Alongside the pain and misery of the Covid-19 pandemic there have also been some beneficial side effects – quiet streets and skies, birdsong, less pollution. This is also true in the world of MSK. ARMA has been a champion for the NHS Change Challenge, a project to identify the new and innovative ways of working that have been rapidly developed across the NHS and to ensure beneficial changes are captured and locked in. I think it is no accident that NHS Improvement chose to pilot this in MSK.…
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Category: Collaboration
New covid-19 well-being information
New information on preventing musculoskeletal #bone, joint and muscle pain, and supporting mental well-being, has been compiled by NHS England, The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, Versus Arthritis, Public Health England and ARMA.
See the Managing your physical and mental health and wellbeing page on the CSP website.
NHS Change Challenge
Suggestions are rolling in for which changes the NHS has made during the pandemic that people think we should keep.
You can see the other suggestions and add or vote by visiting the NHS Change Challenge website.
Aspiring to Excellence programme 2020 open for applications
Following a successful start for the first cohort, applications are now open for the Aspiring to Excellence programme in 2020. The programme is designed to encourage and recognise service improvement in axial SpA (AS) care and is a strategic partnership between NASS, BRITSpA and sponsoring companies AbbVie, Biogen, Novartis and UCB.
Whilst COVID19 is impacting on us all, NASS is keen to keep driving forward as much as possible and being practical with Aspiring to Excellence, and we welcome applications. The deadline for rheumatology teams to apply is 24 July 2020 and all the application details can be found on the NASS website.…
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COVID-19 / Coronavirus updates for Axial SpA patients
NASS is regularly updating their website with relevant COVID-19 information including how patients can assess their risk, medicines and biologic therapy, mental health and the effect of the virus on work and benefits.
www.nass.co.uk/covid19
Aspiring to Excellence programme 2020 open for applications
Following a successful start for the first cohort, applications are now open for the Aspiring to Excellence programme in 2020. The programme is designed to encourage and recognise service improvement in axial SpA (AS) care and is a strategic partnership between NASS, BRITSpA and sponsoring companies AbbVie, Biogen, Novartis and UCB.…
Read more of this article
ARMA roundtable on Pain
ARMA roundtable on Pain
In October 2019 ARMA held a roundtable bringing together people working on chronic pain from a range of perspectives to discuss what might be done to improve the experience of people living with chronic pain. Around 10–14% of people (6 – 8 million) experience moderate to severely disabling pain. Currently services and support for these people are difficult to access. Whilst not all chronic pain is musculoskeletal, osteoarthritis and back pain are associated with over half of all chronic pain, so that the lack of support is a key issue for us. …
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NHS extends testing of non-urgent care waiting times target changes
If you are referred for specialist non-urgent treatment, you currently should expect to be treated within a maximum waiting time of 18 weeks. Over the last year, the NHS has been reviewing this 18-week target. ARMA has been involved in the advisory group looking at this change.
The NHS England board meeting on 30 January announced plans to extend the testing period for proposed changes to the 18-week elective care measure into 2020/21.
This joint response was issued by National Voices, The Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance, Versus Arthritis, the MS Society, the Neurological Alliance and Healthwatch England.…
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Guest blog: A Decade of Real Change
by Clare Jacklin, Chief Executive, NRAS
I heard a good joke during the Christmas break –
Question: What do you think next year will bring?
Answer: How would I know…? I don’t have 2020 vision!
Albert Einstein is widely credited with saying, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.”
Now, I’m not for a moment saying we’re all going insane but I wonder how many of you reading this feel (as I do) a sense of déjà vu that we’ve heard the same thing over and over but little change has occurred.…
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NASS Aspiring to Excellence programme begins
In early December the initial cohort of the multi-year service improvement programme Aspiring to Excellence met for their first day of shared learning. The cohort, made up of members of the six teams awarded a place on the programme, began the process of planning for their department’s improvement aims.
The group will meet four times a year for three years and be given expert support to help catalyse across-the-board improvements in the availability of services and quality of care available for axial SpA patients.…
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ARMA, PHE and the Centre for Ageing Better
ARMA joins Public Health England and the Centre for Ageing Better to make England the best place to grow old, because musculoskeletal health is vital to healthy ageing.
ARMA joined over sixty high-profile organisations in the UK’s health, housing, employment, research and voluntary sectors to launch a landmark shared vision on healthy ageing.
There are five key principles: prioritising prevention and public health; creating opportunities for people to contribute to society as they age; fostering accessible and inclusive homes and neighbourhoods so everyone can live where they want; narrowing inequalities in healthy ageing; and challenging ageist language, culture and practices.…
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