Better Health and Care for All
Download the PDF Foreword The last thirty years has seen big changes in health and social care to support people with learning disabilities. This includes a move from long-stay hospitals to supporting more people to live well in the community. But it is not easy – and we still have a long way to go ...
Outcomes similar for full or partial hip replacement after hip fracture
For older people with hip fracture, the choice between full or partial hip replacement does not greatly influence outcomes. In this trial, approximately 8% of patients having each operation required further surgery within a 24-month period. Mortality rates were also similar at around 13%. This multinational trial included 1,495 adults aged over 50 with a hip ...
Increasing omega-3 intake does not prevent depression or anxiety
Increasing intake of polyunsaturated fats, for example with omega-3 fatty acid supplements, has little or no effect in preventing the onset of depression or anxiety symptoms in people without these conditions, but who might be at risk. These findings support dietary advice that omega-3 supplements are not needed in healthy people. This review also highlights ...
Text messaging support helps smokers quit, but apps not yet shown to work
Text messaging support helps people quit smoking, more than minimal support such as self-help materials. Also, when text messaging is combined with another smoking cessation intervention, it is more effective than just that intervention alone. However, the evidence to support smartphone apps is absent or of poor quality. This review included 26 studies and builds ...
Advance care plans improve quality of life for heart failure patients
Advance care planning (ACP) can improve the quality of life of patients with heart failure, especially if it includes follow-up, involves family members and is carried out by trained clinicians working in multidisciplinary teams. This review summarised the evidence about the effect of ACP on quality of life, compared with usual care, for 2,924 patients ...
Pedometers can help people get more active as part of an exercise programme
Pedometers and accelerometers helped people with diabetes or cardiovascular diseases to increase their physical activity by a moderate amount, though pedometers were more successful. Programmes that involved face-to-face consultations with a facilitator were more effective than those where devices were used in isolation to track progress. This NIHR-funded systematic review included 36 trials which objectively ...
Occupational therapy at home may benefit people with dementia and their carers
Multiple occupational therapy sessions, provided in a person with dementia’s own home, improve their ability to carry out daily activities, compared with usual care. Improvements are also seen in behavioural and psychological symptoms and their quality of life. In addition, carers report feeling less distress, and a better quality of life. This study was a systematic ...
Better Health and Care for All - Easy Read
Health and Care services for people with learning disabilities Easy read summary This Report is about research into learning disabilities. This research was paid for by the National Institute for Health Research. This is the Easy Read Summary. There is more information in the full report. Contents Why is this report ...
Impact of online or app-based assessment for urgent health problems largely unclear
Relatively little robust evidence exists on the impact of online or app-based health assessments for people seeking urgent care. The available evidence suggests that these services are not as good at making diagnoses as health professionals; though it is not clear whether this is a useful benchmark. The ‘NHS 111 Online’ service for symptom checking ...
Universal ultrasound in late pregnancy did not reduce serious harms to babies
Offering all women third trimester ultrasounds did not reduce the rate of serious illness or death in babies in the first week of life. Monitoring fetal growth is part of routine antenatal care, using regular tape measurements from the pubic bone to the top of the uterus. To date, it has been unclear whether also ...
NIHR is the nation's largest funder of health and care research and provides the people, facilities and technology that enables research to thrive. NIHR Evidence is managed by NIHR with a funding contribution from Health and Care Research Wales, Welsh Government.
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