Author: Garreth

Could you be an ARMA trustee?

Nominations for the election of ARMA trustees are open!

There are three vacancies and we encourage you to apply. The Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance (ARMA) provides a collective voice for the arthritis and musculoskeletal community in the UK. Our vision is that musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders are a priority in policy and practice in the UK. We work collectively and collaboratively with our members – 30 organisations, ranging from specialised support groups for rare diseases to major research charities and national professional bodies.…

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Working Together conference in November

First ever ARMA multi-disciplinary MSK health conference

Working Together to change the face of MSK

30 November 2020

Venue: Cecil Sharp House, Camden, London

ARMA holds its first ever multi-disciplinary MSK health conference – Working Together to change the face of MSK.

This one-day conference is a multi-disciplinary event covering some of the latest trends and practical examples on working together/integrated care for musculoskeletal health, transcending disciplines and boundaries.

The conference will support the delivery of high quality MSK services through a focus on excellent services, from prevention at a population level to excellent specialist services in orthopaedics, rheumatology and pain.…

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NRAS Live and Here for you

NRAS is adapting to these challenging times and has been hosting live broadcasts via Facebook Live and webinars since the beginning of this crisis. You can watch any of the recorded sessions again on the NRAS Live – Ask Your Questions page.

We’ve also launched the Here For You service, linking up people who are in need of a friend during this time of self-isolation. Our trained telephone support volunteers are really able to understand the difficulties people may be facing and the anxieties because they all live with RA themselves.…

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CEO update: Not back but forward

Over the last few weeks I have been so impressed with the way the world of MSK has responded to the extraordinary challenge of the coronavirus outbreak. I have seen everyone working to deliver across professional and organisational boundaries at unprecedented speed. Of course, no one ever wants to face a crisis like this and we can’t work at this pace all the time. But we have shown what can be achieved if we pull together around a common aim.

It’s not been easy.…

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£4 million for musculoskeletal research

Research funding awarded by Nuffield Foundation’s Oliver Bird Fund

The Nuffield Foundation has awarded £4 million to six teams across five UK Universities for research to improve the lives of people living with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions by influencing policy and practice. Two of the awards, made in partnership with Versus Arthritis, will develop innovative ways to join up MSK data across an area to improve care and service provision. The remaining projects look at different aspects of the causes, consequences, and experiences of living with MSK.…

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Guest blog: MSK First Contact Practitioner roles

MSK First Contact Practitioner roles; are they fit for the future for Primary Care?

by
Amanda Hensman-Crook FCSP, HEE AHP National Clinical Fellow, Consultant MSK Physiotherapist
Neil Langridge FCSP, Consultant MSK Physiotherapist
Laura Finucane FCSP, MSK Consultant MSK Physiotherapist
Chris Mercer FCSP, MSK Consultant MSK Physiotherapist

MSK First Contact Practitioner roles and the advancing practice agenda is moving at pace and as a result, there has been some anxiety around the MSK First Contact workforce. This has been expressed about several aspects of the roles, including:

  • numbers needed to ensure sustainability without wider destabilisation of the MSK workforce
  • where the workforce will come from with the requisite capability
  • concern about governance of the roles
  • who provides the supervision and support
  • a general need to understand the offer of the role to primary care
  • concern from other MSK professions that they are not included in the GP contract reimbursement scheme (DES) and where they might fit in the bigger picture.
…

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SOMM’s alternative course dates

The Society of Musculoskeletal Medicine has taken the step of postponing all its courses scheduled to run in the coming months to the end of June 2020 (see below for Injection Courses information). Alternative dates will be advised as soon as they are available. We shall be keeping the situation under review and will advise on any further steps as necessary.

SOMM would like to thank all frontline and key workers, and all those in support roles, for all they are doing in this unprecedented situation.…

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iO – Join the conversation

Osteopathy for Health is a dedicated webpage providing useful tips for the public related to keeping healthy in lockdown.

Join in the conversation on the Let’s talk osteopathy Facebook community group. The iO are sharing information from trusted sources and they want to make sure everyone is talking during this current situation. Let’s share some ideas and look after our mental health together.

Arthritis Action launches virtual groups

To help people access peer support whilst at home during the coronavirus outbreak, Arthritis Action is running a series of online group meetings. These will give people the opportunity to share their hints, tips and experiences with others about how they are managing their arthritis to include staying active at home, hobbies people are enjoying and local support available.

These meetings are taking place over Zoom. If you know of anybody who would like further information about this, please email info@arthritisaction.org.uk…

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