For several years cochlear implants have offered some deaf people the chance to have a "sensation of sound". So why would some deaf teenagers choose not to have the implant even if they had the option? The issue of cochlear implants and efforts to "cure" deafness is a very sensitive subject among the 19,600 deaf teenagers in the UK. Indeed, many young deaf people are proud of deaf culture.
The risk of birth defects increases four-fold if the pregnant mother has diabetes, researchers say. The Newcastle University study, published in the journal Diabetologia, analysed data from more than 400,000 pregnancies in North East England. The risk of defects such as congenital heart disease and spina bifida were increased.
A drug that could save the sight of people with diabetes will not be made available on the NHS in England and Wales, an advisory body has concluded. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) says ranibizumab, sold under the brand name Lucentis, is too expensive to use in people with diabetic macular oedema.
Controversial plans to axe some benefit payments to disabled people living in care homes are being dropped. The government had planned to axe the "mobility" part of Disability Living Allowance - worth £51-a-week and currently paid to up to 80,000 people. Disability charity Scope had condemned the move as "callous" and said it would leave people prisoners in their homes.
A new technique could improve the quality of life for patients with Parkinson's Disease, according to research led by Cardiff University. Patients with the early stages of the disease were trained to control areas of the brain associated with movement by using the power of thought alone. A clinical evaluation later found their movement had improved by up to a third. The charity Parkinson's UK described the research as "exciting" but stressed "these are very early days".
Results from the firstDyspraxiaFoundation survey for Awareness Week 2011 on University life has revealed the majority of students face increased challenges.
The survey asked prospective and current students and their families on how they cope with the challenge of applying for university and life as an undergraduate. Results from the survey showed the major of students faced major difficulties in organising their work. Findings from the survey showed over 60 % of students who replied had organisational difficulties and 55% of respondents cited social problems.
Northamptonshire Liberal Democrats have condemned the Conservatives new wave of cuts to "preventative services" which were presented at Cabinet today. £4m is due to be cut from services spanning children's centres, police community support officers, mental health, the elderly and the young. This is on top of a £4m cut this year, and a further £7m is due to be slashed in 2013/14 - a total of £15m from the most vulnerable in Northamptonshire.
Signing off ... Liz Lynne has announced she will stand down as MEP at the beginning of February Liberal Democrat MEP Liz Lynne has announced she plans to stand down as Euro MP for the West Midlands Region in three months time.
Liz Lynne said she had thought about the decision carefully but 'the time is right' to move on after 12 and a half years representing the region in the European Parliament. The Euro MP revealed her decision in her speech to the regional Lib Dem party conference at Birmingham Chamber of Commerce on Saturday afternoon.
She said: "I have decided to stand down as MEP at the beginning of February. I have thought about this carefully and believe that the time is right. Although I still find the work stimulating and worthwhile, the relentless travelling particularly to and from Strasbourg is onerous to say the least. Stepping down now will also give my successor, Phil Bennion, enough time to bed down and make an effective contribution in the remaining two and and half years of this Parliament. The ongoing financial crisis across Europe means that the Liberal Democrat voice for reform and democracy will continue to be needed loud and clear. The third reason why it is the right time is that positions on the Parliament's committees change midway through the mandate. I am proud to have served as First Vice President of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee. Giving up now however would give one of my Lib Dem MEP colleagues an opportunity to take a similar position for the rest of the mandate. I feel I have been able to achieve a lot over the last 12 and a half years as Euro MP for the West Midlands , fighting for equality and reform in the EU. Looking back, ensuring the Employment Directive outlawed workplace discrimination against disabled people or on grounds of age is particularly important to me.
"After Parliament backed my own initiative report on equal access to goods and services, the Commission agreed to bring in an Equal Treatment Directive to stop discrimination on all grounds including disability and age. It is still being held up by some countries but I hope it will go ahead. I am proud of my work in the healthcare field. I lobbied for many years to toughen safety laws to stop medical staff suffering a million needlestick injuries every year. Recently I won a long campaign to stop MRI scanners in hospitals from in effect being banned by the Electro Magnetic Fields Directive, completely unnecessarily. The Commission is now proposing to exempt MRI technology from the exposure limits. This year I was also delighted to win backing from both the Parliament and the Lib Dem conference for an EU wide code of conduct to stop the abuse of older people in long term care. I am not retiring but want to focus my politics in ways which do not involve quite so much travelling. I will continue to support the Liberal Democrat party in any way I can, I remain a strong supporter of Nick Clegg's leadership and his work in the coalition government."
Annette Brooke, MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole and Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Myalgic Encephalopathy met with Tim Loughton MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Young Families in the Department for Education and other members of the APPG to discuss the issues surrounding children with M.E.
Commenting on news that Liz Lynne has decided to stand down from the European Parliament after 12 years, Lib Dem leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said:
"Liz has not only been a good campaigning MEP, fighting for the West Midlands region, she has also been the embodiment of the distinctive Liberal Democrat approach to Europe. She has supported sensible regulation to protect a level playing field and basic rights where European rules are appropriate, but always fought to stop meddling bureaucracy and red tape where it is harmful. Liz Lynne has also made an immense contribution to changing the law at national and European level to help disabled people take a full and active role in society and more recently to give old people and cancer patients the same rights against discrimination. I certainly hope we will see Liz continuing to campaign and speak out on the issues she cares about even after she leaves the European Parliament".
