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The Health Writeru OCTOBER 2018

IT’S BEEN a tough job, but the judges have managed to whittle down the bumper entries to the Guild’s Writing Awards and the short-list for each of the eight categories will be announced shortly.

The winners of the £750 prize for each category will be revealed at the prestigious Awards ceremony so don’t miss out on all the excitement – make

sure the date is in your diary and watch out for further announcements on the website and our Facebook page. l Date: Wednesday, 21 November 2018l Time: 6.30 pml Venue: Royal Society of Medicine, 1 Wimpole Street, London W1G 0LZl Entry by invitation only. Watch out for emails from the Guild office.

21 NOVEMBER

Come to hear who wins the Guild’s 2018 Writing Awards

The Guild is delighted to announce that our new President is to be Dame Frances Ashcroft.

Professor Ashcroft is Professor of Physiology at the University of Oxford, a Fellow of Trinity College Oxford, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of London.

Her research centres on how changes in blood glucose levels regulate insulin secretion from the pancreatic beta-cell and how this process is impaired in diabetes.

She discovered that the ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channel serves as the molecular link between glucose elevation and insulin secretion. Mutations in KATP channel genes cause a rare inherited form of diabetes (neonatal diabetes), and her work with Prof Andrew Hattersley has enabled patients with this disorder to switch from insulin injections to drug therapy. Her current focus is on beta-cell metabolism and how this is affected in type 2 diabetes.

She has written two popular science books: Life at the Extremes – the science of survival (HarperCollins, 2000) and The Spark of Life – electricity in the human body, (Penguin 2012). In 2013 she won the Lewis Thomas Prize for Writing about Science.

Back to the future with the visionary doctors

Dame Frances Ashcroft is our new President

Increasing numbers of NHS GPs are transforming primary health care by prescribing social and lifestyle medicine rather than “a pill for every ill”, writes Janette Marshall.

Five of these pioneering doctors explained their holistic approach to a packed audience of Guild members and guests at the King’s Fund in London last month.

One of the GPs, former Guild President Dr Michael Dixon, compared this type of personalised care with the kind that existed 35 years ago when he started his career. “In a way, it is back to the future,” he said.

Opening the Meet the Mavericks evening, Sarah Stacey, joint chair, said: “The NHS was founded on the principles of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual healthcare for all. This approach to primary care is returning to those basics of whole person medicine.”

At the start of the evening, Professor Tine van Bortel, principle investigator at the Cambridge Institute of Public Health, Cambridge University, summarised the importance of social prescribing in the context of public health.

As a social scientist with GP parents,

Prof van Bortel said she knew first-hand of the frustrations and limitations of primary healthcare. “The global health and social care systems are on the brink of collapse and require collaboration, integration and a sustainable approach to deal with the crisis in addiction, loneliness, domestic violence and mental health issues.”

She said an emerging body of evidence supports the positive approach of social healthcare in prevention. ”Walk-in facilities need to be available at GP surgeries, schools and in the community, incorporating medical and social care interventions. It makes sense in business terms.”

Devon GP Dr Dixon is National Clinical Champion for Social Prescription (NHS England). He explained the origins of social prescribing and evidence of its effectiveness both for patients and GPs, which is resulting in improved health for whole communities.

One in five GP patients present with problems that are social in nature, he said. Together with patients with the worst health risks, and high users of hospital and GP services, these are the

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SAVE THE DATE

people that benefit most from social prescribing.

“The GP identifies patients with social needs and refers them to a link worker, who takes 30 minutes to present a menu of possible activities – yoga, gardening, the arts, knit and natter groups, for instance – or lifestyle changes for people with type 2 diabetes.”

This approach de-medicalises problems and addresses inequalities to create a healthier community, said Dr Dixon.

In 2016, a National Network for Social Prescribing was set up to bring together the people who have been making innovations in their local area, and creating a way of enabling strategic collaboration and sharing of best practice.

Since 1989, Professor Sir Sam Everington has been a GP in Tower Hamlets at Bromley by Bow Centre, which is now home to 100 projects supporting patients’ social and environmental health. “My approach to patients is to address what matters to them rather than what is the matter with them,” he said.

“Bromley by Bow Centre is on a three acre park converted in a £20,000 partnership with Tesco. We have a relaxation area, fountain, ponds and flower-arranging clinics. There are shared open spaces offering an educational and spiritual environment that all benefit health.

“We have a director of art, cooking and gardening. I am Sam to all my patients, dress rather scruffily, sit next to patients during a consultation, don’t think ‘I know what’s best for you’, and give them all my mobile number to ring at any time.

“Forty per cent of patients have English as a second language and in our Connection Café, which is open seven days a week and has some medical staff, we offer employment and education advice. There has been a one-third reduction in acute psychiatric admissions since we opened the café,” he said.

Dr Helen Kingston, a GP in Somerset and Wiltshire for 23 years, is senior partner at Frome Medical Practice, a patient-centred practice. “Patients feel the practice belongs to them. We worked together building our

community from the grass roots,” she explained.

Recognising the impact of loneliness on physical health, Dr Kingston and her team set up an “enhanced primary care approach”, known as Compassionate Frome. “Research has shown loneliness is as damaging to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day,” she said. Isolation can be a greater cause of early death than alcohol, over weight, heart disease and many other illnesses.

Community Connectors at the

practice assess patients’ social and welfare needs. There are Citizens’ Advice clinics on Fridays and many other services available for patients.

“The impact of clinically-led assessment is improved patient care, pragmatic solutions and better working lives for those delivering care,” said Dr Kingston. There have also been cost savings especially among emergency admissions. “Cost savings were not our driver but they indicate this is not only a better way but one that is sustainable in these difficult times.”

Dr Campbell Murdoch, a Somerset

GP who also holds clinical adviser roles in sustainable and physical health and diabetes, spoke about his “head, heart and hands” approach to consulting and his Human 5 model of universal health and wellbeing, which aims to help people reach metabolic health and wellness performance.

He discussed the case history of a patient who became depressed when told that his only solution to obesity was bariatric surgery. That patient lost three stone in three months when

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Visionary doctors use a radical approachContinued from page 1

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l The visionary doctors: from left – Campbell Murdoch, Helen Kingston, Tine van Bortel, Michael Dixon, Sam Everington and Ayan Panja

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Visionary doctors use a radical approachguided through a low carb diet with intermittent fasting and swimming for relaxation. Other health conditions also disappeared.

In another example, a woman with type 2 diabetes was able to stop using blood glucose and blood pressure drugs when she was given holistic diet and lifestyle coaching.

Hertfordshire GP Dr Ayan Panja was so convinced by the results he saw when he switched to social and lifestyle prescribing that he co-created Prescribing Lifestyle Medicine in General Practice, a course accredited by the Royal College for General Practitioners.

“Lifestyle Medicine deals with research, prevention and treatment of disorders caused by lifestyle factors such as nutrition, physical inactivity and chronic stress,” he explained.

He continued: “This generalist approach is needed more than ever now if we are to meet the Challenges of 2022, a report on the future of General Practice in the NHS. Lifestyle Medicine is the answer to dealing with long-term, multiple conditions needing complex care that require people to engage in healthier lifestyles and behaviour.”

Dr Panja illustrated the need for more joined-up healthcare with the parable of the elephant being examined by blind men – in this case, doctors – who mistakenly describe only the constituent parts (trunk, tusk, leg, tail) and fail to see the bigger picture.

Dr Panja said Lifestyle Medicine was a safe and effective approach for getting to the root cause of patients’ symptoms. He added that GPs have first to think differently by looking at the interconnectedness of symptoms and then examining the common drivers that can create illness or health: food, sleep, movement, relaxation – the four pillars that create a Lifestyle Prescription. n The Guild would like to thank the Utley Foundation for sponsoring the evening. For more information visit utleyfoundation.org.uk

If you had told me drawing circles just might change my life, I’d have smiled benignly and then made my excuses. But drawing circles was what we were asked to do.

There were eight of us at the self-development workshop and, like many journalists these days, we were exploring ways to increase our income as well as our job satisfaction in an increasingly diminishing industry.

We all know times are changing and we need to adapt but the perennial question is how – and to what?

Working at first in pairs, then in small groups, we were given a variety of exercises. These were specific and timed, which was a good thing – if only because it stopped the journalist in us writing reams.

The focus was on identifying which part of our job – either as a staffer or a freelancer – we enjoyed doing or felt passionate about. Was the best bit working in a team (being collaborative) or working on our own (using one’s initiative)? We were then encouraged to think about those skills and strengths which made us feel “lighter” rather than “heavier”.

Alongside this, we were asked to think about our values – which ones actually chimed with what we do? The aim was to come out with five top things we love doing, that

reflected our values, and then to focus on how to build on them.

That’s where the circles came in: we drew circles around the words that really mattered to us – the words that are fundamental to who we are and are crucial in helping us to discover where we’d like to see ourselves in the future.

What was impressive was that, by using the structured materials Nina provided, by the end of the evening

we all seemed to feel focused enough to be able to confidently say what we wanted to be doing – and what we needed to do to get there.

Each exercise was discussed, with others pitching in with comments and suggestions. In a way, that was one

of the most useful parts of the evening.

By sharing we were actually supporting each other and offering practical advice or, as Nina says, we were being the guru and the pupil at the same time.

People had different goals and objectives but we all seemed to leave with an enthusiasm which, certainly for me, wasn’t there when I arrived. And just so we don’t lose that initial enthusiasm, Nina very cleverly made us exchange contact details, so we can check out how we’re all doing in a week. I’ll report back...n For more information about the workshops and courses, look at:lifeclubs.co.uk

The circles of lifeLife Clubs aim to give everyone a chance to get more out of life. Creator and leading life coach Nina Grunfeld recently held a workshop in Westminster exclusively for Guild members. Michele Simmons reports.

l Life coach: Nina Grunfeld

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MEMBERS’ NEWS

Films with warmth and heartn This summer Eleanor Stanley, below, worked with the Evelina London Children’s Hospital to make three patient information films.

She says: “If we want people to actually engage with a message, we need to make sure it really resonates with them. That’s why, in patient information, a person-centred approach works especially well.”

Each of the films provides information about seizure-related conditions and

treatments, but approaches it very differently. The first, About Non-epileptic Attack Disorder (NEAD), provides information through the perspective of three young women living with this little-known condition.

The second, Having an EEG, is a step-by-step guide aimed at children and parents. This film is narrated by the child and emphasises her human interactions with her mother and healthcare staff.

Finally, Home video EEG telemetry shows parents how to set up hospital cameras to record their children’s seizures. This film is the most technical of the three.

Eleanor says: “What all three films have in common – I hope – is warmth and heart, so that they empower and inspire, not just inform.”

You can read more in Eleanor’s blog on Linkedin: linkedin.com/pulse/person-centred-patient-information-three-styles-film-eleanor-stanley/

Charity’s choice n An article Judy Hobson wrote for September’s Choice magazine is now being used on the National Ankylosing Spondylitis Society’s (NASS) website to highlight the fact that youngsters diagnosed with this progressive painful form of inflammatory arthritis need support to cope with the depression it can bring in its wake.

The illness, which affects one in 200 people in the UK, develops between the ages of 18 and 30, and is often initially misdiagnosed as growing pains.

Judy interviewed 57-year-old Poppy Hocken whose son Alex took an overdose in May 2017 when

the pain from his AS and working 12 hour shifts as a student nurse at Bristol Royal Infirmary got too much. He was 31.

NASS has now produced an online tool called Understanding Your AS Treatment Pathway, where young people can hear patients describe how they manage to live with the illness. Importantly the site has now incorporated a section where young people can blog

about their AS and talk to each other about it and offer support and friendship.

For more information visit: nass.co.uk

Howard Thomas n We regret to announce that Howard Thomas, who had been a Friend of the Guild since the early years and a Member since 2014, has died. Howard was a director of Oraldent, a family-run company specialising in preventative oral care products, and Fulcrum Health, a company that develops and markets pharmaceutical and healthcare products.

He had more than 50 years’ experience in the healthcare industry and lectured and wrote on health matters.

Sarah Stacey, a founder member of the Guild, says: “I have fond memories of Howard at many Guild events over the years, particularly Christmas and summer parties which suited his lovely sociable personality. We will miss him greatly.”

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GUILD CommIttee

Janette Marshall and Sarah StaceyJoint Chairs

Lee RodwellMembership Secretary

Ursula ArensHonorary Treasurer

Helen Cowan

Charlotte Haigh

Paul Johnson

Tracey McAlpine

Colleen Shannon

AdministratorJatinder Dua

MEMBERS’ NEWS

The Guild of Health Writers Administrator: Jatinder Dua Address: Dale Lodge, 88 Wensleydale Road, Hampton, Middlesex TW12 2LX. Office hours: 9am-12pm Mon-Wed to

Tel/Fax: +44 (0)20 8941 2977. Email: admin@healthwriters.com. Members are very welcome to send in contributions to Health Writer and to submit ideas for events and workshops. Copy to Editor, Lee Rodwell at mail@leerodwell.com Deadline for next newsletter: 10 December, 2018

This newsletter is kindly sponsored by Optibac

Probiotics, a UK family-run business specialising

entirely in probiotic supplements, and

offering some of the most researched strains in the

world.

New membersAlison BloomerRachel EllisHarriet MarsdenPaul NukiKelly OakesAlice Wilkinson

Handbook follows app n Suzi Godson and her co-CEO Dr Kerstyn Comley have produced the MeeTwo Mental Help Handbook as an extension of their acclaimed MeeTwo app that allows teenagers to access advice and information through a smart phone

The handbook contains personal stories from young people, expert analysis from some of the most eminent voices in teenage mental health and a complete support directory listing the best support groups, helplines, apps, books, media, self help and activities to empower young people to help themselves.

The handbook is available via the website meetwo.co.uk, price £12.

How to manage menopause naturallyn Following the success of the previous talks, Marilyn Glenville is again teaming up with Patrick Holford for a special one-day event How to Manage Your Menopause Naturally to be held at The Strand Palace Hotel, London on Saturday 24 November.

Marilyn will be speaking on Natural Solutions to the Menopause and Prevention of Osteoporosis and Patrick will be showing women How to Lose Weight and Gain Energy in the Menopause.

There will also be a talk on Understanding how your DNA affects your Health and Lifestyle Choices and another on It’s Your Time To Shine! Natural Beauty from the Inside Out.

For more details visit: marilynglenville.com or email donna.gambazza@glenvillenutrition.com for booking information.

No more slips n Slips, Trips and Fractured Hips, a book by Emma Hammett was launched on 1 October 2018, the United Nations Day of the Older Person, at the Royal Hospital Chelsea.

The book provides practical advice on how to help prevent accidents, and first-aid advice should an accident happen. It is endorsed by RoSPA and Age UK and is available on Amazon at £12.99.

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