NHS Yorkshire and the Humber Regional Innovation Funds

A Regional Innovation Fund, funded by the Department of Health, is being made available to support innovation and the spread of best practice across the region. The fund consists of £1.94 million in 2009/10 and £5 million a year for the following four years, subject to annual confirmation from the Department of Health.

Applications for funding are invited from NHS clinicians, managers, frontline teams and partners in support of innovation across Yorkshire and the Humber. Successful projects might include new ways of delivering services, new technologies or new ways of spreading existing innovation or best practice. Click here for further information.

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Dignity in Care Leeds case study 2

The second of three video case studies into the work of 2008 Social Care award winners, Leeds. This video looks at how they embraced social marketing to raise the profile of Dignity in Care in Leeds. Click here to view.

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NHS Evidence - innovation and improvement

NHS Evidence - innovation and improvement will be officially launched at The King's Fund Annual Conference on 24 November 2009. The aim of the specialist collection is to provide timely and efficient access to high quality information resources for those involved in the innovation and improvement of health and social care services. Content covers both theory and practice and includes best available evidence, tools and techniques, measurement, case-studies and policy on all aspects of innovation and improvement.

The innovation and improvement specialist collection, commissioned by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement and managed by The King's Fund Information and Library Service, is one of over 30 specialist collections from NHS Evidence. Feedback or comments are welcomed, and contact details can be found on the innovation and improvement specialist collection homepage. Suggestions for resources can also be made by using the submit a document page.

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Help us help you to breathe more easily

Help shape plans to improve the health and wellbeing of people with COPD and asthma. The Department of Health is developing a national strategy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in England, working with the British Lung Foundation and Asthma UK. The strategy is due to be launched next year and is designed to help improve patients' health and well-being. The strategy covers better prevention and changing behaviour for those at risk, diagnosis and treatment, through to better care for people with COPD at the end of life. It will also highlight the similarities and differences between the diagnosis and care of COPD and asthma. The views, insight, and experiences of people with COPD and asthma and their carers are needed to ensure that the plans in the strategy meet their needs. The event is being held on 30th November 2009 at the Thorpe Park Hotel, Leeds. Click here to book your place.

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Commercial and procurement skills for commissioners of children's services

It is vital that commissioners of children's services have access to the commercial and procurement skills needed to develop markets and procure services effectively. These guidance documents from the epartment of Health are designed to help commissioners understand and apply commercial and procurement skills in their work. The documents cover the key principles of procurement, an overview of both strategic procurement and the contracting process, an overview of resource mapping and a basic jigsaw tool designed to help commissioners understand the key principles of change management.

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Feedback from E Health Insider Live 2009

Some 1,300 people converged on The ICC in Birmingham for E-Health Insider Live ’09. The chair of Dr Foster Intelligence, Tim Kelsey, was the first keynote speaker at E-Health Insider Live ’09. In his speech, he called for sharing information in the NHS to be made mandatory – particularly for primary care trusts. Click here to download a podcast of his speech and find out more about E Health insider Live 2009.

Booking is already underway for E-Health Insider Live 2010, which will take place at The NEC in Birmingham from 8-9 November next year. More than 500 square metres of space have already been sold. If you would like to book a stand, please email Neil Hadland

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Get the Picture with Social Care TV

Social Care TV programmes aim to bring real world examples to social care staff, managers, commissioners and trainers. Already up on the site are 25 videos covering topics such as dementia, personalisation and safeguarding vulnerable children, with more in the pipeline. Click here to view.

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Do you know an outstanding nurse?

Last year Nursing Times celebrated the 60th anniversary of the NHS by asking readers to nominate the 20 nurses who had had the greatest influence on the profession over the previous 60 years. There are many exceptional nurses who are helping to transform healthcare, and we believe that they deserve to be more widely recognised.
You are invited to nominate any outstanding nurses who you believe have provided leadership to the profession over the past 5-10 years in the areas listed here. A panel of distinguished judges will decide which shortlisted nominees will join the Diamond 20 in the Hall of Fame.
Make sure your respected and admired colleagues gain the recognition they deserve, nominate them now.
What to do now:
Visit the website, choose your categories and then email your nominations to hofnominations@emap.com by 8 January 2010
The Hall of Fame inductions will be announced at a celebration in the Great Hall of St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London on Thursday 18 February 2010.

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NICE Annual Conference and Exhibition

NICE 2009 Innovation and Value will focus on innovation and the value it can bring when it works for patients. The conference is being held on 2-3 December 2009 at the Manchester Central Convention Centre. Click here to book your place and for further details.

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Palliative Care: Care For Life Threatening Illnesses: Information and Help For Older People

This is an information leaflet which provides information about palliative care. Its contents include: what it is; how older people can find out more information; obtaining palliative care for non-English speakers; and how older people can obtain palliative care in either a hospice or in their own home. The last section contains a listing of relevant organisations with contact details.
Click here to view a copy.
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Joint Financing Across Health and Social Care - Audit Commission Report

This report reviews the joint financing and integrated care arrangements between NHS bodies and councils with adult social care responsibilities. It builds on our previous publication, 'Joint Financing Across Health and Social Care' that explained the practical implications and legislative framework for joint financing.
It considers how these arrangements are used, focusing on learning disability, mental health and older people - areas where service users most often need health and social care.
The report's recommendations and examples of notable practice aim to help national and local bodies better understand the options available, how to use them and to achieve better outcomes for service users. Click here to view the report.

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Use of Resources in Adult Social Care: A Guide for Local Authorities

This guide is to stimulate discussion and debate for local authorities on how to commission and shape services for tomorrow by making best use of resources. DH encourages every local authority to learn from each other about how to take this innovation forward and spread best practice around the country. Click here to view a copy of the guide.

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Supporting people to live well

The first national Self Care Awareness Week takes place from the 9 – 15 November 2009 and aims to raise awareness of the information and support available to help people, and especially those with long term conditions take control of their own health and wellbeing.

Self Care covers every aspect of living a healthy life, from brushing our teeth to looking after ourselves when recovering from illness. People with long term conditions are already doing this well but some are still unaware of the choice of support and information available to help manage their condition. For instance, everyone with a long term condition can have a personalised care plan, access to courses and support groups as well as knowing about the right equipment to help live healthy and stay independent.

Activities to support Self Care Week are being held around the country; in addition, charities including Men’s Health Forum are involved in the week to inform people and those with a long term conditions that being able to self care puts you in charge of your own healthcare.

CHAIN members are encouraged to support the campaign and raise awareness locally by displaying the self care week posters in GP practices, writing about the week in newsletters and using the web buttons and banners on both online and offline materials. These are available on the Department of Health’s website at: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_107585

People living with a health condition, or who just want to learn how to look after their self better, can ask their healthcare professional for information on the advice and support available or visit www.nhs.uk/yourhealth.

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Report from the Ministerial Summit on Dementia Research

One of the commitments made in the National Dementia Strategy was to hold a Ministerial Summit on Dementia Research. This took place on 21 July 2009. The independent report of the event is now available. Click here to view a copy!

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Passport: Guiding Your Journey to Exceptional Care

IHI invites you to join Passport, a new cost-effective membership program for hospitals. When your organization joins Passport, your whole staff gains easy access to the practical tools and ongoing expert support for frontline teams as they improve key processes outlined in the IHI Improvement Map, the new online planning tool. Learn more about Passport membership

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Fundamentals of the NHS - HSJ Conference

Does the rapidly changing world of the NHS leave you feeling overwhelmed? Do you need a solid introduction or an up-to-the-minute refresher to firmly underpin your understanding of all the recent policy changes, reforms and agendas? Whether new to the world of the NHS or simply in need of clarification over recent advancements - this essential Health Service Journal learning forum provides a whistle-stop tour of where the NHS is now and where it is heading in the future. This indispensable event being held on 25th November in Manchester, will provide you with a confident understanding of the NHS in order to maximise your role within the NHS, improve relationships with your NHS partners, or capitalise on business development opportunities. Click here for further details.

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IHI and JAMA Announce Author and Article for the October 21st Call

Dr. Barbara Slade MD, MS, author of Postlicensure Safety Surveillance for Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus Recombinant Vaccine Joins the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) on Wednesday, October 21, 2009, from 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern Time for “Author in the Room,” an interactive conference call aimed at closing the gap between knowledge – what is published in an article - and action – how much of this knowledge is put into practice to improve care. The interactive call will help readers consider the implications of the study results for improving their practice. To read more and access this month's article, click here.

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A New Website to Improve Services for Older People

This new website will help public sector staff to better understand the needs of older people. The website launched on Older People's Day (1 October) will help professionals to tailor their work so older people have greater choice and control over the support they receive. The website is part of the government's Independent Living Strategy. This new resource was developed by the Office for Disability Issues, working with the Centre for Policy on Ageing and the National Development Team for Inclusion. Click here to view the website.

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NHS Evidence - commissioning

The commissioning specialist collection (CSC), part of NHS Evidence and managed by The King’s Fund, is an information resource for all those involved in commissioning for health and wellbeing. It endeavours to include the best available evidence, examples of good practice, policy and data to support world class commissioning and is managed by a dedicated information specialist who is contactable via email should you have any feedback, suggestions or queries.

Highlights of the collection include the regularly updated key topics which provide brief summaries and links to information on various commissioning topics, and the CSC is always happy to consider suggestions for new topics. You can also find links to commissioning related events, data sources, journals and toolkits.

You can keep up to date with the latest commissioning publications via various RSS feeds, or follow and interact with the CSC on Twitter.

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New DH guidance on substance misuse published

Until now there has been no formal guidance to help clinicians to manage substance dependence among young people. This has left practitioners concerned that their practice may not accord with the developing evidence base. A new guidance document, published by the Department of Health, describes good practice on the best ways to manage a clinically complex condition.

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Integrated care pilots: an introductory guide

This introductory guide to the national programme of integrated care pilots and evaluation provides a summary of the work each pilot will be doing as they implement and test their models of integrated care.

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Relationships matter! Web seminar

Maggie Morgan-Cooke, head of international relationships, NHS Institute, will present a web seminar between 4-5pm on 15 October on how NHS staff and key stakeholders can meet the current challenge to balance efficiency whilst simultaneously driving up quality. Register for the event on the NHS Institute website.

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Lean Healthcare Academy - Annual Exhibition & Awards 2009

The 2nd Annual Lean Healthcare Academy - Exhibition and Awards is being held at the Royal Armouries in Leeds on the 12th November 2009. Following on from last years success, this year will bring you more opportunities to network, more opportunities to see and share best practice, more opportunities to win an award and more opportunities to bring real time and cost benefits to your organisation. It truly is the essential Healthcare event of 2009. Click here for further details.

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The Search is on for the Top Ten High Impact Actions for Nursing & Midwifery

A search is on for the Top Ten High Impact Actions for Nursing and Midwifery. NHS Live know that you are likely to be involved in innovative projects that improve the quality of care for patients and reduce costs. If you are a nurse or midwife, NHS Live want you to let your colleagues know about your improvement so that they can do it too! If you aren’t, but you know of some fantastic improvements being made by nursing and midwifery colleagues, please forward this on to them. This is joint initiative by the Department of Health, the Royal College of Midwives, the Royal College of Nursing, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement. It is looking for changes that you have already made within your organisation that have improved quality for patients and reduced costs that, if replicated nationally, would have a huge impact on the quality and cost of patient care. The top ten actions selected will be announced at the CNO’s conference on 11 November. Click here for further information.

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E - Health Insider Live 2009

E-Health Insider Live ’09 is fast approaching, so take a few moments to register now for your free attendance. This will be the year’s biggest gathering of health informatic professionals – so if you use, specify, buy or just get frustrated with IT and want to see solutions – then E-Health Insider Live ’09 is THE place to be! Attractions include:
a packed exhibition floor hosting 60 companies, showcasing a whole range of products and services across healthcare sectors, a free two day Best Practice Showcase with presentations from trusts around the UK, the Mobile Solutions Village – sponsored by O2 and BlackBerry
the EMIS & Partners Interoperability Zone, free System C demonstrations of Medway Sigma - the advanced clinical and patient management system.
Full conference details are here: www.ehealthinsiderlive.com/conference
Put the dates in your diary NOW – Monday 9th & Tuesday 10th November at The ICC, Birmingham and register on line at: www.ehealthinsiderlive.com selecting code EHIL10 when prompted.

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