New report from industry Medical Technology Group finds hip replacements will save the UK economy £700m

A not-for-profit organisation comprising patient groups, research charities and medical device manufacturers– the Medical Technology Group – released a report on 29 November 2017 called ‘Keeping Britain Working: How medical technology can help reduce the cost of ill health to the UK economy

www.mtg.org.uk/major-studies.

This report updated the 2011 report by the Work Foundation into the value of Medical Technology to society and identified how better use of medical technology can help the Government save up to £476m in welfare spending through improved use of medical technology.…

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Inflammatory Arthritis Toolkit

The British Society for Rheumatology has launched the Inflammatory Arthritis toolkit in partnership with the Royal College for GPs and health professionals. Designed to facilitate earlier treatment for this condition, this toolkit aims to be a user-friendly guide to inflammatory arthritis for primary care professionals, people affected by arthritis and clinical commissioning groups.

The RCPG have also provided a summary here.

Guest blog: Improving quality in orthopaedic care

by Mark Brandreth, NOA Lead CEO and
CEO of the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation
Trust

As the new lead CEO for the National Orthopaedic Alliance (NOA), I am proud to be part of a group of organisations and people who are working to drive improvements in orthopaedic care nationwide. I’m pleased to have been given the opportunity to contribute a guest blog to ARMA’s newsletter to share an update on our work with you. At Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital (RJAH), our work with the NOA, and its vanguard work in particular, is vital to our future – and to the future of orthopaedic care received by patients across the country.…

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Strength in numbers

There are many reasons for organisations working in collaboration with others. Over the years I have worked to influence health and care policy I have seen many changes which could never have happened if organisations had not worked together on issues of common concern, even where opinions may differ on other issues.

Bone and Joint week 2017 in October showed how, with a bit of co-ordination, we can work together to speak louder than any one organisation alone. Bone and Joint Week is an international opportunity to raise awareness of issues related to all things musculoskeletal.…

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Lessons from traditional Chinese acupuncture – Adding value to life

Guest Blog by Paul Hitchcock, Chief Executive, The British Acupuncture Council

I recently spoke at an NHS England event for International Day for Older People, my talk being titled “Lessons from traditional Chinese acupuncture – adding value to life”. We know we have a demographic challenge here in the UK and we talk about an ageing population that will see an increase of around one million people over the age of sixty five in the next three years. In China the number is closer to three hundred million, although the approach there is not to use age as the differentiator but the person’s overall health and wellbeing – an approach that is also now starting to be applied here in the UK.…

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Work Matters launched

On Wednesday 11th October, NRAS launched its new report, Work Matters, following a survey of over 1,500 people with rheumatoid arthritis.

The launch took place in Parliament and was attended by the Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work- Penny Mordaunt MP, who spoke about the importance of work as a health outcome. The findings from this report will form much of NRAS’ campaigning going forward.

You can read the report here and can also order a hardcopy from this link.…

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Shaping the RA service in Scotland

In two new NRAS videos, our Scottish Ambassadors and Dr Neil McKay from the Scottish Society for Rheumatology, explain how RA patients living in Scotland can help shape improvements to their rheumatology services.

Patients who have had RA for a year or more, and live in Scotland, can fill out the questionnaires that will be available in your clinic. Information gathered will be analysed and used to identify areas of good practice that can be shared across the country.

Both videos can be viewed here.

New BSR mentoring scheme is live!

The BSR is delighted to have launched a mentoring scheme exclusively for all our members, whether you are a newly qualified or experienced professional. The mentoring scheme is a flexible and open platform that matches developing professionals to trusted mentors with relevant skills and knowledge. This brand new service is open exclusively for members – and completely free!

Find out more to sign up as a mentor or mentee: www.rheumatology.org.uk/Professional-Development/Mentoring

2018 Annual Conference

Register interest to attend our flagship event, the 2018 Annual Conference, by emailing the events team – events@rhuematology.org.uk

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Sport and Exercise Medicine delivers the latest on MSK Health, Physical Activity and Lifestyle

The FSEM (UK) and BASEM joint annual conference Sport and Exercise – Bringing us all Together brought a focus, this year, on MSK Health, Physical Activity and Lifestyle. Delivered in the historical town of Bath 12th and 13th October, the conference was attended by over 400 health professionals with guest sessions from the University of Bath and the ARUK Centre for Sport, Exercise and Osteoarthritis.

Physical Activity in the Prevention and Management of Chronic Disease was delivered with a scientific approach to behaviour change and how technology can help support more people to become active, this was a key focus for the University of Bath.…

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