Starvation in hospitals
Nurse Helen Cowan talks about starvation, dehydration and death in hospitals. “Kill by mouth” read a recent headline in the Sun…
Alzheimer’s & Dementia
Medics tackling alcohol misuse
Health professionals are at the forefront of tackling the problem of alcohol misuse in our society. For many people, problem…
The lost senses of smell and taste
'Our senses of smell and taste play a vital role in helping us interact with the world around us, but…
Data for safer cosmetic surgery
In theory, the PIP scandal was just about one factory in France producing substandard breast implants. In practice, it proved…
Till death, or the nursing home, us do part?
“For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, till death us do part”. These are…
Taking steps to better health
What does growing old mean? Too many of us seem to believe that becoming thin and frail is an unavoidable…
Older people face ‘double whammy’ of unmet needs
Hundreds of thousands of older people are facing 'double whammy' of unmet care needs and being chronically lonely. New research…
Is a baby worth more than an old man?
Is your beginning worth more than your end? Helplessness defines both ends of life: our need to be washed, fed,…
Dipstick urine tests are not fit for purpose
Urine tests have long been used as frontline weapons in the clinical armoury to ensure that elderly people are not…
Beautifully handed
Hands are often tell-tale signs of chronological age when other parts of the body, including the face, are more youthful…