CEO update: Looking forward together

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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Guest blog – Necessity: the mother of invention!

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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Proposed Health Index consultation

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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Inclusion Health: applying All Our Health

Public Health England
Guidance

Inclusion Health: applying All Our Health

Published 11 January 2021

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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Royal College of GPs and EDS toolkit

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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NHFD Annual Report

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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NICE to develop Interventional Procedures Guidance

NICE is developing Interventional Procedures Guidance: Supercapsular percutaneously assisted total hip arthroplasty for osteoarthritis IP1842.

Hip osteoarthritis can cause pain, stiffness and difficulty walking. Standard surgery to replace the joint (total hip arthroplasty) involves cutting tendons and muscles and pulling the hip joint apart to insert the new metal joint. In this procedure, a small cut is made in the skin (percutaneous). Muscles and tendons are moved apart to access the hip joint. A metal joint is inserted without fully pulling the hip joint apart (supercapsular).…

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Osteopathy for mental health

As we all struggle to manage extended weeks of lockdown, it is more important than ever that you care for your mental wellbeing. If you are looking for some advice on how to keep your mental health in shape, visit Osteopathy for Health for some tips on how to help improve your physical and mental wellbeing.

RA disease not treated with advanced therapies

RA disease impact in patients not treated with advanced therapies; survey findings from the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society

by NRAS

Recently NICE published a Final Appraisal Document in respect of a new JAK inhibitor (filgotinib – Jyseleca) giving access to people with RA who have so called ‘moderate’ disease in addition to those with ‘severe’ disease. This is the first time NICE have broadened their eligibility criteria for access to advanced therapies and is warmly welcomed by NRAS. This comes at the same time as a paper published by the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society (P.…

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COVID-19 vaccination and MSK

Principles for COVID-19 Vaccination in Musculoskeletal and Rheumatology for Clinicians

(Version 12, 12 September 2022)

Amendment 12th September 2022: Document updated to include latest JCVI and NHSE guidance regarding autumn boosters using second generation bivalent COVID-19 vaccines and results of VROOM study (see section 23 and section 24 respectively)

Amendment 3^rd April 2022: Document updated to include latest JCVI and NHSE guidance regarding spring 2022 boosters (see section 22)

Amendment 3^rd December 2021: Document updated to include latest JCVI guidance regarding boosters for patients who were eligible for a third primary dose (see end of section 21)

Amendment 13 October 2021: Document updated to include revised BSR wording about third primary dose (section 20).…

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