassion - which involves attending, understanding, empathising and helping – as a core cultural value of the NHS and how compassionate leadership results in a working environment that encourages people to find new and improved ways of doing things.

It also describes four key elements of a culture for innovative, high-quality and continually improving care and what they mean for patients, staff and the wider organisation:

• inspiring vision and strategy
• positive inclusion and participation
• enthusiastic team and cross-boundary working
• support and autonomy for staff to innovate.

‘Dignity therapy’, a promising intervention in palliative care: A comprehensive systematic literature review

Evidence suggests that dignity therapy is beneficial. One randomized controlled trial with patients with high levels of psychological distress shows DT efficacy in anxiety and depression scores. Other design studies report beneficial outcomes in terms of end-of-life experience. Further research should understand how dignity therapy functions to establish a means for measuring its impact and assessing whether high level of distress patients can benefit most from this therapy.

Published in Palliative Medicine.

MODEM: modelling outcome and cost impacts of interventions for dementia: STAR programme

Staff Training in Assisted Living Residences (STAR) is a training programme developed in the USA for care home staff working with people with dementia. It aims to improve understanding of the needs of people with dementia, strengthen the principles of treating people with dignity and respect, develop communication skills and improve job satisfaction.

Workplace human rights

Each month, to celebrate diversity in the NHS, NHS Employers focuses on one of the key topics in the equality, diversity and human rights calendar.

This month it's workplace human rights. Workplace human rights are the fundamental rights and freedoms that protect and allow us to choose how we live our life, and be treated with dignity and respect.

For more information visit the workforce human rights web page and building a diverse workforce in the NHS.

Supporting NHS providers to deliver the right staff, with the right skills, in the right place at the right time

The National Quality Board (NQB) has published an updated safe staffing resource for NHS provider boards to assure the delivery of compassionate, effective, safe, sustainable high quality patient care.

Positive and Proactive Care

New document form the Royal college of Nursing about reducing the need for restrictive interventions,