Author: Garreth

ARMA Policy Position: Prevention of Musculoskeletal Conditions

Arthritis and musculoskeletal conditions affect the bones, joints and muscles, and burdens the lives of so many people.

Musculoskeletal conditions are now the UK’s the biggest cause of pain and disability, accounting for an astounding one-in-five of all visits to the GP. Furthermore, trends indicate that more people than ever will be affected by MSK disorders in the coming years, which is why preventing them has never been more important. For this reason, the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance (ARMA), an alliance of prominent health charities, professional and research bodies, has produced a Policy Position Paper on Prevention of Musculoskeletal conditions.…

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ARMA Policy Position Paper on Joint Replacement Surgery

In early August, ARMA has published a Policy Position Paper titled:

‘Rationing’ Access to Joint Replacement Surgery and Impact on People with Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Conditions [document opens in pdf]

It deals with the damaging nature of thresholds and scoring tools, the problems of waiting times and restricted access to surgery, and how patients with musculoskeletal conditions are affected.

The Alliance is drawing attention to worrying trends in treatment access and the paper makes clear the key outcomes we are seeking from CCGs and the NHS.

G-MUSC 2017 Symposium and Annual General Meeting

Sunday 22nd October – Monday 23rd October 2017,
Berlin

GLOBAL ALLIANCE FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL HEALTH

“Integrated Care for Older People – The Path to Universal Health Coverage”
in partnership with the German Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation

After many months of planning, the Global Alliance For Musculoskeletal Health are happy to announce that the G-MUSC Symposium and Annual General Meeting will be held in Berlin from 22nd – 23rd October, 2017.

The meeting will be jointly held in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO) with support from the Federal Ministry of Health of Germany and the Japan Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.…

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British Acupuncture Council’s Hundred Meetings

On Friday 22nd September 2017, the British Acupuncture Council are holding their AGM for BAcC members. This is a free event that includes a lecture and drinks reception. The AGM is first in the weekend’s schedule of conference events taking place at Wokefield Park, Reading.

The British Conference of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
22 – 24 September 2017

Full details of conference speakers, workshops and prices can be found on conference.acupuncture.org.uk.

Smartwatch health study for the over 50s with knee pain

Cloudy and the University of Manchester are recruiting for a pioneering smartwatch study called Koalap (knee osteoarthritis: linking activity and pain) which starts in September. They are looking at the link between activity and knee pain.

This is part of the hugely successful Cloudy with a Chance of Pain study, which used citizen science phone app data to explore the relationship between weather and chronic pain conditions. Over 13,000 people took part and we featured on BBC’s “Trust Me, I’m a Doctor”, BBC Breakfast and ITV News, as well as all national newspapers.…

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Bringing together the osteopathic profession at the 2017 iO Convention

The iO Convention is the biggest and best-known osteopathic training and networking event in the UK osteopathic calendar. This year’s convention, running from 20th – 22nd October, looks to build on the success of last year, where 88% of delegate feedback ratings were good or excellent.

The iO Convention features an excellent range of workshops and networking opportunities, and an outstanding line-up of speakers, including the Suzanne Rastrick the Chief Allied Health Professionals Officer for NHS England.

The theme for this year is ‘Emerging Models’.…

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A new addition to the LUPUS UK range of publications

In July LUPUS UK released the newest edition in their range of publications, ‘LUPUS: Bone Health & Osteoporosis’.

The factsheet was kindly written by Dr David Armstrong (Consultant Rheumatologist, Altnagelvin Hospital, Londonderry).

This factsheet can be downloaded from the LUPUS UK website at www.lupusuk.org.uk/publications/ and physical copies are available from the National Office in Romford.

Portsmouth and South East Hampshire update

Read the Summer-Autumn 2017 update newsletter from the Department of Rheumatology at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, and the Portsmouth ARMA Network, which features:

  • Events and conference details
  • Flu and Pneumonia vaccination dates
  • “No Time for Pain” Patient-Carer workshop
    – discussing strategies for managing chronic and persistent pain associated to your Arthritis and Connective Tissue Disease with Partners/Family/Carers encouraged to attend as guests
  • “Tired of Being Tired” course
    – a 7 week programme exploring different self-management and relaxation techniques to improve quality of life

 

Alongside the update are the fliers and forms related to upcoming events –

Day to Day Living with Arthritis and Connective Tissues Diseases Conference 2017:

Programme for healthcare professionals with registration form.…

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FSEM UK Joins the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

The Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine UK (FSEM UK) became the twenty fourth and newest member of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) on 1 July 2017.

This is a significant milestone in the development of Musculoskeletal Medicine and Exercise Medicine. The FSEM (UK) will now have a voice to promote the benefits and evidence for these vital and growing areas of medicine directly to those representing all the other medical specialties in the UK. The 24 medical Royal Colleges and Faculties, which make up the membership, bring together the views of their individual specialties to collectively influence and shape healthcare across the four nations of the UK.…

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National Training Scheme for Bone Densitometry

The National Osteoporosis Society delivers a biennial course popular with health professionals working in the field of musculoskeletal conditions, radiography, radiology and DXA.

Date: 6th and 7th March 2018
Venue: Conference Aston, Birmingham

The National Training Scheme for Bone Densitometry is the only course that offers Certification in Bone Densitometry for healthcare professionals or clinical scientists. The scheme consists of a two-day lecture course on ‘Bone Densitometry in Osteoporosis Assessment and Management’ followed (at a later date) by an online examination and portfolio submission process, successful completion of which leads to Certification in Bone Densitometry providing operators with proof of their competence to perform bone densitometry measurements.…

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