Health News June 2009
Beating diabetes
National Diabetes Week was marked in Hackney with an event to raise people’s awareness of the condition.
Striking the Balance took place on 16 June at Ocean in Mare Street.
Around 260 people attended and were able to take part in diabetes screenings, weight, blood pressure and foot health assessments, and exercise classes.
Advice on services for diabetics was available, and there was also a chance to watch cookery demonstrations, and listen to talks from experts, including regular from the BBC’s The One Show Azmina Govindji.
The event was organised by the Hackney Diabetes Centre, which is based at Homerton Hospital. The centre provides help and advice to more than 10,000 people living with the condition in Hackney and the City.
It recently expanded its lay education team, which offers advice for people with type-two diabetes.
More information
Call the Hackney Diabetes Team on: 020 8510 5008; or email: diabetes@homerton.nhs.uk
Fighting hepatitis
Three pharmacies in Hackney are leading the way in the fight against the hepatitis.
Kingsland, Haggerston and Finstead pharmacies have joined forces with NHS City and Hackney and The Hepatitis C Trust to be the first to provide on-demand testing for these cancer-causing viruses.
Hackney is one of only five areas nationwide taking part in the pilot project. Testing for hepatitis B and C infection will be on offer until 30 November.
Pharmacists will advise customers on the pros and cons of testing; take a simple blood test; and give them their results. Those who test positive for either virus will be referred to their GP.
Rod Watson, from NHS City and Hackney, said: “This new testing programme will help us get people into treatment services more quickly, and prevent the spread of these viruses in our community.”
Mukhtar Manji, pharmacist from Kingsland Pharmacy, said:
“I am delighted to be one of the first pharmacies offering free, on-demand hepatitis tests. People will find accessing confidential hepatitis testing as easy as buying a tube of toothpaste.”
More information
Kingsland Pharmacy, 406 Kingsland Rd, E8; Haggerston Pharmacy, 207 Haggerston Rd, E8; Finstead Pharmacy, 209 Hoxton St, N1
Health books ‘on prescription’
Hackney Libraries and City and Hackney Primary Care Trust are launching a scheme that enables mental health practitioners to ‘prescribe’ self-help books.
The confidential Books on Prescription scheme will allow people experiencing mild to moderate mental health problems to borrow high-quality self-help books from libraries on recommendation from their GP or other mental health practitioner.
Texts available cover a range of areas such as anxiety, phobias, depression, eating disorders and low self-esteem.
The Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services, Cllr Nargis Khan, said: “I am pleased our libraries can now supplement the work being done by our healthcare colleagues in treating people with mild mental health problems.”
Books on Prescription will be available from 29 June at CLR James, Shoreditch, Homerton, Stoke Newington, Stamford Hill and Hackney Central libraries. For info email Amber Linell on: amber.linell@hackney.gov.uk
Chance to talk about disability
People with physical disabilities, sensory impairments or long-term health conditions are invited to come along and talk about issues that affect them at an event on 26 June.
People aged between 18 and 64 can learn more about local facilities, including care services, exercise and leisure, socialising and volunteering, and nutrition, at a health and social care consultation day.
The event, funded by the Council and City and Hackney PCT, has been organised by Disability Backup and takes place from 10am-4.30pm at the Human Rights Action Centre, New Inn Yard, Shoreditch, EC2.
To book a place, call: 020 7275 0088 ext 210; text: 07593 508 288; or email: sebastian@hfbu.org.uk
A centre of excellence
A service that gives health advice and support to young people in Hackney has been praised for being ‘an area of best practice in England’.
NHS City and Hackney’s service for 11-19-yearolds, CHYPS Plus, is based at Lower Clapton Health Centre, in Lower Clapton Road. The results of a national independent review of teenage health projects by the Institute of Education’s Social Science Research Unit reported ‘high levels of satisfaction’ among centre users.
The centre is due to launch its website: www.chypsplus.co.uk with an event at the Levy Centre in Lower Clapton Road on 2 July from 9.30am-4pm.
Going with the flo for tea
Nurses and midwives at Homerton Hospital celebrated National Nurses’ Day with tea and cake.
This day is celebrated each year by NHS staff on the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birthday. Chief Nurse Pauline Brown said:
“12 May is an important date in the diary for nurses and midwives as we celebrate the ‘first nurse’.
“It also give us an opportunity to recognise the invaluable contribution made everyday to our hospital and the whole NHS by our nurses and midwives.”
Florence Nightingale became known as as ‘the lady with the lamp’ for her work with injured soldiers in the Crimean War in the 1850s.
Brush up on hygiene
As part of national smile month, NHS City & Hackney’s oral health team is visiting community groups, health centres, schools and places of worship to give advice on improving dental care.
A survey conducted by the British Dental Health Foundation as part of the month, which runs until June 16, has highlighted people’s lack of awareness of the importance of looking after their mouths properly.
Dr Desmond Wright, of NHS City & Hackney, said: “Most people understand poor oral hygiene can cause bad breath, tooth decay and gum disease, but many are unaware that these conditions have been linked to more serious health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.
“A good oral healthcare routine can help guard against all sorts of oral and general health problems.”
Research also indicates links between poor dental care and conditions such as heart attacks, strokes, and low birth weight.
More information
For details, visit: www.nationalsmilemonth.org
Change afoot at St Leonard’s
NHS staff will be at Hoxton Market, N1, on 13 June, to talk to residents about plans to give St Leonard’s Hospital a major makeover.
The Kingsland Road hospital is about to undergo some big changes and local NHS organisations are seeking the views of people in the area about building plans for new health facilities. NHS staff will have a stall to give local people a first look at the plans, and listen to their feedback.
One of the new buildings will be a primary care resource centre – a one-stop shop where people can access a range of health services. East London NHS Foundation Trust also hopes to provide a modern therapeutic environment for local people who need in-patient mental health care. It is hoped that six wards will be developed at St Leonard’s, housing 115 beds.
Choice is yours
People were given a chance to learn more about what healthcare they are entitled to at a series of events around Hackney.
The week-long NHS Choice Roadshow was organised after a team from East London NHS Foundation Trust found that 58 per cent of people in the area were unaware of the facilities and services available to them. Some did not know that they have the right to go to any hospital in England for treatment; others were unaware that they now have a greater choice of where and when they see a doctor, because of an increased number of surgeries, with longer hours.
Page updated: 15 Jun 2010
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