Humber region hospitals allow online booking of appointments
Chief digital officer at the partnership Andy Haywood said it would bring hospital services "in line with what we expect in every other aspect of our daily lives"."Our new patient-led booking service will transform the way in which our patients interact with their care," he said."This new service will see an end to patients receiving a letter with an appointment they can't make and then having to wait long periods on the phone to try and rebook."The system will also send messages if needed, such as informing patients of a change in location of an appointment, or if an earlier slot becomes available.It can also check whether a patient is able to attend, allowing appointments to be given to somebody else if not needed.Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
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The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
What medieval skeletons tell us about long-term health and life expectancy
Beneath churchyards in London and Lincolnshire lie the chemical echoes of famine, infection and survival preserved in the teeth of those who lived through some of the most catastrophic periods in English history. In a new study, my colleagues and I examined over 270 medieval skeletons to investigate how early-life malnutrition affected long-term health and life expectancy. We focused on people who lived through the devastating period surrounding the Black Death (1348-1350), which included years of famine during the Little Ice Age and the great bovine pestilence (an epidemic that killed two-thirds of cattle in England and Wales). We found that the biological scars of childhood deprivation during this time left lasting marks on the body. These findings suggest that early nutritional stress, whether in the 14th century or today, can have consequences that endure well beyond childhood. Children's teeth act like tiny time capsules. The hard layer inside each tooth, called dentine, sits beneath the enamel and forms while we're growing up. Once formed, it stays unchanged for life, creating a permanent record of what we ate and experienced. As our teeth develop, they absorb different chemical versions (isotopes) of carbon and nitrogen from our food, and these get locked into the tooth structure. This means scientists can read the story of someone's childhood diet by analysing their teeth. A method of measuring the chemical changes in sequential slices of the teeth is a recent advance used to identify dietary changes in past populations with greater accuracy. When children are starving, their bodies break down their fat stores and muscle to continue growing. This gives a different signature in the newly formed dentine than the isotopes from food. These signatures make centuries-old famines visible today, showing exactly how childhood trauma affected health in medieval times. We identified a distinctive pattern that had been seen before in victims of the great Irish famine. Normally, when people eat a typical diet, the levels of carbon and nitrogen in their teeth move in the same direction. For example, both might rise or fall together if someone eats more plants or animals. This is called 'covariance' because the two markers vary together. But during starvation, nitrogen levels in the teeth rise while carbon levels stay the same or drop. This opposite movement – called 'opposing covariance' – is like a red flag in the teeth that shows when a child was starving. These patterns helped us pinpoint the ages at which people experienced malnutrition. Lifelong legacy Children who survived this period reached adulthood during the plague years, and the effect on their growth was recorded in the chemical signals in their teeth. People with famine markers in their dentine had different mortality rates than those who lacked these markers. Children who are nutritionally deprived have poorer outcomes in later life: studies of modern children have suggested that children of low birth weight or who suffer stresses during the first 1,000 days of life have long-term effects on their health. For example, babies born small, a possible sign of nutritional stress, seem to be more prone to illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes in adulthood than the population at large. These characteristics can also be passed to future offspring through changes in how genes are switched on or off, known as 'epigenetic effects' – which can endure for three generations. In medieval England, early nutritional deprivation may have been beneficial during catastrophic times by producing adults of short stature and the capacity to store fat, but these people were much more likely to die after the age of 30 than their peers with healthy childhood dentine patterns. The patterns for childhood starvation increased in the decades leading up to the Black Death and declined after 1350. This suggests the pandemic may have indirectly improved living conditions by reducing population pressure and increasing access to food. The medieval teeth tell us something urgent about today. Right now, millions of children worldwide are experiencing the same nutritional crises that scarred those long-dead English villagers – whether from wars in Gaza and Ukraine or poverty in countless countries. Their bodies are writing the same chemical stories of survival into their growing bones and teeth, creating biological problems that will emerge decades later as heart disease, diabetes and early death. Our latest findings aren't just historical curiosities; they're an urgent warning that the children we fail to nourish today will carry those failures in their bodies for life and pass them on to their own children. The message from the medieval graves couldn't be clearer: feed the children now or pay the price for generations. Julia Beaumont is a Researcher in Biological Anthropology at the University of Bradford.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
Girl, 15, died from asphyxiation after eating pizza and chips and going swimming, inquest hears
A teenage girl died from oxygen deprivation after eating pizza and chips then going swimming, an inquest has heard. Lucy Reed, 15, went to Cleethorpes for a day trip with her mother Liz and a friend when the tragic incident struck in June 2023. They went for an early lunch at a local restaurant and her mother urged her to wait a while to allow her food to settle before going in for a swim. But shortly after she insisted on going for a swim before boarding the coach home. Lucy went with her friend near Cleethorpes Pier while her mother went for a walk. They had arranged to meet back near the pier a short time later. But when she failed to turn up, a major search and rescue operation was launched for Lucy, from Gainsborough, after her mother alerted authorities and called 999. Rescuers found her later in the evening after more than three hours of searching. She was airlifted to Hull Royal Infirmary but was sadly pronounced dead, the inquest at Grimsby Town Hall heard. Greater Lincolnshire senior coroner Paul Smith said her death was 'the unintended consequence of her swimming on a full stomach.' A post mortem examination by pathologist, Dr Justin Cooke at Hull concluded Lucy died from asphyxia after inhaling gastric contents as she struggled to find safety in the deep water with a falling tide pulling her further away from safety. She had struggled to reach the shore and vomitted, then inhaling the contents and passing out. The coroner concluded after a two-day hearing that her death was by misadventure. In his record of inquest, he added: 'Lucy Alexandra Reed died on 24 June 2023 in the River Humber at Cleethorpes as a consequence of asphyxiation. She had travelled to the coast for a day trip. She ate a substantial lunch and shortly thereafter went into the shallow water.' He added: 'The tide was falling and they rapidly found themselves out of their depth and drifting away from the shore. Neither were strong swimmers. After she had been in the water for approximately 30 minutes as Lucy tried to swim towards a point at which she could stand, she vomited, inhaling her gastric contents and losing consciousness. 'Although her death was not formally confirmed for several hours, on balance of probability it occurred within minutes of the incident described above. It was the unintended consequence of her swimming on a full stomach.' His conclusion highlighted the dangers of going into water after eating a substantial meal. After police checks as part of missing person procedures, the coastguard was alerted at 3.15pm. Beach Safety staff and Humberside Police carried out land-based searches. Mr Smith said: 'It is clear much was going on behind the scenes to locate her.' He said Lucy had ventured out of her depth in the water. Cleethorpes beach and waterside were busy, the coroner said. At 3.51pm The Coastguard Inshore Lifeboat was launched and the crew searched 500 metres on either side of The Pier. After an unsuccessful search a further search was commenced at 4.35pm. Rescuers attempted to establish the flow of water impacted by the wind, tide and weather conditions on the potential location of the teenager. The senior coroner said he accepted a Coastguard report which said looking out in the river without knowing where to look would have been futile. He said rescuers searched for more than three hours unsuccessfully. Mr Smith said at around 5pm information was passed to Humberside Police from a member of the public, who recalled seeing someone in difficulty about 600 metres off the beach at 2pm. The new information suggested a new search area further out into the river. The all-weather Coastguard Lifeboat was launched from Grimsby Docks, the inquest heard. 'Almost immediately she was found and was winched into the helicopter. CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) was given on the flight. But sadly her death was confirmed at the hospital,' said Mr Smith. He added the post mortem examination confirmed she had not drowned. But after eating a substantial meal before swimming, she had vomited and inhaled the contents of her stomach. The salt water may have been a contributory factor. He said the two friends were not strong swimmers fighting an out-going tide, but the friend managed to reach safety. Lucy had been in the water about 30 to 40 minutes by that time - an hour before a missing person report was launched. Mr Smith said: 'At 15 years, Lucy should have been safe and old enough to keep safe.' The senior coroner said The Coastguard and Beach Safety staff had received a total of 22 Missing Person Alerts within the same time in which Lucy was missing. Humberside Police had a similar volume of reports of missing people. 'An earlier search would not have lessened any delay,' said Mr Smith. He added: 'Her death resulted due to getting out of her depth and being taken deeper by the tide and she was unable to get back to dry land. She was in distress and as a result she aspirated. Her death was due to misadventure.' The senior coroner thanked The Coastguard for the quality and clarity of their evidence in reports and statements. To Lucy's mother, he said he could not imagine how the past two years since the tragedy had been for her and her family. 'After many years in my role, the fact never leaves me that there is nothing that I say will take away the heartache you go through. The best I can do is offer a wish that time gives you some relief.' After the hearing, a spokesman for The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said: 'Our thoughts remain with everyone affected by the tragic events of 24 June 2023. 'Incoming tides don't just come in from out at sea - they can also sneak up behind you and cut off your exit route, leaving you stranded and in danger. By knowing when it's high and low tide, you can make sure you'll get back in plenty of time without putting yourself at risk.' Around £1,000 was raised for the RNLI in memory of Lucy and her family and friends set up an appeal. For guidance on staying safe by the coast, visit
BBC News
2 days ago
- BBC News
Humber region hospitals allow online booking of appointments
A service has been launched to allow people to book and manage their hospital appointments and tests Patient Portal run by NHS Humber Health Partnership will give patients the power to log in and select appointment dates and times, without needing to wait on the telephone.A partnership spokesperson said people will still be able to manage their appointments via phone if they prefer. The service will be piloted in Hull before being expanded into Goole and northern Lincolnshire. Chief digital officer at the partnership Andy Haywood said it would bring hospital services "in line with what we expect in every other aspect of our daily lives"."Our new patient-led booking service will transform the way in which our patients interact with their care," he said."This new service will see an end to patients receiving a letter with an appointment they can't make and then having to wait long periods on the phone to try and rebook."The system will also send messages if needed, such as informing patients of a change in location of an appointment, or if an earlier slot becomes can also check whether a patient is able to attend, allowing appointments to be given to somebody else if not to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices.
