HEALTH NOTES
■ GOING for an eye test could see you referred direct to hospital for a scan for deadly brain tumours under a new NHS plan.
It follows an 18-month pilot scheme involving 27 opticians which saw 32 patients given an urgent referral, with two cancers found. It has now been extended across 17 more practices in the North East.
Consultant neurosurgeon Prof Phil Kane said: “Our optometrists can perform detailed eye examinations which are not always possible in a GP surgery.”
■ EROTIC online chats and photo sharing could be contributing to the fall in teen pregnancies, experts have said.
A British Pregnancy Advisory Service report found social, romantic and sexual relationships are increasingly experienced online.
Figures show under-18 conceptions have hit record lows in a number of local authorities.
Katherine O’brien, of the BPAS, said: “Societal shifts are also important factors. People now spend more time socialising online and less in person with their partners.”
■ JET air hand dryers in hospital toilets spread more germs than disposable paper towels and should not be used, scientists have advised.
Writing in the Journal of Hospital Infection, researchers argued that official guidance about how to prevent bacterial contamination in hospital buildings needs to be strengthened.
A study in three hospitals found contamination – including by faecal and antibiotic-resistant bacteria – was “significantly higher” in toilets on the days that jet air dryers were in use compared to paper towels. Scientists said the problem lies in people not washing their hands properly – meaning microbes get blown off by jet air dryers and spread around the room.
They said official Department of Health guidance is that air dryers can be placed in toilets in the public areas of a hospital, but not in clinical areas – but this is because they are noisy.