Author: Healthcare Propulsion Staff

Three national NHS leaders shaping the future of digital health have been confirmed for Summer Schools 2026, which takes place on 16-17 July at the University of Nottingham. NHS England’s Dr Alec Price-Forbes, national chief clinical information officer (CCIO), Helen Balsdon, national chief nursing information officer (CNIO), and Dr Wajid Hussain, national chief medical information officer (CMIO) will speak at the event. They will discuss how digital leaders can reimagine healthcare and deliver meaningful, sustainable change across the NHS. Attendees will also hear from national leaders driving key programmes in frontline productivity, digital social care and workforce development, including Minal…

Many people in England who are considered at higher risk for vitamin D deficiency may not be getting enough of the nutrient at any time of year, according to new research. The findings challenge the widely held belief that spending time in the summer sun is enough to restore healthy vitamin D levels. Researchers from Newcastle University’s Human Nutrition and Exercise Research Centre analyzed vitamin D levels in nearly 300 people living across northern Britain. Their results suggest that a significant number of people could have low vitamin D year-round without realizing it, potentially affecting bone health, overall well-being, and…

Most pandemics begin when a virus or other pathogen crosses from animals into people. Many scientists believe this is how COVID-19 emerged. The virus responsible for the disease, SARS-CoV-2, is closely related to coronaviruses found in bats. Now, a team of researchers from the UCSF Quantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI), Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Institut Pasteur, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center has identified a remarkably small genetic difference that may help explain how some animal viruses adapt to humans and cause serious illness. Their findings, published in Cell Host & Microbe, show that changing just one amino acid…

Sitting for hours can be a hard habit to kick, said Diaz, with many employees in the study worrying about what their boss or co-workers would think of their breaks. “Even though it may seem counter-intuitive, movement breaks actually can boost work performance,” said Diaz. “They can improve executive function, attention and memory. And it helps people feel more relaxed and fresh.”Walking is low-cost and doesn’t have to mean stopping work, he said, pointing to walking meetings or pacing during phone calls – whether outdoors or around the office.Emily McGrath, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, welcomed the…

Kombucha has surged in popularity worldwide in recent years, becoming one of the most widely consumed fermented drinks. While many people choose it for its distinctive flavor, researchers are taking a closer look at what is happening inside the beverage during fermentation and how its ingredients may influence its properties. Scientists from the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences and Wroclaw Medical University (Associate Professor Helena Moreira, PhD, Associate Professor Ewa Barg, PhD, and Anna Szyjka, MSc Eng.) set out to investigate one key question: Does the type of tea used to make kombucha affect the final product? Their…

When H5N1 bird flu began infecting U.S. dairy cattle in early 2024, veterinarians struggled to identify the cause. The virus was difficult to recognize because it behaved very differently in cows than it does in other mammals. Rather than primarily infecting the lungs, H5N1 caused severe infections in the udders while leaving the respiratory system largely unaffected. Now, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health have uncovered the biological reason behind this unusual pattern. Their findings, published in Science Advances, provide the first detailed explanation for why bird flu took such an unexpected form in cattle. The…

Learning a new language or recovering the ability to speak may rely less on the brain’s movement centers than scientists once believed. New research suggests that regions involved in processing sound and physical sensations play a much larger role in speech learning and memory. The study, conducted by researchers at McGill University and the Yale School of Medicine, could reshape scientific understanding of how speech is learned and influence the design of future speech recognition and brain-based communication technologies. Sensory Brain Regions Take Center Stage For years, researchers have generally assumed that learning and remembering the complex movements required for…

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) contributes to an estimated 1.1 million to 1.4 million deaths worldwide each year. While this growing threat is typically linked to the overuse and misuse of antibiotics, new research suggests another factor may also be playing a role: certain weedkillers. Scientists have found evidence that glyphosate, one of the world’s most widely used herbicides, may help select for bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics. “Here we show that the most common species of multidrug-resistant bacteria from hospitals are not only resistant to multiple antibiotic classes, but also to high concentrations of the weedkiller glyphosate,” said Dr.…

A minimally invasive procedure for chronic knee pain is helping some patients find significant relief without undergoing major surgery. For Cynthia Schraf-Fletcher, 74, the results were “remarkably” successful. Nearly a year after receiving genicular artery embolization (GAE) on her right knee, Schraf-Fletcher says the improvement is comparable to the total knee replacement she previously underwent on her left knee. “I couldn’t be more pleased,” says Schraf-Fletcher, who had the procedure performed by Leigh Casadaban, MD, MS, assistant professor of radiology at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine. Today, she says everyday activities such as gardening and riding a…

A new paper published in Frontiers in Nutrition argues that current public health recommendations for exercise and protein intake are largely aimed at preventing deficiency, not helping people achieve the best possible long-term health, independence, and quality of life. The paper tackles several fundamental questions: How much protein do people really need? What types of exercise offer the greatest benefits? And what does the latest research show? According to author Dr. Chris Macdonald (Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge, and Director of the Better Protein Institute), a growing body of evidence suggests that people may benefit from higher…