News and reports

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Diabetes Self Care Management Programme
If you are living with Diabetes, why not join the Diabetes Self Care Management Programme and take better care of yourself.

By taking part, you will:
• Gain/extend knowledge about how to live with your condition
• Feel confident and more in control of your life
• Manage your condition and treatment together with healthcare professionals
• Be realistic about the impact of your condition on yourself and your family
• Use your new skills and knowledge to improve your quality of life
• Meet others who share similar experiences

If you are living with Chronic Pain, why not join the Chronic Pain Self Care Management Programme and take better care of yourself

The Black Country Local Maternity and Neonatal System (BCLMNS) is looking at a way of working across Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton. This would mean that care is based on where women and birthing people plan to have their babies – rather than being based on geography

Parents across the Black Country are being urged to make sure children are up to date with their measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) jab, following an increase in measles in the West Midlands.

Measles is a highly infectious disease which can lead to serious complications such as severe lung infections and inflammation of the brain. It also damages and suppresses the whole immune system, meaning children can be left much more susceptible to catching other illnesses.

It can spread quickly among communities, such as schools and nurseries, if children have not had two dose the MMR vaccine.

Symptoms of measles include:
• high temperature
• runny or blocked nose
• sneezing
• cough
• red, sore, watery eyes
• rash, which usually appears a few days after cold-like symptoms (sometimes it starts around the ears before spreading to the rest of the body).

All children are invited for their first MMR vaccine on the NHS when they turn one. The second dose is given when they reach three years and four months of age. Having two doses of the vaccine provides the best protection against MMR.
Adults and older children can also be vaccinated at any age if they have not been fully vaccinated before and are being encouraged to come forward if they haven’t had two doses.

The NHS has created a video of a local infection prevention nurse sharing the symptoms of measles to look out for and the ways to keep your child safe with the MMR vaccine.

A callout to anyone who has used the NEW Emergency and Urgent Care Centre at Walsall Manor Hospital.

Share your experience, call us on 0800 470 1660 or Email: info@healthwatchwalsall.co.uk

A brief outline of some of the issues and themes that patients have faced when accessing Walsall Services during December 2023.

Also, things that you can get involved with!

A brief outline of some of the issues and themes that patients have faced when accessing Walsall Services during Novmeber 2023.

Also, things that you can get involved with!

A brief outline of some of the issues and themes that patients have faced when accessing Walsall Services during October 2023.

Also, things that you can get involved with!

Local health chiefs have issued important guidance following the updated cold weather
alert.

The Met Office, in conjunction with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), has issued an amber weather alert, which is currently in place from Sunday 7 January to Friday 12 January, as severe winter weather is forecast.

An amber alert means extreme cold conditions are expected, with the elderly, people with underlying health conditions, babies and very young children at risk from the weather. In the Black Country, forecasters have predicted severe cold weather and icy conditions with temperatures continuing to reach below zero this week.
People are encouraged to take extra precautions to keep safe while the alerts are in place, such as checking on vulnerable friends and neighbours, keeping food and medications in stock and ensuring homes are adequately heated.

Dr Ananta Dave, Chief Medical Officer for the NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board, said: “Taking extra care during cold weather is really important, particularly for people who are more vulnerable to suffering ill health due to the cold, such as babies and very young children, older people, pregnant women and people with pre-existing medical conditions.

“It is recommended that we should heat our homes to at least 18 degrees Celsius in winter as this minimises risks to our health. If you can’t heat all the rooms you use, heat the living room during the day and your bedroom just before you go to bed.

“Try to avoid going out in cold icy weather but if you do need to go outside wear shoes with slip resistant grip and wear a few layers of thin clothing rather than one thick layer to trap in heat. It is also important that you have frequent hot food and drinks as these can help to keep you warm.

“Make sure you also take the current weather alert into account when planning any activity over
the following few days and try to avoid exposing yourself to cold or icy outdoor conditions,
especially if you’re at a higher risk of cold-related illness or falls.

“We are also asking everyone to remember the needs of friends, relatives, and neighbours who could be at risk during this period of cold weather. Make sure they’re well, and warm and have sufficient stocks of food and medicines, in case they cannot go out for a few days.”

For more advice on staying well in cold weather, visit the NHS website here.

We will be closed on the 25th, 26th and 27th of December. And the 1st of January 2024.