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Revalidation touted for nurses and midwives, cigarette pack warnings and a ‘breakthrough’ for arthritis’

News this morning that nurses and midwives could be subject to a three-yearly revalidation process under plans drawn up by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), the BBC reports.

After years considering the move, the NMC is finally pushing ahead with the scheme after the uproar over the Mid Staffs scandal – and says it is determined to push ahead, despite fears about how much it could cost.

NMC chief executive Jackie Smith said: ‘Any effective system of revalidation will increase public confidence that nurses and midwives remain capable of safe and effective practice.’

Campaigners want graphic images to be put on the front as well as the back of cigarette packets, reports the Daily Mail, as research shows teenagers tend to ignore them. The research – in the journal Tobacco Control - found less than 10% of teenagers could recall the images of diseased lungs, rotten teeth and neck cancer on the back of packets, while less than 1% could recall text warnings without supporting images. Cancer Research UK said it is hoping EU legislation will soon mean pictures have to be put on both sides of the packets.

And the Daily Express splashes its front page with news of ‘drugs to stop agony of arthritis’ – although GPs won’t be holding their breath as this new ‘breakthrough’ is still at an early stage. Researchers have apparently pinpointed a major cause of the disease – a protein known as MLKL that apparently triggers necroptosis, which sets off inflammatory processes that lead to arthritis and other inflammatory conditions such as Crohn’s disease.

Researcher Dr James Murphy, of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne, said the finding is ‘really exciting’ and that MLKL could be a ‘perfect target for treatments because it is different from almost every other cell-signalling protein, making it easier to develop highly specific drugs and limiting potential side effects’.