News bulletin 26 July 2017

on 26 July

Welcome to the College of Nurses Aotearoa News Update.
No. 358 26 July 2017

NATIONAL NEWS

Rural nurses from top to tip of NZ elected to working party
Eight nurses from the Far North to Stewart Island have been elected to the Rural Nurses NZ working party including four nurse practitioners.
Read more here

Bariatric Surgery Registry launches in New Zealand
Thursday 19 July, 2017 - New Zealand’s first Bariatric Surgery Registry launches nation-wide this week, an initiative that will allow surgeons to accurately compare outcomes for patients who have undergone an operation for obesity across public and private hospitals in New Zealand and Australia.
Read more here

Leading the way on infection control
Wellington Regional Hospital is leading the way in using an anti-staph bundle to help prevent staph infections among cardiac surgery patients.
Read more here

CANCER ISSUES

Can New Zealand's hospitals cope with a national bowel screening programme?
Cancer patients will face delays for chemotherapy and radiation services if the Government does not commit to funding treatment of cancers detected by the national bowel screening programme, the Cancer Society says. 
Read more here

Bowel-cancer screening cost-effective but does not reduce health inequalities
Bowel-cancer screening in New Zealand will improve health cost effectively, according to University of Otago research just published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.
Read more here

Bowel cancer 6 times more likely in appendicitis patients over 45
If you're over the age of 45 and get acute appendicitis you are six times more likely to have underlying colorectal cancer, a new study has found.
Read more here

DHBs

Auckland health boss says the city needs one to two new hospitals
A new major hospital could be the solution to Auckland's population growth, a health board boss says.
Counties Manukau Health acting chief executive Dr Gloria Johnson made the suggestion at a July hospital advisory committee meeting in response to the winter rush at the region's hospitals.
Read more here

Quarter of senior doctors plan to leave public hospitals
Almost a quarter of senior doctors employed by district health boards intend to leave medicine or move to private practice in the next five years, a new study has found.
Read more here

MENTAL HEALTH

UC study aims to improve symptoms of depression and anxiety in pregnant women
A world-leading new University of Canterbury research trial aims to help pregnant women improve symptoms of anxiety and antenatal depression through better nutrition.
Read more here

Break the Silence: We have to think differently, says ministry
New Zealand's youth suicide rate is "appalling" and we, as a country, have not done enough to help children struggling with mental health, says the Ministry of Health's deputy director of mental health.
Read more here

New Corrections mental health initiatives begin
As part of a $14 million initiative to help offenders and their families cope with mental health challenges, four new services are now being piloted by Corrections, says corrections minister Louise Upston.
Read more here

1 in 3 dementia cases may be prevented by these 9 changes to lifestyle - study
Up to one-third of the world's dementia cases could be prevented by addressing factors such as education, hypertension, diet, hearing loss and depression over the course of a person's lifetime, according to a new report presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in London.
Read more here

Break The Silence: One in 20 NZ high school students attempts suicide each year - survey
Warning: This article is about youth suicide and may be distressing for some readers.
Young people say adult censorship of suicide has to stop as research shows almost one in 20 secondary school students report trying to take own lives each year.
Read more here

Revealed: Suicides expose gaps in military mental health support
Our military's gaps in mental health care for uniformed personnel have been exposed through internal inquiries carried out into six suicides in three years.
Read more here

 

OBESITY / SUGAR TAX

Sugary drinks must be taxed if childhood obesity is to be controlled, experts say
A substantial sugary drinks tax and increased regulation of the marketing of unhealthy foods to children are urgently needed if childhood obesity is to be reduced, according to new research.
Read more here

 

PRIMARY HEALTH CARE

GPs warn crisis looming as work pressure mounts
Family doctors warn a crisis is looming with the dwindling numbers of general practitioners around the country.
Read more here

TELEHEALTH AND E-HEALTH

Lance O'Sullivan sets up NZ's first virtual medical centre in town with no doctor
The town of Patea, doctor-less since its last physician left weeks ago, is opening the first pop-up virtual medical centre in New Zealand.
Read more here

Over a million contacts made to Telehealth
Health minister Jonathan Coleman says over a million contacts have now been made to the country's telehealth provider for advice on health issues as well as mental health and addiction support.|
Read more here

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Advanced practice registered nurses often earn more than medical residents
Advanced practice nursing roles pose a great career opportunity for many medical school students looking to cut education costs and earn their degree faster, reports U.S. News & World Report.
Read more here

Nurses could train to become doctors by doing 'part-time' medical degrees
Nurses could train to become doctors by doing “part-time degrees” under radical proposals to increase the number of medics.
Read more here

Hospital Impact: One nurse's move from 'hammer' to heart-centered leadership
How many people can say they coached a hammer?
Recently, I had an amazing coaching experience with an incredible nurse leader known as the “Hammer.”
Read more here

SA doctors and nurses at odds over who should perform colonoscopies
A turf war has erupted between South Australia's doctors and nurses, who are starkly at odds over a proposal to reduce the number of patients having to wait for colonoscopies.
Read more here

More than 1000 nurses experienced workplace violence in three months: survey
Queensland Nurses and midwives in remote and aged care facilities are exposed to more violence than their colleagues in major cities and more than 1000 had experienced workplace violence in a three-month period, a survey has found.
Read more here

Mental health coverage cuts result in extra costs
(Reuters Health) - An effort by the Netherlands to save money on mental health care by raising patient co-pays produced $15 million in short-term savings but ended up adding $29 million to the costs of treating bipolar and psychotic disorders, researchers say.
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Barking, Havering and Redbridge hospitals’ 10-year nursing development scheme
A hospital trust is encouraging people to become ward managers as part of a 10-year development scheme.
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ARTICLES OF INTEREST

Caring for...Patients of different religions
Nursing Made Incredibly Easy!
November/December 2014, Volume 12 Number 6 , p 38 - 45
In the United States, 77% of Americans identify themselves as Christian, but what do you know about the other major world religions and how your patient's religion may impact the care you provide?
Read more here

Health professionals’ personal behaviours hindering health promotion: A study of nurses who smoke. 
Mujika A, Arantzamendi M, Lopez-Dicastillo O, Forbes A. J Adv Nurs. 2017;00:1–9.
To explore the views of current and ex-smoker nurses on their role in supporting patients to stop smoking.
Background
Long-term conditions are closely linked to harmful lifestyle behaviours, including smoking and overeating. Health professionals have an important role to play in promoting healthier lifestyles. It has been described that nurses’ health behaviours may be a barrier to their health promotion practice. There is a need to gain further understanding on why nurses’ health promotion activity is influenced by their own health behaviour.
Read more here

FROM THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH

Transforming Respite: Disability Support Services Respite Strategy 2017 to 2022
The Ministry of Health’s disability respite strategy, Transforming Respite, will make it easier for carers of disabled people to have a break from their caring responsibilities.
Read more here

The above information has been collated for the College of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ) Inc by Linda Stopforth, SNIPS and is provided on a weekly basis.  It is current as at Tuesday 25 July 2017

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