An NHS where patients stay at home and rarely attend GP surgeries or hospital out-patient appointments is likely in a decade's time, according to US health expert Dr Eric Topol, who was asked by ministers to look at how technology would change the role of health staff in England.

Many patients, according to his report, will be managing their own long-term conditions, for example high blood pressure and lung disease, with wearable devices and sensors, which will be much more effective than occasional appointments with a doctor.

Read full article Could patients become their own doctors?

The number of patients waiting longer than 18 weeks for routine operations such as hip and knee replacements is rising year on year in England.

The total waiting list of more than 4.1 million is up more than 10% over 12 months.

Read full article Could NHS have been doing more operations?

Hospitals warning vital supplies might run out and operations would be cancelled, an ambulance service stockpiling tyres, and officials "close to panic" - these are recent stories about NHS efforts to plan for the possible consequences of the UK leaving the European Union with no agreement in place at the end of March.

So, should patients be worried? There are two answers.

Read full article No-deal Brexit: Should NHS patients be worried?

Pouring a bucket of cold water over his head — Image caption Has a bucket of cold water been poured over the long-term plan for the NHS?

There was a fanfare of a launch for the NHS's long-term plan for England earlier this month.

The prime minister and the head of NHS England shared a platform at a hospital in Liverpool and toured children's wards.

Read full article Is the NHS's long-term plan workable?

A doctor talking to her patient — Image caption More consultations will take place at GP surgeries

We have been waiting a long time for the 10-year plan for the NHS in England. Will it have a real impact? The answer has to be yes if the NHS is to have a sustainable future.

Much of the thinking is driven by the need to treat more patients in their local communities or at home.

Read full article Will NHS long-term plan deliver the goods?

Staff prepare equipment in the Critical Care Unit of the new Queen Elizabeth super hospital

When the NHS is preoccupied with immediate pressures, like the surge in numbers of sick patients that winter brings, it's hard to imagine how there can be time for senior managers to think beyond the next month, never mind five years or more. But they are having to.

The long-term plan for the NHS in England - due out by the end of 2018 but delayed because of the government's preoccupation with Brexit - should now be published in January.

Read full article The challenges facing the NHS in 2019

Heap of medical pills in white, blue and other colours.

Supply shortages and rising prices for some medicines are being reported by pharmacists and GPs. The possibility of a no-deal Brexit is being blamed.

So what is going on in the pharmaceutical world and what might it mean for patients?

Read full article Brexit: Is NHS already finding it hard to get medicines?

More people are reporting problems with stress at work

Is the workplace more stressful than it was? Do employees feel more under pressure than before? Are staff feeling burdened by work emails around the clock? Recent data and surveys suggest there is an increasing problem.

Now one business owner wants other employers to follow his lead and allow employees to do a four-day week and to switch off completely on the fifth day.

Read full article How do you tackle stress in the workplace?

The obesity challenge to the NHS looms large. The costs of treating related health conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, are rising relentlessly. Policymakers are anxious to find answers. Prevention is the goal, but what sort of nudge is most effective to get people to look after themselves better?

A new study suggests that the fear of losing something is a better incentive than the prospect of gaining a benefit.

Read full article How do we incentivise people to be healthier?

Pharmacy shelves piled with prescription drugs.

It's been billed as a win-win for patients, with new drugs and medical devices being made available more rapidly and money flowing back into the NHS.

It sounds too good to be true - and it may turn out to be that.

Read full article Deal gives patients faster drug access