Workers suffering from anxiety or depression should get fast-track care to help prevent them going off sick long term, according to the Telegraph and Daily Mail.
In her annual report, Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies has called on policy experts to look at the benefits of speedier treatment for those who may fall out of work, citing the huge cost to the economy of work days lost to mental illness.
The Telegraph quotes her saying: ‘Anyone with mental illness deserves good quality support at the right time. One of the stark issues highlighted in this report is that 60%-70% of people with common mental disorders such as depression and anxiety are in work, so it is crucial that we take action to help those people stay in employment to benefit their own health as well as the economy.’
The BBC warns parents to keep e-cigarette refills out of the reach of children, after a report in the BMJ journal Archives of Diseases in Childhood, about a young girl who licked some of the nicotine-containing liquid.
Apparently the girl recovered, but high doses of nicotine can be lethal, the report’s authors warned.
Lastly, the BBC also has news of a potential new ‘pocket’ diagnosis for Parkinson’s disease, as researchers at Aston Universtiy are developing a smartphone app to assess a patient’s movements and speech at home.
