The case of a convicted fraudster who rose from the ranks of nurse to chief executive has been highlighted by a watchdog as cause to review how NHS trusts are employing "fit and proper" directors.Paula Vasco-Knight (pictured) was given a suspended prison sentence at Exeter Crown Court in 2017 after…

"Hostility" between surgeons at a beleaguered hospital trust led to them needing to take part in mediation to try and resolve their issues, a new report states.Health inspectors have ordered immediate action to improve services at the cardiac surgery unit at St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in south-west…

A deal has been struck to help avoid disruption to vital home services to 13,000 elderly and disabled people, it has been announced.Privately-owned CRG, a leading home care, healthcare, social care and education staffing business, has acquired troubled home care provider Allied Healthcare.CRG group chief executive Ian Munro said: "The…

A mental health trust has been rated inadequate for a third time, with records of patients harming themselves while waiting to be seen.Health watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found "significant concerns" when it inspected Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust in September.The trust was under-staffed, some wards were found…

Police have been left to pick up the pieces amid a national crisis in mental health care, a watchdog report has warned.Stretched forces are responding to tens of thousands of cases that would be better dealt with by other agencies, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS)…

Nearly one in five NHS hospital services have failed to hit any key national waiting-time targets in the last year, analysis shows.An investigation by the BBC found that 29 hospital trusts and boards out of 157 across the UK had not hit a single target for a year.Northern Ireland was…

One of the biggest home care providers in England is looking to transfer or sell its contracts after concerns were raised over its financial viability.Allied Healthcare said on Friday that warnings from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) had "negatively impacted" their operation.The company said a number of customers had transferred…

Families have raised questions over the deaths of 36 people at a trust at the centre of a maternity probe, it has emerged.Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust said it had been in contact with dozens of families who had queries about their maternity experience at the trust between 1973 and…

A hospital trust has been placed into special measures after it emerged that more than 100 cases of alleged poor care are to be reviewed.NHS Improvement confirmed on Thursday that Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust has been placed into special measures following recommendations from the Care Quality Commission (CQC).Ian…

South East Coast Ambulance Service is to remain in special measures despite showing improvements in care, according to a report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).A team of inspectors from CQC visited the service which covers Kent, Surrey and Sussex between July and September 2018 to check the quality of…

There is a "credible risk of service disruption" at one of the biggest home care providers in England, inspectors have warned.The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has raised concerns that Allied Healthcare may not be able to continue to operate after November 30.The company is one of the largest home care…

Care inspectors have reiterated calls for a long-term funding solution for social care, the day after the Chancellor announced a funding boost for the sector. Care Quality Commission (CQC) chief executive Ian Trenholm said a "long-term and sustainable solution" to funding social care is needed. It comes a day after…