Forthcoming Healthy Hearts sessions

Improve your health, keep that heart beating and get a FREE pair of trainers!

Healthy Hearts is 6 completely free sessions designed to help you improve your health and gain a better understanding of what affects your body.

Healthy hearts tackles issues around weight management and healthy eating. Each two hour session runs once a week across six weeks. 

The following venues will be hosting sessions starting as follows:

Mountbatten Centre from 26th August
St. Cuthberts Centre from 29th August
St George's Business Centre from 9th Sept
Buckland Community Centre from 7th Oct
Southsea Community Hub from 21st Nov

To find out more, please contact course tutor Yvette Carr on 023 9229 6460 or at yvette.carr@learninglinks.co.uk

Heatwave Plan for England – Looking after yourself and others during hot weather – The latest advice

Top tips for keeping cool
It is best for your health to avoid getting too hot in the first place. Remember to think of those who may be more at risk from the effects of heat. Below are some tips to keep yourself and others cool and what to do if someone feels unwell:

Stay out of the heat:
• Keep out of the sun between 11.00am and 3.00pm.
• If you have to go out in the heat, walk in the shade, apply sunscreen and wear a hat and light scarf.
• Avoid extreme physical exertion. If you can’t avoid strenuous outdoor activity, like sport, DIY or gardening, keep it for cooler parts of the day, like early morning or evening.
• Wear light, loose-fitting cotton clothes.

Cool yourself down:

Healthier Living for Integration Event - Wednesday 25th June

You can cook

Portsmouth City Council are running free cookery courses throughout the city at various times, dates and venues. Each course consists of 3-4 two hour sessions.

You could also volunteer to be a cookery champion to run your own cooking courses in the community. You don’t need any experience as all training will be provided.

Please call 023 9284 1560, or email asha.lal@portsmouthcc.gov.uk to register your interest in attending a cooking class or to be a cookery champion.

Portsmouth Local Authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable adults, and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. DBS Disclosure at Enhanced level will be required prior to any offer of employment.

Alcohol Awareness week - 18th-22nd November

Top tips for keeping warm this winter

Visit the city council's web page for useful tips and information about keeping warm and safe this winter.

Details available at 
http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/living/27393.html

Also, for households with children under five years old, people over 60 or physically disabled there is the free Homecheck service that offers advice, home safety and security checks, and small maintenance works to make your home safer to live in, this includes draught-proofing which is one of the most efficient ways to save energy and money.

Details available at http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/living/494.html

Putting Patients at the Heart of Portsmouth

This event on October 16th is a chance for the voluntary sector and local community to have their say in the way local services treat local people.  

HealthWatch will be holding a radio panel debate between senior managers in the city to see what they are doing to ensure patient focused services are delivered.  You can come along to ask your question.  The panel debate will be aired on Express FM a week later.  

HealthWatch also wants to hear from you about the things that you feel are important for health and social care services to know about and remember when consulting with local people.

All are welcome to attend, just register at 
http://puttingpatientsfirst-eorg.eventbrite.co.uk

If you would like to submit a question for the panel debate please email: info@healthwatchportsmouth.co.uk

There is limited parking on site but parking is available in the city centre a short walk from the venue.  

The main aim of he day is for local people and organisations to influence the way local health and social care services engage with and communicate with patients, especially when services change.  

Have your say before the event at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KXVHDYN 

Concerned about your NHS?

If you or your family members need to use an NHS dentist, doctor, care home, physiotherapist, mental health service, hospital or other health/care service in Portsmouth, you will undoubtedly be expecting the best care possible. 

The great news is you can help make that happen! Join up here and you'll be part of a network which is working with providers of care to influence provision to be the best it can be:

http://www.healthwatchportsmouth.co.uk/have-your-say 

If you’ve had a great service, or not such a great service from a Portsmouth health or care provider, tell us about here: 

http://www.healthwatchportsmouth.co.uk/speak-up 

Healthwatch is an independent service operating in every local authority area in England and if you want to know more about it, watch the short video on this site:

http://www.healthwatch.co.uk/ 

Find Healthwatch Portsmouth on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/HealthWatchPortsmouth 

and Twitter 

@HealthwatchPO

Heatwave Plan for England 2013

The latest Met Office data is available here- as of the 18th July there is now a 90% probability of heatwave conditions

Please read the following advice

Protecting health and reducing harm from severe heat and heatwaves

Key Public Health Messages

Stay out of the heat

• Keep out of the sun between 11.00am and 3.00pm
• If you have to go out in the heat, walk in the shade, apply sunscreen and wear a hat and light scarf
• Avoid extreme physical exertion
• Wear light, loose-fitting cotton clothes

Cool yourself down

• Have plenty of cold drinks, and avoid excess alcohol, caffeine and hot drinks
• Eat cold foods, particularly salads and fruit with a high water content
• Take a cool shower, bath or body wash
• Sprinkle water over the skin or clothing, or keep a damp cloth on the back of your neck

Keep your environment cool:

• Keeping your living space cool is especially important for infants, the elderly or those with chronic health conditions or who can’t look after themselves
• Place a thermometer in your main living room and bedroom to keep a check on the temperature
• Close curtains that receive morning or afternoon sun. However, care should be taken with metal blinds and dark curtains, as these can absorb heat – consider replacing or putting reflective material in-between them and the window space
• Turn off non-essential lights and electrical equipment – they generate heat
• Keep indoor plants and bowls of water in the house as evaporation helps cool the air
• If possible, move into a cooler room, especially for sleeping
• Electric fans may provide some relief, if temperatures are below 35°C *

Longer Term

• Consider putting up external shading outside windows
• Use pale, reflective external paints
• Have your loft and cavity walls insulated – this keeps the heat in when it is cold and out when it is hot
• Grow trees and leafy plants near windows to act as natural air-conditioners (see " Making the Case ")

Look Out for Others

• Keep an eye on isolated, elderly, ill or very young people and make sure they are able to keep cool
• Ensure that babies, children or elderly people are not left alone in stationary cars
• Check on elderly or sick neighbours, family or friends every day during a heatwave
• Be alert and call a doctor or seek medical attention if someone is unwell or further help is needed

If you have a health problem

• Keep medicines below 25 °C or in the refrigerator (read the storage instructions on the packaging)
• Seek medical advice if you are suffering from a chronic medical condition or taking multiple medications

If you or others feel unwell

• Try to get help if you feel dizzy, weak, anxious or have intense thirst and headache; move to a cool place as soon as possible and measure your body temperature
• Drink some water or fruit juice to rehydrate
• Rest immediately in a cool place if you have painful muscular spasms (particularly in the legs, arms or abdomen, in many cases after sustained exercise during very hot weather), and drink oral rehydration solutions containing electrolytes
• Medical attention is needed if heat cramps last more than one hour
• Consult your doctor if you feel unusual symptoms or if symptoms persist

Adapted from: WHO Europe public health advice on preventing health effects of heat

* Use of Fans: At temperatures above 35C fans may not prevent heat related illness. Additionally fans can cause excess dehydration (Cochrane Review). The advice is to place the fan at a certain distance from people, not aiming it directly on the body and to have regular drinks. This is especially important in the case of sick people confined to bed.

Heatwave Plan for England 2013

Protecting health and reducing harm from severe heat and heatwaves

Key Public Health Messages

Stay out of the heat

•      Keep out of the sun between 11.00am and 3.00pm

•      If you have to go out in the heat, walk in the shade, apply sunscreen and wear a hat and light scarf

•      Avoid extreme physical exertion

•      Wear light, loose-fitting cotton clothes

Cool yourself down

•      Have plenty of cold drinks, and avoid excess alcohol, caffeine and hot drinks

•      Eat cold foods, particularly salads and fruit with a high water content

•      Take a cool shower, bath or body wash

•      Sprinkle water over the skin or clothing, or keep a damp cloth on the back of your neck

Keep your environment cool:

Well-being and Physical Health Open Day

Friday 17th May 2013

from

12:00 - 4:00pm

at

Friendship Centre, Elm Grove, Portsmouth, PO5  1JT

Pop in and see how you can maintain your Mental Health Wellbeing and Physical Health. 

Lots of free stalls and information as well as entertainment. Indian Dancing, Tai Chi, and others..

Free weight, BMI & Blood pressure checks. Take the stress test.

Buy refreshments. 

Find out about local activities and support available … and much more!

Organised by Community Development Workers team - contact 023 9275 5485 for more details

Healthwatch Portsmouth is looking for Interim Board Members

You can help shape health and social care services in Portsmouth

Healthwatch Portsmouth is a new local body being created to help people get the best out of their local health and social care services. Whether it’s improving them today or helping shape them for tomorrow, Healthwatch is intended to act as the local watchdog; enabling a community voice, influencing the design and delivery of local services where appropriate, providing challenge and enabling choice. It forms part of a number of changes introduced under last year's Health & Social Care Act and will take over some of the previous responsibilities of the Portsmouth Local Involvement Network (LINk).

Healthwatch Portsmouth is now seeking people who can join their interim board, help to develop their future governance model and work to ensure that Healthwatch members have a real voice.

This is a voluntary position with reasonable out of pocket expenses covered

You can find out more information in the application pack and can apply either through the form by clicking here or by requesting an application form through 023 9268 8559 or healthwatchportsmouth@gmail.com

They look forward to hearing from you

Application forms can also be downloaded by clicking here

Click here to download the Interim Board information pack
Click here to download the Application Form

Too Flexible or Too Formal?

Hosted by the Healthwatch Development PartnershipA session to explore the boundaries, roles and responsibilities of volunteering and governance roles at the local level.

The session will address:

• Accountability & Representation - How do we balance keeping a check with keeping a voice?
• Capacity - Rolling back the state? How can volunteers effectively exercise their new community rights?
• Responsibility - How loose can the red tape get?
• Defining community interest - How do we balance door-step issues with city wide priorities? How do we reflect them and “sense check” them?

The first half of the session will comprise snapshots of governance from organisations within the city and the second half will be an interactive exercise to test potential governance models for Healthwatch Portsmouth.

Monday, 28th January 2013 from 10:00 to 13:00

At H M Naval Base,

Action Stations, Horizon Room

<To book a place please click here>

Keep Warm and Carry On Campaign

 

Keep Warm and Carry On Campaign

Portsmouth’s Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy

GPs and the council working together for Portsmouth 2012/2013

Portsmouth has a new Health and Wellbeing Board who will decide on the health priorities in the area. The Board includes councillors, GPs, and directors of services. It is jointly chaired by the lead councillor for Health and Social Care and the Lead GP for the Portsmouth Clinical Commissioning Group (which plans and pays for health services). 

One of the Board’s tasks is to produce a Joint Health and Wellbeing strategy for the city. The Board has had lengthy discussions on what the priorities should be. They used information from previous consultations about what people want most, information about what works best, and assessed what the biggest issues facing Portsmouth are. The initial focus is on a small number of big issues where partners believe they can make a real difference by providing and purchasing more effectively. These might not be the biggest health issues in the city but they are areas where we can make the most difference in the next year or so. 

Now we want to know your views on how we are planning to tackle these things and what else we should look at in the future. 

All the information about the board, including a summary version of the strategy it has developed, is at http://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/yourcouncil/24885.html. There is also a short survey if you would like to submit your views over the next 8 weeks. 

If you represent a group or forum and would like someone to come along between now and the end of October and explain more and answer any questions you may have, please contact Matthew Gummerson on 023 9268 8560 or matthew.gummerson@portsmouthcc.gov.uk

Are you a cardiovascular patient or carer?

• Have you had heart problems? 
• Do you have peripheral artery disease, an aortic aneurysm, Buerger’s Disease, renal artery disease or high blood pressure? 
• Does someone you care for have these conditions? 

Come and see how you can; 

Are you a cardiovascular patient or carer?

• Have you had heart problems? 
• Do you have peripheral artery disease, an aortic aneurysm, Buerger’s Disease, renal artery disease or high blood pressure? 
• Does someone you care for have these conditions? 

Come and see how you can; 

• Become involved in shaping the future 
• Get more information on local health services 
• Tell us your views on current health services 
• Get more information about the cardiovascular network 

This is an informal event and you will have the chance to meet other patients and people who care for them. A lunch and refreshments will be provided and there is plenty of parking and good access for all. There is no charge and reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed.

REGENCY PARK HOTEL, THATCHAM 

NEWBURY, RG18 3RP 

Tuesday 3rd July 2012 

10.00 – 16.00 

This promises to be a stimulating and interactive day. 

Please email anita.soar@hampshire.nhs.uk to register for this event. 

Should you have any questions, please call 01962 763954

Autism Information & Consultation Day

On 28^th June 2012 at the OASIS Centre there will be an opportunity to learn more about what help and support might be available for people with an Autistic Spectrum Condition and their family Carers. Information and advice will be available from services and support groups in the City. 


The NHS and Portsmouth City Council have produced a local strategic plan for improving opportunities for people with autistic spectrum conditions and want to hear your views about the plan.  You can drop in any time or you can book in for discussions about the local plan.


Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a buffet lunch will be available.   


Please let us know if you will be attending. You can book here: http://portsmouthautismevent.eventbrite.co.uk or ring 023 9268 8374.

Autism Information & Consultation Day

On 28^th June 2012 at the OASIS Centre there will be an opportunity to learn more about what help and support might be available for people with an Autistic Spectrum Condition and their family Carers. Information and advice will be available from services and support groups in the City. 

The NHS and Portsmouth City Council have produced a local strategic plan for improving opportunities for people with autistic spectrum conditions and want to hear your views about the plan.  You can drop in any time or you can book in for discussions about the local plan.

Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a buffet lunch will be available.   

Please let us know if you will be attending. You can book here: http://portsmouthautismevent.eventbrite.co.uk or ring 023 9268 8374.