Recorded infection control messages delay inter-professional communication but are not associated with COVID-19 prevalence or mortality: insights from a national switchboard analysis.

Appropriate dissemination of information to the general public is a key component of the pandemic response. In 2018, recorded infection control advice messages were affixed to 30% of England's automated hospital switchboards during the seasonal influenza and norovirus outbreaks. As the majority of messages were mandatory for all callers, healthcare professionals using the hospital switchboard - including during time-critical emergencies - had their enquiries significantly delayed by these measures.

Torpedo maculopathy: A case series - insights into basic pathology.

Torpedo maculopathy is a benign retinal disorder whose pathophysiological origins are currently poorly understood. A number of theories have been postulated, with stable developmental anomalies of the retinal pigment epithelium taking the forefront. Four clinical cases are outlined of patients with macular torpedo lesions, with differing clinical presentation.

Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy is more cost-effective than delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy in the treatment of acute cholecystitis.

Background: This economic evaluation quantifies the cost-effectiveness of early laparoscopic cholecystectomy (ELC) versus delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy (DLC) in the management of acute cholecystitis. The two interventions were assessed in terms of outcome measures, including utilities, to derive quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) as a unit of effectiveness. This study hypothesizes that ELC is more cost-effective than DLC.

A qualitative inquiry into the barriers and facilitators to achieving home death.

Objectives: To explore the barriers and facilitators to patients achieving death at home.

Methods: In-depth, semistructured interviews with end-of-life care experts were conducted to develop an insight into the barriers and facilitators to achieving death at home. Thirty-three interviews were conducted compromising of a mixture of face-to-face and tele interviews.

Barriers and facilitators influencing death at home: A meta-ethnography.

Background: In many countries, achieving a home death represents a successful outcome from both a patient welfare and commissioning viewpoint. Significant variation exists in the proportion of home deaths achieved internationally, with many countries unable to meet the wishes of a large number of patients. This review builds on previous literature investigating factors influencing home death, synthesising qualitative research to supplement evidence that quantitative research in this field may have been unable to reach.