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15:35 Prescribing anti-psychotics to violent criminals when they leave prison can reduce reoffending, a study has suggested.
University of Oxford researchers found a a 42% reduction in the rate of violent reoffending when anti-psychotic drugs were prescribed and a 52% reduction when the ex-prisoners were given anti-addictive disorder medicines.
They also tried prescribing antidepressants, but found this had no effect, reports the Telegraph.
Lead researcher Professor Seena Fazel of the University of Oxford’s Department of Psychiatry: ‘This study raises the possibility that prescribed medications may provide a way to cut the risk of violent reoffending, as part of a wider package of support.
‘The research also highlighted that medications seem to work beyond their immediate effects on symptoms.’
12:08 Early miscarriage can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder, it has been found.
Imperial College London found a third of women visiting their early pregnancy loss clinic had suffered from PTSD symptoms.
Dr Jessica Farren, who carried out the BMJ Open study on nearly 90 women told the BBC that this was just the ‘tip of the iceberg’.
She added: ’There will be a huge number of women who would… benefit from some support. But the NHS isn’t geared up for it.’
11:05 A Northern Irish teenager, who had to travel to England for an abortion at 15, is suing the NHS for failing to pay for the treatment, with the case being heard in the supreme court today.
The teenager and her mother had to pay £600 for the abortion and £300 for their return trip to Manchester, and are arguing that, as UK citizens, the cost should have been covered by the NHS.
Their lawyer Angela Jackman, a partner at law firm Simpson Millar, told the Guardian: ’For women in Northern Ireland who are pregnant and seek a termination, the status quo is almost unbearable. I believe the legal arguments of the secretary of State are perverse and contrary to its international obligations.
’Many women face the choice between an unlawful termination using dangerous and illegal pills, with the prospect of prosecution to follow, or a costly journey to England where they must pay privately for an abortion. For many women, those costs are prohibitive.”
She added: ’This is the end of a long and significant domestic journey. I am pleased that the issue is finally being given due consideration by the supreme court, the importance of which cannot be underestimated.’
09:10 The Labour Party has written to the UK Statistics Authority to ask that it investigates Government claims that they are investing an extra £10bn in the NHS.
The request follows the House of Commons Health Committee’s request that the Government stops ’misleading’ the public with the figure, which according to its calculations is more like £4.5bn. Prime Minister Theresa May has rejected the claims, as has health secretary Jeremy Hunt.
The Guardian quotes a letter from shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth saying: ’I would be grateful if you would conduct an urgent inquiry into the Government’s NHS spending plans and the accuracy of recent statements made by the prime minister and ministers, in particular claims that the NHS budget will increase in real terms by £10bn between 2014/15 and 2020-21.’
