NEWS
Young mental health service users feel the impact of austerity across the North East
17/05/2013 22:49:05
As part of Mental Health Awareness week organisations and individuals from across the North East came together for the first ever Parliamentary Outreach debate on mental health at Middlesbrough Teaching and Learning Centre today. The event was hosted by leading mental health charity Mental Health North East in conjunction with the Parliamentary Outreach team. In attendance were the following MPs: Kevan Jones, North Durham, Andrew McDonald, Middlesbrough, Ian Swales, Redcar and Graeme Morris, Easington. The event was chaired by Lyn Boyd, CEO of Mental Health North East, and Vice Chair of Mental Health North East, Alisdair Cameron represented the views of mental health service users and carers. Representatives from youth groups Change Ur Mind and the Youth Parliament voiced their concerns to MPs about the lack of investment in mental health services for young mental health service users. [more]
Time to Change in the North East
17/05/2013 13:15:51
We are looking for 2 volunteers to join a steering group to plan and deliver a large regional Time to Change event in the North East this Autumn.
If you are interested and
• have or have had direct experience of mental health problems
• have experience and skills in event planning or event management
• have capacity to attend up to 6 meetings plus training/planning sessions between May and October
We are particularly interested in having someone on the steering group who has a disability and interest in accessibility issues
If you are interested, please contact .Angela Slater, Equalities Officer, Time to Change by Wednesday May 15th.
Telephone: 07813979080
Email: a.slater@time-to-change.org.uk
The first North East meeting of the group is planned for 10am on Thursday May 23d at Launchpad office in Newcastle Travel expenses are payable
This is a good opportunity to build skills and experience All people who register an interest will be invited to attend our training sessions on speaking out and event planning this Summer
International Clinical Trials Day
17/05/2013 13:09:52
Northumberland, Tyne & Wear NHS Trust is one of many organisations around the country that are supporting “It’s OK to ask” – a new campaign led by the National Institute for Health Research to encourage patients to ask their family doctor, nurse or consultant about clinical research.
Clinical research is the way in which we gather evidence to improve treatments for patients. Promoting, conducting and using clinical research to improve healthcare is one of the key principles of the NHS, and the new Constitution for NHS England contains a pledge to inform patients of research studies in which they may be eligible to participate.
Please come and visit us at one of the following locations and we would be delighted to see you:
James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough – main reception area – Monday 20th May
Monkwearmouth Hospital, Sunderland – coffee lounge – Tuesday 21st May
St Georges Park, Morpeth – main reception area – Friday 24th May
For more information, contact Josh Wood (Clinical Studies Officer) – 0191 223 2740
We are also running a competition – we would like you to send us pictures of you with the ‘OK to ask’ campaign badge and send them to us at josh.wood@ntw.nhs.uk. These will then be sent to the campaign website. The most imaginative picture we receive will win a box of chocolates – for inspiration have a look at some photos taken so far - http://www.crncc.nihr.ac.uk/oktoask/get_involved
Further information on the OK to ask campaign can be found online at www.crncc.nihr.ac.uk/oktoask.
MHNE welcomes MP's intervention on work capability assessments
16/05/2013 22:46:05
Mental Health North East (MHNE) has welcomed the intervention of Kevan Jones, MP for North Durham in the debate on mental health held today (May 16) in the House of Commons.
Mr Jones raised the charity?s concerns that the work capability assessments (WCAs) carried out for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) by Atos are still not suitable for people with mental health problems.
Mental Health North East is deeply concerned about the impact of Atos WCAs, which we believe are not fit for purpose for people with mental health problems,? said Lyn Boyd, CEO MHNE.
The cardiovascular safety of dementia medications: a cross national study
15/05/2013 14:08:18
Two of the most widely available medicines for dementia in the UK are cholinesterase inhibitors and a N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists (NHS, 2013). Both drugs are popular because they have been found to lead to improvements in dementia symptoms (Raina 2008). However, some have raised concerns about the safety for patients. These concerns are partly [read the full story...]
New Evidence Update from NICE
15/05/2013 13:12:40
We are pleased to inform you that an Evidence Update on Self-harm: longer term management has been published.
NICE Evidence Updates help to reduce the need for individuals, managers and commissioners to search for new evidence, and keep health and social care professionals up-to-date with new research. While Evidence Updates do not replace current accredited guidance and do not provide formal recommendations, they do highlight new evidence that health and social care professionals may wish to consider alongside current guidance.
An Evidence Update Advisory Group, comprised of topic experts, reviewed the prioritised evidence and provided a commentary.
Your help in disseminating the Evidence Update to your members would be much appreciated.
We would also welcome your feedback on the Evidence Update, what you like about it and how you think it could be improved. You can send your comments through to contactus@evidence.nhs.uk.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Kind regards,
The NICE Evidence Services team
Newcastle City Council’s 2016 Asset Programme – Community Asset Transfer
15/05/2013 13:07:26
A combination of government cuts and unavoidable rising costs mean that Newcastle City Council must save £100 million from their revenue budget over the next three years. Reducing the number of properties used and maintained is one element of a comprehensive savings programme which the Council must implement in the years ahead. This will impact upon various assets in the city including libraries, leisure facilities, community centres and play and youth centres. The Council has developed an approach based on their co-operative council values. It will be completely open and honest about the impacts of the budget on its assets. In most cases it will seek to transfer assets to communities and has developed a support package for those groups that are interested in taking responsibility for its building and facilities.
To find out more visit www.newcastle.gov.uk/people-and-communities/community-centres-and-facilities/community-asset-transfer
Commissioning support for young people
15/05/2013 13:03:52
23 May, 2.00pm to 3.30pm at Newcastle CVS, Higham House
Newcastle City Council is seeking views on a pilot programme to commission targeted support for young people using a direct payments system and participatory budgeting.
To find out more visit http://digbig.com/5bhhgd
Men’s health inequalities in Newcastle health needs assessment
15/05/2013 13:02:09
In 2012 a men’s health needs assessment was undertaken in Newcastle. This process identified that men do not access health services as often, or as soon, as women. This can lead to later presentation of disease and poorer outcomes. There are some stark health inequalities in Newcastle, eg life expectancy for a man living in Byker is 68.8 years compared to a man living in South Gosforth whose life expectancy is 83.7 years. Services are being encouraged to use Men’s Health Week (10-16 June 2013) as a platform to raise awareness about men’s health inequalities amongst the wider population in Newcastle and also to encourage increased uptake of health services.
To read the full health needs assessment visit http://digbig.com/5bhhhg and for the summary document visit http://digbig.com/5bhhhh
To find out more email Sarah Fowler, Health Improvement Practitioner, sarah.fowler@nuth.nhs.uk
Talking about our value – value of Newcastle CVS membership statement
15/05/2013 13:00:05
Newcastle CVS has been thinking about our value and the value our members get from our free membership and our free services. So we’re putting together a value of membership statement for all our members showing how each member has worked with us and used our services between October 2012 and March 2013. We’ll be sending this out to members soon. This statement is for your information only; we are not asking members to pay anything. If you don’t receive a value of membership statement by June, this means your organisation is not a Newcastle CVS member and you may be missing out.
To find out more about our free membership and membership benefits for charities, voluntary and community organisations and social enterprises in Newcastle visit www.cvsnewcastle.org.uk/aboutus/membership