Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance
Influencing policy and care together for best lifelong musculoskeletal health
Under the theme of ‘Tackling Infection‘, the 2021 BOA Congress will take place 21–24 September 2021 at P&J Live, The Event Complex Aberdeen (TECA).
In a slight change from previous years, BOA abstract submissions – including those from medical students – will open and close on the same dates; the BOA is pleased to announce that abstract submissions are now open and will close on Friday 7 May 2021.
Please note: you do not have to be a BOA member to submit an abstract.…
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Talia Dean meets Dasha and Gillian to learn more about axial SpA (AS)
Singer-songwriter, Talia Dean, made a big announcement in January 2021. In 2020 she was diagnosed with axial SpA (AS). Watch this video as she meets Dasha and Gillian, who live with the disease, and starts her journey towards becoming an #ASWarrior. #TaliasASJourney
See Talia’s story in the BBC article, 15 January 2021:
‘My back pain was misdiagnosed for 15 years – now I can’t dance‘
We are delighted to welcome a new ARMA member, Physio First.
Physio First is a membership trade association of self-employed Chartered physiotherapists. Their organisational statement of intent: to “champion evidenced value based private physiotherapy with Physio First members in the changing healthcare marketplace.”
Read more about Physio Fast on our Membership page.
ARMA continues to keep our COVID-19 resources page up to date. There have been some new resources added in recent weeks and others have become more relevant as the pressure on the NHS increases. Here are some of the key resources to be aware of:-
The guidance supports primary and community care practitioners in recognising serious pathology which requires emergency or urgent referral to secondary care in a patient who presents with new or worsening MSK symptoms.…
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by Sue Brown, CEO ARMA
Here we are back in lockdown, with the NHS under even more pressure and MSK services severely impacted. COVID-19 response is still dominating the work of ARMA, although we are also progressing plans for other work in 2021. There are some different issues for MSK this time around, and vaccination currently dominates our work. When some people with MSK conditions are vaccinated, the timings of MSK treatment may need to be considered.
I am delighted that ARMA can host a document setting out the principles for these timing decisions.…
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by Clare Jacklin, Chief Executive, National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society (NRAS)
We have been in the grip of this pandemic now for over a year and I’m sure you are all feeling, like me, rather fed up of it! Perfectly understandable, but we must not lose sight of that light that is at the end of this dark tunnel; and we ARE getting ever closer. The one thing I am struggling to comprehend is this talk of ‘going back to normal’. It is NORMAL that got us into this situation in the first place!…
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The Office for National Statistics is consulting on a new measure for health in England, recognising that the nation’s health is an asset – as important to the economy and wider society as it is to the individual. The proposed health index not only measures how healthy people are today but also looks at the wider social and economic circumstances that will influence our – and the next generation’s – ability to live healthy lives in the future. Tracking these indicators over time provides the opportunity to finally look beyond GDP as a sole measure of national success.…
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Public Health England
Guidance
Published 11 January
Published by Public Health England, this guide is part of ‘All Our Health’, a resource that helps health and care professionals prevent ill health and promote wellbeing as part of their everyday practice. The information below will help front-line health and care staff use their trusted relationships with individuals, families and communities to take action on inclusion health.
‘Inclusion health’ is a catch-all term used to describe people who are socially excluded, typically experience multiple overlapping risk factors for poor health (such as poverty, violence and complex trauma), experience stigma and discrimination, and are not consistently accounted for in electronic records (such as healthcare databases).…
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by Ehlers-Danlos Support UK
We were very disappointed to be told just before Christmas that the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) wanted to withdraw the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS) toolkit for GPs. The College planned to remove the toolkit from the RCGP website at the end of January. The RCGP cited pressure on its limited resources as a result of the pandemic and contention around the toolkit from various sources as reasons for its decision. While we understood that the College wanted to prioritise use of its resources, the move would have been a huge backwards step for people with EDS and related conditions.…
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The challenge of the next decade: are hip fracture services ready?
The National hip Fracture Database (NHFD) has recently released its latest annual report focussing on the six NHFD key performance indicators used to monitor and drive up standards across the country. 2020 will no doubt prove to be one of the most challenging years in the history of the NHS. This report also presents the first data about the effect of COVID-19 on trauma units around the country and on outcome for patients with hip fracture who have COVID-19 when admitted to hospital or develop it after their operation.…
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