We explore what’s happening in the healthcare sector, from new products and services to inspirational stories
What’s new? BUBBLE WALL HELPS AUTISTIC BOY SPEAK Zac Render, who is autistic and non-verbal, stunned his mum Chrissie after the installation of a bubble wall in their family kitchen prompted him to begin naming the colours he could see on the sensory equipment. Zac, who is five, was diagnosed with autism and global
development delay at the age of three, and was “mesmerised” by a bubble wall at a restaurant the family saw while on holiday a few years ago. With the help of charity Children Today, the Renders were able to have one installed in their house, and it’s had a significant impact on the young boy’s life. Not
Over five million NHS England patients waiting for treatment to begin Figures published by NHS England show that over five million patients are currently waiting to begin treatment due to disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic - the highest figure since records began in 2007. 385,490 of those patients have now been waiting for over a year for their treatment to begin; this number has, however, fallen from 436,127 in the previous month’s report, showing a substantial decrease. Senior policy fellow at the Health
Foundation, Tim Gardner, said: “Today’s figures are a stark reminder of the pressure the NHS faces as it works to tackle the enormous backlog in routine hospital care caused by the pandemic. “Nearly 3,000 people have now been waiting more than two years for a procedure which the NHS constitution promises should be performed within 18 weeks, and nearly 400,000 have been waiting over a year. The total number of people waiting for routine hospital
only has he spoken without picture cards, but the bubble wall also calms Zac and helps him to sleep. Chrissie told the BBC that Zac was ecstatic when the bubble wall arrived, and instantly started shouting out the colours he could see once the sensory equipment was plugged in and turned on. Speaking to the BBC, Emma Prescott, director of Children Today, said: “Sensory overload can be really distressing for children with autism and sadly bubble tubes and other sensory equipment that can help are prohibitively expensive for many families. “But, as you can tell from Zac’s story, the effect of such a simple item on both the child and the family as a whole is often profound.”
care – 5.1 million – is now greater than at any time since records began in 2007. “Waits of this magnitude are not acceptable to anyone and we know that the NHS and government are working hard to find a solution. The NHS needs to increase levels of activity but this will be extremely difficult with significant workforce shortages, post-pandemic staff burn-out and ongoing constraints on capacity due to COVID-19, including social distancing. “The NHS urgently needs additional resources but importantly, local services also need the freedom and support to trial and evaluate innovative new approaches to tackling the backlog and share learning across the country. Making incremental improvements to business as usual, while important, will not be enough to address a challenge of this scale. www.
-magazine.co.uk
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