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Care home CCTV considered by CQC, stem cell treatment repairs heart damage, and financial rewards for living well

The BBC reports that the CQC are considering including CCTV cameras in care homes where there have been allegations or concerns about neglect, according to the care minister Norman Lamb.

Yesterday, the BBC’s Panorama series aired an undercover investigation of residents being neglected and abused in an Essex care home. During the undercover filming the home had been inspected by the CQC and passed.

Mr Lamb told BBC Radio 5 Live: ‘If you think that you can create a good culture and compassionate care through CCTV you will fail completely, but I think it is one of the weapons that the Care Quality Commission should consider using and indeed they are considering.’

A new stem cell treatment has been effective in repairing heart damage in trials on macaques, and could lead to treatments which could get heart failure patients ‘up and about’ in a few weeks, according to the Telegraph.

The team induced heart attacks in seven macaques and then injected heart muscle cells, differentiated from human embryonic stem cells, directly into the macaques hearts and found up to 40% of damage could be repaired.

Dr Charles Murry, professor of pathology and bioengineering, at the University of Washington – who conducted the study – said: ‘It shows for the first time that we can do regeneration at a scale that the world has never seen before.’

And finally, GP monitoring would underpin a scheme where patients are given a ’financial reward’ for leading a healthy lifestyle and kicking unhealthy habits proposed by the 20/20 Health think-tank.

The Guardian reports 20/20 Health’s report saying a scheme in Scotland, which offered food vouchers if expectant mothers quit smoking, has seen 20% of its 450 participants quit long term.

A Department of Health spokesperson told the Guardian that CCGs and local authorities are able to fund such a scheme, saying: ‘The use of incentives is a decision for local public health services. We believe that making sure people have the right information to make choices about their lifestyle is key.’