Arthritis News | ARMA

Annual Lecture 2018

More people, more active, more often: three perspectives on physical activity and musculoskeletal health

21 November 2018

Introduced by Sue Brown ARMA CEO and Liam O’Toole, CEO, Versus Arthritis, who partnered with ARMA for the flagship lecture, the three presenters delivered speeches that did not disappoint the rapt audience of health professionals, commissioners, patients, public and NHS health officials and, of course, parkrunners. The discussion about how to overcome the barriers to activity faced by people with musculoskeletal conditions ranged from big-picture societal issues to practical hows-to.…

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CSP: It’s never too late to get stronger

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy has released a short Christmas film called Never Too Late as part of their “Love Activity” campaign.

The film is a heart-warmer about a physio who helps a lonely widower regain his strength and sense of purpose so that he can return to his role playing Father Christmas at the local children’s ward. Alongside the video, a webpage includes six exercises that can help people stay strong and independent this winter.

The short film is available via the CSP webpage or on social media.

Alliance releases Musculoskeletal Conditions and Mental Health Policy Position Paper

In England alone, approximately 4.6 million people have had both a long-term physical health condition and mental health problems. People with long-term physical health conditions are two to three times more likely to experience mental health problems. For the working age population in the UK, musculoskeletal and mental health conditions are the most common health conditions. 35.2% of all working aged disabled people in the UK experience musculoskeletal conditions only; 20.2% experience mental health conditions only; and 17.2% experience both.

In policy directives and in practice, these conditions are often dealt with separately, although we are beginning to see some change now.…

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Guest blog: What is Moving Medicine?

by Dr Hamish Reid, Consultant in Sport and Exercise Medicine, Moving Medicine design and development lead

Moving Medicine is an exciting new initiative by the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine in partnership with Public Health England and Sport England. It is dedicated to spreading best practice, research and advice to clinicians and patients to create a healthier, happier and more active nation. On the 16^th October 2018 the initiative was formally launched by the Honourable Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, headlining the flagship set of resources to support high quality conversations on physical activity across a broad range of chronic diseases including musculoskeletal pain.…

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No health without MSK health

Prevention is in the news this week as Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock announced that prevention must be at the heart of the NHS long-term plan, with more spending on community services.

This is welcome news and something ARMA and our members have long called for.

The new prevention vision aims to ensure that people can enjoy at least five extra healthy, independent years of life by 2035, while narrowing the gap between the experience of the richest and poorest.…

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HMSA at COP2018

HMSA Trustee and HSD Ambassador, Hannah Ensor will be a speaker at the COP2018 conference on the 24 November, raising awareness and understanding of hypermobility syndromes, focusing mainly on hEDS and HSD, but also touching on complications associated with other HDCTs too.

Hypermobility (having joints that are more flexible than average) is often thought to be a childhood problem that people grow out of. In reality the evidence shows that while approximately 30% of children with EDS/HMS reported pain, over 80% of patients over 40 with EDS/HMS report pain – indicating that it is an issue which often causes more problems over time rather than less.…

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HSE’s ‘Risk-reduction through design’ Award

The HSE wants to inspire businesses to consider how ergonomics–based design changes can reduce the risks of work related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and nominate design changes that have made a real impact

The ‘Risk-reduction through design’ Award is sponsored by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors (CIEHF).

Make a nomination for 2018

You can nominate design solutions implemented in Great Britain during the 2018 calendar year that have demonstrated how they’ve reduced MSD risks for workers.…

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Mental health and MSK rising up the agenda

There seems to have been a lot of mental health in my work in recent weeks. I’m pleased for two reasons. Personally, as someone who used to work for Mind it’s a subject that remains dear to my heart. But also, because this increase in mental health related activity is a sign that the mental health sector is focusing increasingly on the needs of people with long-term conditions. At the moment that’s focusing much more on conditions like diabetes or cardiovascular disease.…

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Attend the annual ARMA lecture on physical activity

Taking place on Wednesday 21 November 2018 at 6pm in London.

Hear and debate three perspectives on physical activity at the Annual ARMA Lecture, this year in partnership with Versus Arthritis. Three outstanding speakers, Nick Pearson, CEO parkrun, Michael Brennan, Physical Activity Programme Manager, Public Health England and Claire Harris, Physiotherapist speak to the theme: More people, more active, more often: three perspectives on physical activity and musculoskeletal health

Physical activity is good for promoting musculoskeletal health and helps alleviate the symptoms of musculoskeletal conditions.…

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The first Versus Arthritis campaign

Monday 5 November will see the launch of the first national campaign by Versus Arthritis in their new guise and brand.

As you know well, all too often, arthritis is dismissed. It is seen as inevitable, unavoidable, insignificant and untreatable. Society shrugs it off as “just a bit of arthritis”. The new campaign aims to drive greater recognition of arthritis and related conditions across government and society.

Versus Arthritis wants to create an environment where the 10 million people with arthritis can live better – free from the pain, fatigue and isolation.…

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