Taskforce tackling infections in Dumfries and Galloway looking for new members
A taskforce aimed at tackling infections in Dumfries and Galloway is looking for new members.
The infection prevention and control public involvement group scrutinises how infection prevention is delivered and plays a key role in forming policy and procedures.
And it is encouraging anyone with an interest in infection prevention to consider joining.
No medical experience is needed – just a willingness to learn, question, and contribute.
Group chair Irene Henry said: 'This is not a passive role. It's about helping to shape decisions that affect the health and lives of everyone living in Dumfries and Galloway. If that sounds like something you care about, we want to hear from you.
'Covid taught us a lot – not just about how infection spreads, but about how critical it is to include patient voices in decision-making.
'This group isn't symbolic. We're actively shaping the way infection risks are managed, and our views are being taken seriously. We've already seen that in the changes that have come about as a direct result of our role.'
The threat from infection hasn't faded since Covid-19.
A report for the latest healthboard meeting revealed there had been 77 cases of e.coli over the first 10 months of 2024/25 – up from 62 over the same period the year before.
There were 25 cases of staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SABs) – down from 31 – with clostridium difficile (c.diff) cases rising from 30 to 39.
Infection prevention and control manager Ross Darley said: 'Having this group involved raises the bar. They ask difficult questions, highlight gaps, and keep infection prevention a living, evolving part of our health system – not just a set of static rules. Their work is essential to how we respond and implement policy and procedures.
'The NHS continues to be challenged with evolving infection threats – from the recent emergence of Mpox to new antibiotic-resistant superbugs fuelled by global travel.
'These aren't distant problems – they affect how care is delivered in our region, how patients are protected and hospitals are kept as safe as possible.'
The group meets every two months for a meeting attended by senior NHS infection prevention and control management, public health representatives and vaccination leads
Training is provided, as well as direct insight into the local NHS processes, with members actively encouraged to draw from their own experiences and knowledge to inform the shaping of approaches.
Anyone with an interest in joining the group should email dg.infection-control@nhs.scot
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
3 minutes ago
- Metro
Artist, 52, struck down by killer broccoli as 9 rushed to hospital
One person has died and nine people were rushed to hospital after an outbreak of botulism in broccoli. Musician Luigi Di Sarno, 52, collapsed and died after buying a broccoli and sausage sandwich from a kiosk in Diamante, Calabria in southern Italy. Patients being treated in intensive care at the Annunziata hospital in Cosenza include two 17-year-olds and two women in their 40s. Di Sarno was driving back to his home in Napoli when he began to feel unwell. He ended up stopping in Lagonegro in Potenza province, where he sadly passed away. Local health authorities have activated emergency measures after the botulism outbreak was tracked to a shipment of jarred broccoli in oil. Cases of the rare and life-threatening disease were found in other Italian regions. Botulism is a rare and sometimes life-threatening disease caused by toxins produced by the clostridium botulinum bacteria. Historically contracted due to improperly canned food, the toxins attack the nervous system, leading to muscle paralysis. More recently in the UK, patients were diagnosed with botulism linked to unlicensed anti-wrinkle injections. Symptoms include blurred vision, fatigue and difficulties breathing. Around 5 to 10 per cent of cases are fatal, according to the NHS. Because a majority of doctors have never encountered it, initial misdiagnosis is not uncommon. It came as Roberta Pitzalis, 38, died from complications after eating a guacamole from a stand at a gastronomic festival in Cagliari, Sardinia. According to La Repubblica, her condition had appeared to stabilise before she suddenly deteriorated. More Trending An 11-year-old boy who also attended the Monserrato Latina festival and had eaten a taco with guacamole, was transferred by helicopter to Rome's Gemelli hospital. He remains in a stable condition but has yet to make a recovery. Authorities in Cagliari have launched an investigation into the outbreak. Experts are advising people to exercise caution when buying risky foods and avoid eating canned or jarred products where the safety button has popped up, indicating the container has not been properly sealed. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Baby's one in 1,000,000 condition was diagnosed after a comment about his head MORE: World's longest suspension bridge gets go-ahead linking Italy and Sicily MORE: Exact time of 'one of the biggest emergency drills in UK history' revealed
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Mum says severe pregnancy sickness leading to abortions in women
A mum whose severe pregnancy sickness was so bad she said she had to have a termination has called for better care for women like Spooner from Monmouthshire recalled "begging" medical professionals for Xonvea, an anti-sickness medication that's available in England for women with Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) but not routinely available in is defined by the NHS as prolonged severe nausea and vomiting that might not stop until the baby is Welsh government said Xonvea could be prescribed in exceptional cases where other treatments have failed, with more than 750 prescriptions dispensed since January. According to NHS Wales, it is thought about one to three of every 100 pregnant women get HG, although some cases go symptoms are severe nausea, vomiting, dehydration and weight loss and it often requires hospital treatment. Sarah, 32, said her concerns about excessive vomiting in her first pregnancy were dismissed and it was only after giving birth and losing 3kg (6lbs) that she realised she probably had mum-of-one thought her knowledge of the condition would help her second pregnancy earlier this year "but then it was just a car crash".She recalled routinely waking up at 4 or 5am to be sick, being unable to eat or drink and unable to work."You can't keep water down and then you're tired because you don't eat for days and your head hurts and you're losing weight."The optometrist and part-time photographer said, when the sickness got worse, she wanted to try Xonvea, the only anti-emetic licensed for use in pregnancy to treat nausea and vomiting in the is recommended as an effective first line treatment by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, alongside alternatives such as cyclizine, prochlorperazine and ondansetron which are regularly prescribed by box of 20 tablets costs £28.50 - considerably higher than other is not routinely available in Wales or Scotland - it is available in parts of England, although last month Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised to address the postcode lottery some patients there was prescribed the drug at an appointment in Wales and found it to be more effective than other medications, but it was only for a fortnight at a time and was difficult to get hold of."My husband had to drive a 100-mile round-trip, and I'd be being sick, so he'd have to take time off work to get me there," she said. One time, her husband had to call an ambulance after coming home to find her on the floor vomiting, unable to move because of the nine weeks pregnant and ill with a serious eye infection, a hospital doctor told her her body was not coping."She said worst-case scenario, you've only got seven months left of this and I thought 'I'm going to die, I can't do this for seven more months'," she couple decided to end their much-wanted pregnancy and now Sarah has submitted a petition to the Senedd calling for wider access to Xonvea in described her experience as "unbelievably frustrating" as she lives on the Wales-England border."To think that, if I lived half a mile down the road, the outcome of pregnancy could have been different, it's just unacceptable." Pregnancy Sickness Support chief executive Charlotte Howden said the situation was "beyond belief".The charity, which provides counselling, training and advocacy, said there needed to be fairness."With Wales it's effectively a widespread 'computer says no, you are not able to access this medication'," she said."Yes, you might find a doctor willing to prescribe it, but that shouldn't be the journey here."She added it was important to note that different combinations of drugs had different results for individuals, but women should have all options available to them, regardless of the cost of Xonvea."What's the cost of an ambulance to go into hospital because you've not been given all the treatment options available to you and once you do that it's a very quick assessment to be able to see that's a false economy".The All-Wales Medicine Strategy group (AWMSG) advises the Welsh government about the use, management and prescribing of is made up of NHS consultants, GPs, nurses, pharmacists, health economists, pharmaceutical industry representatives and considers both clinical evidence and cost effectiveness.A spokesperson said the data on the latter was "insufficient" from the company when it appraised Xonvea in 2019, although it had recently met the manufacturer again and understood it was "actively exploring what options are available". It added that it hoped the company would could re-engage later this Exeltis UK said it has been in contact with the AWMSG and was working with health boards across Wales "to support access to treatment".The Welsh government said GPs in every health board area regularly prescribed Xonvea when other treatments have failed and AWMSG's 2019 appraisal remained the most current formal evaluation of the drug in Wales."This did not recommend routine use due to insufficient cost-effectiveness data" it you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this story you can find details of organisations that can help via BBC Action Line.
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
'I thought I just had toothache, then a shock diagnosis changed my life forever'
Keshia Liburd thought her pain would be solved with a quick trip to the dentist - however she soon got the devastating news that she had a rare form of aggressive cancer A mum has revealed how what she thought was just toothache turned out to be an aggressive form of cancer. Keshia Liburd, 38, is now having to look to Germany for help as the NHS can't help her. Her problems started in 2023 when the mum-of-three thought her toothache could be solved with a trip to the dentist. She was surprised to be told there was nothing wrong with her teeth. By September Keshia was also experiencing pain in her chest. She called 999 and an ambulance took her to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary to have an X-ray. It comes after a doctor's warning to people who drink even a 'single cup of tea'. After 16 agonising days waiting, Keshia finally was given a devastating answer - she had ALK-positive lung cancer — a rare, aggressive subtype that even often strikes non-smokers with no apparent symptoms, YorkshireLive reports. 'I didn't even have a cough,' says Keshia. 'No breathing issues – just a toothache. Within weeks I was told I had what is now incurable cancer.' Despite having treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy available in the UK, there is no NHS-funded targeted drug Keshia faced several rounds of chemotherapy - which were successful and she became cancer free in January 2024. However just three months later she was given the earth-shattering news that it was back. On her GoFundMe page, Keisha, who lives in Almondbury, said: "The cancer had returned and spread aggressively — to my liver, lymph nodes, and brain. "Since then, I've endured 3 different types of chemotherapy, 30 rounds of radiotherapy, and 3 rounds of standard immunotherapy. I'm now on my 4th round of chemotherapy. "We're doing everything we can, but the options available in the UK are limited. "I've been told that if the cancer continues to grow over the next 12 weeks, my treatment will be stopped. There's nothing more they can offer me here." "In Germany, there are advanced treatments not available in the UK — including T.A.C.E and Dendritic Cell Therapy — that could potentially save my life. "These therapies are available at WEGE Clinic in Bonn, but the cost is £40,000 — a sum that's impossible for our family to afford on our own. "I'm not ready to give up. I need to be here for my children — to guide them, love them, and watch them grow. They've had to grow up far too fast, carrying burdens no child should ever have to. I want to give them the stability and future they deserve. "We're asking for your help — no amount is too small. Your donation could give us more time together and access to a treatment that might just save my life. "From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your love, support, and prayers. We're holding onto hope, and with your help, we can keep fighting. "With love, Keshia, Jimmy, Josiah, Sienna & Ezekiel" Now with the support of her partner Jimmy and her children Josiah (17), Sienna (14), and Ezekiel (9), as well as other family members and friends, the fundraiser has so far raised more than £8,000. 'Lung cancer isn't just a smoker's disease anymore — it's a silent killer,' says her cousin, who launched the family's GoFundMe in hopes of reaching their £40,000 goal. 'She deserves to see all of her children grow up.'
