Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance
Influencing policy and care together for best lifelong musculoskeletal health
One of the challenges of promoting musculoskeletal health is the lack of profile in policy and amongst the public. This is where ARMA can really come into its own. By using the strength of our combined voice to amplify our key messages we can make more of an impact. You can join this combined voice and make us even more powerful.
It was great to see how many ARMA members supported the CSP’s initiative for older people’s day focused on falls prevention.…
Read more of this article
Physical activity seems to have been the theme for the last few weeks. The latest phase of Public Health England’s ‘One You’ campaign Active 10 aims to get inactive people doing 10 minutes of brisk walking per day. Whilst I have seen some questioning of “shock tactics”, the statistic that 41% of people aged 40 – 60 in the UK do not do 10 minutes of brisk walking in a month certainly helped gain coverage. I’m sure the new Active 10 app will get some people walking on a daily basis.…
Read more of this article
One thing I have been really struck by since starting this role is just how much musculoskeletal conditions impact across the breadth of a person’s life, and just how much unaddressed MSK conditions impact other parts of health services.
This month’s blog highlights how MSK conditions impact the ability of NHS staff to do their jobs. ARMA members Arthritis Research UK recently published a report on Musculoskeletal Conditions and Multimorbidity, which highlights how MSK conditions make dealing with other long-term conditions that much harder.…
Read more of this article
What a difference a month makes. When I last wrote an introduction to the ARMA newsletter we were in the run up to an election. I’m not sure anyone expected the result to go quite the way it did. Instead of increasing their majority the Government now has no majority at all and will have to rely on the support of other parties to get their plans through. What will this mean for people with MSK conditions?
In some ways it will be yet another distraction.
It’s been another productive month here at ARMA as I pass the three months in post milestone. With such a range of different activities there is never a dull moment. I have just attended my first ARMA Policy and Communications meeting. I enjoyed the lively discussions about joint messages on the importance of self-management and developing a co-ordinated social media plan for Bone and Joint Week in October. There is a lot of potential to support each other to have a bigger impact during the week.…
Read more of this article
After the success of our first three MSK pathway events I’m pleased that planning for the next three has begun. The North West event will be in Merseyside on May 16th and is shaping up to be every bit as inspiring as the others. Two events are being planned for the South region, with the first in Exeter in July. More details should be available in our next newsletter.
I have been reading the pledge forms completed by people at the first three events and they show the commitment of people to create change in services.…
Read more of this article
Last Friday, March 31st, NHS England published a significant document about the future of the NHS: Next Steps on the NHS Five Year Forward View. The original NHS five year forward view set out why and how the NHS should change to address three issues: the health gap, the quality gap and the financial sustainability gap. The next steps updates on progress and sets out future plans.
Musculoskeletal conditions account for a major part of the workload of the NHS, 40% of which is due to potentially preventable risk factors.
March has been a busy month for ARMA. I have enjoyed meeting so many ARMA members, finding out more about what you do and how ARMA fits with your current priorities. I really welcome the level of support you have offered me in my new role as I begin to get an understanding of the priorities of the MSK community.
The highlight of the month must be the three joint ARMA/NHS England regional events. These have been a huge success. All three events were over-subscribed, showing the high level of interest in improving musculoskeletal services locally.…
Read more of this article
Two weeks into my role and I am delighted to be CEO of ARMA. I am a passionate believer in the power of alliances. Time and again I have seen the impact we can have when a sector speaks with one voice. In my last role I was vice chair of the Care and Support Alliance (CSA): 80 organisations representing older people, disabled people and carers. By working together the CSA had a big impact on the Care Act, the key piece of legislation covering social care.…
Read more of this article
