This site is intended for health professionals only


Clegg to ‘front-up’ to Lansley over reforms, NHS management cull takes shape, and why having a ‘fling’ might give you a heart attack

By Gareth Iacobucci

Our roundup of the health news headlines on Wednesday 23 March

‘Nick Clegg set to rein in NHS reforms' is the headline in the Guardian, which reports that the Liberal Democrat leader is to 'front-up' to the Government and push for changes to the Health and Social Care Bill. We wonder if this 'fronting-up' will be similar to the way he 'fronted-up' on cuts to public services and tuition fees..?

The Financial Times reports on health secretary Andrew Lansley's disclosure that GP consortia will only be responsible for about £60bn of NHS funds, and not the previously mooted £80bn, as his officials made clear that some consortia would not be ready to be authorised to use the money in full by 2013.

The Government's cull of NHS management is already being felt, with the number of managers in the NHS falling by 2,770, while the number of clinical staff rose by 2,707, writes the Telegraph. The figures are contained in the NHS Information Centre's annual workforce census.

The Daily Mail reports on the awful story of how two patients who had a kidney transplant were accidentally given a rare form of cancer from a donor.

The Guardian reports that hundreds of thousands of people living in areas with high HIV infection rates face pressure to be tested for the virus under new plans designed to curtail its spread.

And adulterers beware – having a ‘fling' may increase the risk of heart attack, says the Daily Mail. In actual fact, beyond the eye-catching headline, a study has found that occasional sexual activity is much more likely to cause a heart attack than regular sex. Now we know.

Spotted a story we've missed? Let us know in the comments and we'll update the digest throughout the day...

Daily Digest