Category: Health Policy

Work Matters – NRAS

NRAS will be launching its work report, Work Matters, in Parliament on 11th October. We are delighted that the Minister for Disabled People, Work and Health, Penny Mordaunt MP, will be joining us at the event. You can follow the proceedings live on twitter by following @NRAS_UK. The report will then be available to order or download from the NRAS website.

Upcoming NRAS events

The Cambridgeshire RA information evening will take place on 19th October from 7pm to 8.30pm (refreshments from 6.45pm) with the support of the rheumatology team at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust. …

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Get a grip on PIP

As an active member of the Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC), the Arthritis Research UK policy, campaigns and public affairs teams have worked closely with the Chairs of the coalition on the DBC’s new report. The report demonstrating the huge problems which many people experience when trying to access Personal Independence Payments, and includes statistics from the DBC Big Benefits Survey – with over 1500 responses specifically from people with musculoskeletal conditions- and an in depth case study provided by Arthritis Research UK about Debs, who had her PIP reduced and lost her Motability care as a result.…

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Rehab Matters – Raising the profile of community rehabilitation

Guest blog by Catherine Pope, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, Chair.

Jane left hospital after a stroke and was seen promptly at home by a physiotherapist, who worked with other members of the multidisciplinary team to develop a plan for her recovery.

Members of that team visited regularly, and Jane made strong progress – supported by her husband, Robert – towards achieving her goal of getting back out into her garden and getting her green fingers dirty.

Meanwhile, another Jane, in another part of the country – perhaps even the neighbouring town – realised no such goal.…

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EDS UK launches free membership and toolkit for GPs

The Ehlers-Danlos Support UK (EDS UK) has launched free membership alongside a brand new website and logo. This is a major change for the charity in its 30th year and is intended to attract new supporters.

The website is kept up to date with news and the latest information on the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes as well as vital support. Have a look here: www.ehlers-danlos.org.

 

The charity is also proud to be working in partnership with the Royal College of GPs this year to create an EDS toolkit for GPs.…

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A Guide to Rheumatology: Parliamentary briefing

In late September, BSR are releasing ‘A Guide to Rheumatology: Parliamentary briefing,’ which seeks to address the challenges and opportunities faced by the rheumatology multidisciplinary team and identify ways to improve the treatment and care received by individuals with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases. It highlights the significant difficulties experienced by rheumatology services and the patients they serve: 

  • Waiting times: 38% of patients in England with suspected rheumatoid arthritis were assessed within three weeks of referral.
  • Diagnostic delay: Only 18% of patients in England were referred to rheumatology within the NICE recommended three days of presentation to their GP.
…

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Physical activity and good MSK health

Physical activity seems to have been the theme for the last few weeks. The latest phase of Public Health England’s ‘One You’ campaign Active 10 aims to get inactive people doing 10 minutes of brisk walking per day. Whilst I have seen some questioning of “shock tactics”, the statistic that 41% of people aged 40 – 60 in the UK do not do 10 minutes of brisk walking in a month certainly helped gain coverage. I’m sure the new Active 10 app will get some people walking on a daily basis.…

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Sport and Exercise Medicine holds key to GP Physical Activity Support

The Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine (FSEM) UK welcomes the recent report published in the British Journal of General Practice – GPs’ knowledge, use and confidence in national physical activity and health guidelines and tools: a questionnaire-based survey of general practice in England.

The FSEM (UK), which represents and sets standards for Sport and Exercise Medicine clinical practice in the UK, is taking action to provide GPs with physical activity learning and reliable, evidence-based information to prevent and manage lifestyle-related diseases via physical activity.…

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One You campaign: 6 million adults do not do a monthly brisk 10 minute walk

Public Health England, as part of its ‘One You’ campaign, today (24 August 2017) reveals that 4 out of 10 (41%) adults aged 40 to 60 in England walk less than 10 minutes continuously each month at a brisk pace.

Over 6.3 million adults aged 40 to 60 do not achieve 10 minutes of continuous brisk walking over the course of a month and are missing out on important health benefits, according to evidence reviewed by Public Health England (PHE).…

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ARMA Policy Position: Prevention of Musculoskeletal Conditions

Arthritis and musculoskeletal conditions affect the bones, joints and muscles, and burdens the lives of so many people.

Musculoskeletal conditions are now the UK’s the biggest cause of pain and disability, accounting for an astounding one-in-five of all visits to the GP. Furthermore, trends indicate that more people than ever will be affected by MSK disorders in the coming years, which is why preventing them has never been more important. For this reason, the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance (ARMA), an alliance of prominent health charities, professional and research bodies, has produced a Policy Position Paper on Prevention of Musculoskeletal conditions.…

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ARMA Policy Position Paper on Joint Replacement Surgery

In early August, ARMA has published a Policy Position Paper titled:

‘Rationing’ Access to Joint Replacement Surgery and Impact on People with Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Conditions [document opens in pdf]

It deals with the damaging nature of thresholds and scoring tools, the problems of waiting times and restricted access to surgery, and how patients with musculoskeletal conditions are affected.

The Alliance is drawing attention to worrying trends in treatment access and the paper makes clear the key outcomes we are seeking from CCGs and the NHS.