Category: Arthritis News

Tackling Inequalities fund update

Versus Arthritis has been successful in accessing £250,000 top-up funding from Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund. This fund will be made available to organisations in England to help support people with long-term health conditions to get active.

Versus Arthritis has teamed up with Sport England to help distribute £250,000 grants from their ‘Tackling Inequalities’ fund on behalf of the Richmond Group of Charities. The purpose of the fund is to reduce the negative impact of coronavirus and the widening of the inequalities in sport and physical activity through increasing availability of exercise opportunities in local communities.…

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State of health and care: The NHS Long Term Plan after COVID-19

State of Health reportState of health and care: The NHS Long Term Plan after COVID-19

A new report from IPPR shows the extent to which the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted progress on the NHS Long Term Plan. The report looks at cancer, mental illness, cardiovascular disease and multiple long term conditions, but the findings are equally relevant to MSK services.

The report argues that COVID-19 should not become an excuse for low ambition, and that world-class healthcare must remain the overall goal. To achieve this, the report recommends a package of six ambitious changes designed to do three things:

  • Ensure the pandemic does not cause lasting damage to healthcare services for future generations.
…

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Survey findings from NRAS

Summary of article published in Rheumatology Advances in Practice on 5 January, 2021

“Disease impact of rheumatoid arthritis in patients not treated with advanced therapies; survey findings from the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society”

Authors: Elena Nikiphorou, Hannah Jacklin, Ailsa Bosworth, Clare Jacklin, Patrick Kiely

Background

In 2020, NRAS conducted a survey amongst its members and non-members who had RA with a disease duration more than 2 years, who were not on advanced therapies (i.e. biologic/biosimilar or targeted synthetic DMARDs (JAK inhibitors)), with the aim of revealing the everyday impact of living with RA in people not treated with advanced therapies.…

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Tackling Inequalities Fund Panel member opportunity

Versus Arthritis has teamed up with Sport England to help distribute £250,000 grants from their ‘Tackling Inequalities’ fund on behalf of the Richmond Group of Charities. The purpose of the fund is to reduce the negative impact of coronavirus and the widening of the inequalities in sport and physical activity through increasing availability of exercise opportunities in local communities.

The funding will be targeted to help support people with long-term health conditions, Black, Asian minority ethnic groups and lower socio-economic groups.…

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The College becomes the Royal College of Podiatry

The College of Podiatry has been renamed as the Royal College of Podiatry (RCPod) after being granted permission to use the title by Her Majesty The Queen.

The RCPod is the professional body for podiatry and represents 10,000 members in the United Kingdom and internationally. With its members, the RCPod campaigns to raise awareness that good lower-limb health is essential, and that podiatry is a key element of preventative medicine in the wider health economy. Permission to use the royal title is granted by The Queen, who acts on advice provided to her by her ministers.…

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#BestMSKHealth programme launch

NHS England has launched a new programme with the aim of sustaining the delivery of evidence-informed, personalised, high-quality integrated healthcare of value to all. This new initiative, part of the Pathways for Better Health Programme, significantly increases the resource to support MSK service delivery.

The programme covers the breadth of MSK including orthopaedics, rheumatology and pain, spanning primary secondary and community services. You can watch the launch event here.

The programme has ten workstreams, each led by a relevant clinical specialist:

  • Diagnostics
  • Orthopaedics
  • Rheumatology
  • Primary and Community MSK Provision
  • Spinal Services
  • Falls, Fragility Fractures and Osteoporosis
  • Data, Validation and Coding
  • Communications and Developing MSK Networks
  • Supporting those with Long Term MSK Conditions
  • Outpatients

There is the intention to ensure that the programme is coproduced involving the range of stakeholders including people with lived experience and patient organisations.…

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New video: How to self-examine for tender and swollen joints in rheumatoid arthritis

The coronavirus pandemic has changed the delivery of healthcare services, creating challenges for healthcare professionals and people living with musculoskeletal conditions. Patients are increasingly required to monitor their own disease activity and report on their condition during remote or virtual consultations.

To address this, the Centre for Epidemiology Versus Arthritis has been working on the REmote MOnitoring of Rheumatoid Arthritis (REMORA) study. REMORA is a smartphone app study that encourages people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) to monitor and record their daily symptoms.…

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Health of people from ethnic minority groups

The King's Fund logoThe Kings Fund has produced an explainer on the health of people from ethnic minority groups in England. Whilst this doesn’t include MSK health, it does include several relevant determinants of health including physical activity levels, obesity, healthy diet, socioeconomic inequalities and access to services.

The document concludes that strategies for improving the health of England’s ethnic minority communities need to address the multiple factors that have an impact on their health. It identifies four areas for focus:

  • The role of public health and NHS services
  • Addressing the wider determinants of health
  • Tackling structural racism
  • Data

Read the explainer.

Upcoming NRAS JIA events

Join NRAS for their first JIA Zoom event: Coping with JIA during COVID-19.
This event is exclusively for parents who have children with JIA.
When: Wednesday 10th March, 6:30pm-8pm on Zoom.

There will be an update from Debbie Wilson, NRAS Young Persons Project Co-ordinator, an update from Nick Wilkinson, Paediatric Rheumatologist, and a short talk from one of our Young Voices.

Visit this link to sign up.

In April, loin NRAS for a Zoom event for young people living with JIA:
Navigating your Future with inflammatory arthritis

This event is exclusively for young people aged 16-30.…

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