Unmissable? Underbelly’s Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is back

29 December – 1 January

WE ARE BACK TOGETHER!

On behalf of the City of Edinburgh Council, Underbelly announces the programme for Edinburgh’s Hogmanay 2021. Tickets will go on sale at 10am tomorrow – Tuesday 26 October.

·       Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is launched as a four day festival and a celebration of the changing of the year.

·       Tickets will go on sale on Tuesday 26 October for the Torchlight Procession, Party at the Bells, and the Scottish music programme at Greyfriars Kirk.

·       The iconic Hogmanay fireworks display returns for midnight on 31 December.

·       7,500 tickets will be available at a discounted price for Party at the Bells for those with an EH postcode.

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is back to celebrate the end of 2021 and the new year with an unforgettable experience for Edinburgh and beyond.

This year’s Hogmanay programme has been revealed, including the new Party at the Bells on Princes Street and the return of the iconic Edinburgh Castle fireworks display.

Tickets go on sale at 10am on Tuesday 26 October through the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay website for Party at the Bells, the Torchlight Procession and a fantastic Scottish music programme with Dougie McLean, Eddi Reader and Breabach at Greyfriars Kirk. 

As part of Party at the Bells, there are 7,500 tickets available at a discounted price for EH postcode holders.

In 2021, Hogmanay celebrations have been ‘reimagined’ and include:

·       The Torchlight Procession will ignite Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations on Thursday, 30 December. Participants will collect their torches from three locations around the city: Waverley Bridge, West Parliament Square or Bristo Square and will then start the Procession on the Royal Mile between North Bridge and St Mary’s Street.

The family friendly event will be slightly different to previous years, with the procession spread out between 4pm and 9pm, allowing locals and visitors alike to blaze through the Scottish capital in a fun and safe environment. Tickets with a torch are £15.

Along the procession route, flames and light installations will illuminate the experience. Underbelly are working with local Celtic Fire Theatre company Pyroceltica, who led the procession in 2019 and Double Take Projections.

At the end of the Procession on Holyrood Park, participants will be asked to light a slow burning candle and then leave.

As more and more candles are lit, an image will emerge over the course of the event, which will be filmed and streamed on edinburghshogmanay.com.

·       Scottish Music Programme – Wednesday, 29 – Friday, 31 December. Taking place at Greyfriars Kirk, tickets are from £25. Performances include one of Scotland’s most skilled and imaginative contemporary folk acts, Breabach on 29 December, Scottish singer-songwriter, Dougie Maclean OBE on 30 December and three x BRIT Award winner, Eddi Reader OBE on 31 December.

·       Party at the Bells – Friday, 31 December, 10pm-1am. A fresh take on the world-famous Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party. This year the event will be for a reduced audience of 30,000 people to enjoy the countdown celebrations, starting at 10pm.

Artists will be announced in coming weeks and will perform on the Ross Bandstand to 3,500 people in the gardens under the Castle, and will be streamed onto a series of screens to the audience on Princes Street.  

The iconic midnight fireworks display will be back at Edinburgh Castle, cementing Scotland once again as the home of Hogmanay.

One of the world’s greatest street theatre companies, Netherlands-based Close-Act Theatre will collaborate with a variety of Scottish performers to animate the street in spectacular style.

The Party at the Bells street theatre programme is supported by Scottish Government, City of Edinburgh Council, and Creative Scotland’s PLACE fund.

Garden Access and Street Access tickets will be on sale from 10am on Tuesday 26 October with 7,500 tickets available at a discounted price for those with an EH postcode. Street Access tickets are £25.50, with the EH discounted price being £17.50.

50p from every Party at the Bells ticket sold will be donated to the Brain Tumour Charity, an organisation Underbelly raises money for year-round. Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer for children and adults under 40 and increased funding for research is desperately needed.

Around 500 children and young people in the UK are diagnosed each year but diagnosis times for childhood brain tumours are longer in the UK than in many other countries.

·       Message from the Skies from 1 January 2022. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay’s emblematic project that fuses the work of Scottish writers, artists and musicians will return from 1 January 2022. Full details to be announced in due course.

Working closely with the City of Edinburgh Council and Scottish Government, Underbelly is meticulously planning Edinburgh’s Hogmanay in the context of Covid-19 and is dedicated to creating a safe and fun environment for the 2021 celebrations. Ticketholders for the Torchlight Procession and the Party at the Bells, who are aged 18 and over, will need to have a Covid-19 passport and to show it to enter the events.

As part of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay’s ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability, and alongside efforts to reduce the environmental impact of the festival itself, we are again inviting our audiences to offset their journey to Edinburgh’s Hogmanay in 2021.

All donations to the environmental fund, which are calculated in accordance with the method of transport and length of journey, are made at the point of purchase when booking tickets via edinburghshogmanay.com and will be used to create new woodlands in Scotland in partnership with Forest Carbon. 

All woodlands are independently audited and certified under the UK Woodland Carbon Code. 

Edinburgh is the world’s festival city with internationally renowned festivals year-round and Edinburgh’s Hogmanay kicks them off at the beginning of every year.

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay 2021 is supported by City of Edinburgh Council, Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council’s PLACE fund and Creative Scotland through the Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals EXPO fund, all working together to create a bold and reimagined Edinburgh’s Hogmanay for Scotland.

Underbelly Co-Directors, Charlie Wood and Ed Bartlam, said: “The 2021 Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations have been reimagined to offer a safe and a fantastic experience for Edinburgh and beyond – telling the world that “We Are Back Together”.

“Through the Torchlight Procession, Party at the Bells and the iconic fireworks, this year’s Hogmanay event has been designed to deliver a celebration for the people of Edinburgh and our visitors, and to place Scotland at the forefront of the world’s new year events. We can’t wait to help bring everyone back together again.”

Cllr Cammy Day, Depute Leader of City of Edinburgh Council said: “Edinburgh is the home of Hogmanay and it is fantastic that this year as we mark its 29th year, we see the return of in-person events and that celebrations will return to the streets of the Capital.

“There is an unmissable Hogmanay programme this year, which will support economic recovery across the wider city area, safely bring people back together and welcome in the new year with a renewed sense of optimism for great times ahead.”

For more information and tickets, please visit:

https://www.edinburghshogmanay.com/

Sporting heroes back Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week

Series of events to increase participation

Some of the biggest stars in Scottish sport have voiced their support for the fifth annual Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week which gets underway today.

Solheim Cup star Catriona Matthew, athlete Eilish McColgan and sprinter Maria Lyle are among those who have spoken out about the health and wellbeing benefits of getting involved in sport and keeping active.

A series of events will take place over the coming seven days to shine a light on the many benefits of participating in sport and physical activity for girls and women, with a particular emphasis this year on the positive impact on physical, mental and social health.

The importance of role models in encouraging uptake is among the key messages this year.

Catriona Matthew, who captained Europe to Solheim Cup triumph over the US last month, said: “I think this is a great initiative and I absolutely endorse encouraging as many women and girls to get involved in sports as possible.

“Whether it be golf or tennis or cycling or whatever sport, I think taking part in physical activity is so effective for improving both mental and physical health. I also think it helps build confidence as well as playing a huge part in helping to build an active fun social life.

“This week is so important as it is genuinely about encouraging as many girls and women as possible to get active, whatever your level and whatever your age as well as celebrating all the great sporting achievements of our Scottish sportswomen.”

Olympian Eilish McColgan, who set a new British 10 mile record at the Great South Run last weekend, added: “I really hope this week encourages loads of women and girls to seek out the different sporting opportunities that are available to them. You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to enjoy sport – there really is something out there for everyone!

“The friendships and relationships I’ve forged as a result of being involved in sport truly have changed my life and moulded me into the person I am today – both on and off the track.

“This last year has been super challenging for everyone with so many being isolated at home and unable to follow their normal routine. Keeping active and taking part in sport can help build confidence and the social element that sport brings is the best part about it all. I would appeal to all women and girls to get out there and give it a go! Have a great week!”

Eve Muirhead, Olympic medal-winning curler, said: “I was very lucky to grow up in a sports-oriented family and even before I started to enjoy success on the curling rink, I knew how fortunate I was to be immersed in activities that were good for both my physical health and mental wellbeing and increasingly we have come to understand the importance of this.

“Playing sport has been my life and I am honoured to have been to three Winter Olympics playing alongside some hugely inspirational team mates and having strong female role models is vital to building on the strides that have been made even in the course of my career.

“There is consequently a real sense of responsibility that comes with sporting success to help the next generation take advantage of the opportunities that are now greater than ever before in every sport and we must keep this momentum going!”

Sprinter Maria Lyle, who took double bronze at the recent Tokyo Paralympics, added:  “Sport has opened up many doors for me.

“Not only has sport allowed me to represent my country, it has helped me gain confidence, make friends, improved my studies (time management), manage my disability, overcome hardships and feel a sense of ownership for my physical along with my mental health.”

Dr Rachel Malcolm, captain of the Scotland rugby team, added: “I’m delighted to support Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week 2021. Over the past year, the pandemic has highlighted the importance of sport and physical activity, particularly on our mental wellbeing.

“Following the easing of restrictions, it’s been fantastic to hear stories about women and girls trying rugby for the first time. Sport has the ability to bring people together, creating a sense of community and life-long friendships in the process. I’d encourage anyone who is thinking of taking up a sport or joining a local club to give it a go!”

Jen Beattie, Scotland women’s national football team defender, said: “It has been amazing to see the growth of girls’ and women’s sport throughout my lifetime and for youngsters just starting out their sporting journey to now have female role models to look up to.

“Sport has so many benefits, both physical and mental, and it can really help you develop and grow as a person.

“Even in tough times sport can help you push through, look forward and be positive. During my breast cancer treatment last year my teammates were a tower of strength. The release of being out on the training pitch was amazing as well and helped me overcome a challenging period in my life.

“I’m excited to be part of the Active Scotland Panel discussion later in the week to tell my story and answer any questions people may have on my journey so far.”

Scottish Women and Girls in Sport week runs from Monday October 25th-31st.

The week aims to showcase women and girls projects across Scotland, highlight role models and increase participation

More detail can be found via Actify

Sport and Active Living budget doubles to £100m

Driving up participation levels of women and girls will be an important part of a £100 million push which doubles Scotland’s sport and active living budget by the end of the current Parliament.

Preparations are also underway for a Scottish sport media summit aimed at exploring, through a collaborative approach, ways to increase visibility and coverage of women’s sport across all platforms.

The fifth annual Scottish Women and Girls in Sport week kicks off today  with a series of events planned over the coming seven days.

Sports minister Maree Todd will visit Dingwall Academy today to see for herself some of the activities being delivered and meet girls getting active, while other Scottish Government ministers will also take part in events during the course of the week.

Ms Todd said: “More participation and visibility of girls and women in sport is a priority for this Government. By doubling investment to £100 million in sport and active living we hope to address issues around equality of access.

“Our plans for a Scottish sport media summit will also address important issues around improving and increasing the visibility of women’s sports, athletes and participation. 

“We know the positive impact which sport and being active has on physical, mental and social health across all stages in life. This has never been more important after our experience of the pandemic and the dangers of loneliness and isolation.

“This annual dedicated week provides an opportunity to increase visibility and participation of women and girls in sport and physical activity.  It’s really important that we shine a spotlight on how girls and women are building new or maintaining healthy habits for their wellbeing.  I would encourage everyone to get involved no matter the activity or the level.” 

The additional investment will benefit the wider sporting system and be delivered in partnership with sportscotland to help rebuild capacity within the sector as we continue to recover from the pandemic.  It will focus on breaking down barriers to participation and ensure that more people, including women and girls, can enjoy active lives, while improving physical, mental and social health.

Ms Todd will participate in a question and answer session to mark the launch of the week on social media today.

A short film to highlight role models across Scotland who inspire active lifestyles, entitled Hero Piece, will also be released setting out how sport and physical activity has impacted them.

There will also be a panel conversation chaired by Professor Linda Bauld, Chief Social Policy Adviser to the Scottish Government, and featuring Scotland and Arsenal footballer Jen Beattie to discuss the role of sport and physical activity in supporting women’s health and wellbeing.

sportscotland’s Active Girl Day initiative has already been taking place throughout this month providing schools and sports clubs with the flexibility to select any day in October to celebrate the work going into girls’ sport, the progress around girls’ participation, and the role models making it happen.

PM awards Leith campaigner for outstanding sustainability work

Leith Collective founder Sara Thomson honoured with Points of Light award by Boris Johnson

Every day in the UK, one individual volunteer, charity leader or community hero is recognised by the Prime Minister for the positive change they are making in their local area. Today, Monday 25 October, the award has been given to The Leith Collective founder, Sara Thomson, for her outstanding sustainability campaign. 

Founded in 2019, The Leith Collective provides a platform for 130 artists brought together by a common aim to recycle, repurpose, and reimagine items that may otherwise have been destined for landfill.

The retail space has evolved into a hub of creativity, playing host to inspiring workshops designed to support the local community. It also actively supports individuals with mental health issues by providing vital employment opportunities. 

In January 2021, The Leith Collective became the UK’s first single-use plastic free shop of its kind and was later crowned runner up in the Surfers Against Sewage Plastic Free Awards.

In July 2021, owner Sara Thomson took her message of sustainability west-side, opening The Clydeside Collective in Glasgow’s St Enoch Centre, followed by The Camdentown Collective in London’s Buck Street Market in September 2021.

Most recently, Sara was specially selected to become a UK ‘One Step Greener’ ambassador and will showcase her story of how she is tackling climate change at COP26 in Glasgow next week.

As the COP26 summit nears, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was particularly keen to highlight people who are Climate Leaders in their communities and who are championing sustainability as Points of Light.

From Sara’s role as a One Step Greener ambassador and the inspirational work The Leith Collective is doing to showcase sustainability, the Prime Minister chose Sara to become the UK’s 1772nd Point of Light.

The Prime Minister wrote to Sara to personally thank her for her tireless work and she also received an official Points of Light certificate. 

Sara commented: ‘This is such a genuine honour, I’m absolutely delighted to receive this award. In January 2021 The Leith Collective became the first plastic-free shop of its kind in the UK and since then we’ve seen more and more businesses take the plastic-free pledge.

“I’m thrilled that awareness of the importance of sustainability is growing and so many people are getting behind the campaign. I hope that by accepting this Point of Light award that others will be inspired to join us in creating a greener future for all.”

Edinburgh Leisure: Turn your small change into big changes

Will you be in for a penny?

Turn your small change into big changes when you join Edinburgh Leisure with a reduced joining fee of just 1p!

The offer is available from today, Monday 25th October, until Sunday, 7 November 2021 on any of their swim, gym, fitness classes and climb memberships and is available to buy online only.

As everyone is different and needs to find their own way to a healthy and active life, Edinburgh Leisure offers a range of different membership options to suit everyone including swim, gym and fitness class only to full monthly memberships. By offering different types of membership, people can match their activity preferences to their pocket.

With 30+ venues including 1 climbing centre, 8 swimming pools, 13 gyms, and 800+ fitness classes per week, Edinburgh Leisure is the ‘biggest club in town’ providing the widest range of fitness classes, state of the art facilities and community-based programmes across the capital.

To join online, visit: https://www.edinburghleisure.co.uk/in-for-a-penny

STOP THE BLEED: FREE public bleed control training sessions

87% of emergency responders believe more lives could be saved if the public were better prepared with trauma response training

Safeguard Medical is calling for the introduction of life-saving bleed kits across the UK and offering over 500 places on FREE bleed control training sessions for UK public to help support emergency responders to save more lives.

In a recent survey of UK Emergency Medical Services, Fire and Police commissioned by Safeguard Medical, 87%  of respondents agreed that if the public were more aware of the immediate care required following major trauma, preventable deaths would decrease.

The majority of first responders (85%) believe that more lives could be saved with the introduction of bleeding control kits, placed alongside every public access defibrillator.

The UK Government has released statistics that over 41,000 knife crime offences occurred in 2020/21, of which 224 were homicides. Bleed kits contain lifesaving equipment including tourniquets to stop major bleeding and haemostatic bandages that can be ‘packed’ into a wound to stop haemorrhaging.

Safeguard Medical is appealing to raise greater awareness of the vital skills that help to preserve life following a trauma incident. During the COVID pandemic, emergency responders reported increased pressures, with 95% agreeing they have responded to an increased number of trauma incidents.

Almost half of those surveyed (48%) agreed that the public could be better prepared to respond while waiting for professional ambulance assistance to arrive on scene.

Emergency responders are also dealing with the mental health impact of witnessing and experiencing trauma, with 94% agreeing that their mental health had suffered because of the increased pressures placed on the emergency medical services during the pandemic. 

Safeguard Medical believes that if the public were better prepared to deal with medical and trauma emergencies, this immediate support could help reduce mental health pressure on emergency medical responders, whilst also directly saving lives.  

One of Safeguard Medical’s partners, the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, will host a training session on World Trauma Day at Merry Hill Shopping Centre in the West Midlands, delivered by Safeguard Medical’s training division, Prometheus Medical.

At this free, open event, the public can learn vital first aid skills that could save someone’s life. These include how to perform CPR, use a defibrillator and how to manage major bleeding.

Ian Jones, air operations manager for Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, said: “With more than 63% of the charity’s missions being trauma-related, it’s important to use this day to shine a light on the enhanced critical care our crews provide, and what bystanders can do to help the patient before medical expertise even arrives.

“In addition, the demand for advanced medicines and equipment coupled with specialist care on scene delivered by our critical care paramedics and flight doctors continues to rise annually, with a 1.3 per cent rise in trauma-related incidents compared to 2020, which was already an extraordinary year with additional Covid pressures.”

The emergency responders surveyed agreed that since the pandemic, certain trauma incidents have increased considerably. For example, as more people have been upgrading their homes, DIY accidents have increased (28%), as have falls from height and sporting incidents (25%).

Professor Richard Lyon MBE, Chief Medical Officer at Safeguard Medical and a practising NHS Consultant in Emergency Medicine & Pre-hospital Care, said: “Tragic incidents like the fatal attack on MP David Amess highlights that penetrating trauma incidents can occur anywhere, at any time.

“There is a real opportunity for better public access to life saving equipment, like bleed kit, in order to save more lives. Even with an air ambulance travelling in a straight line at over 130mph to an incident, patients can bleed out in under 5 minutes in some circumstances.

“Minutes are critical when you are bleeding.  This is why a tourniquet or haemostatic trauma bandages in bleed kits give the public the chance to intervene and save a life.

“Our rapid response teams can then focus on keeping the patient stable and preparing them for medical intervention once at the hospital.”   

Professor Lyon agreed that during the UK lockdowns, the number of callouts to incidents reduced but added: “There’s been a significant increase in recreational incidents following the lifting of lockdowns.

“Accident from sporting incidents, DIY, road traffic collisions, falls from heights,  as well as an increase in mental health-related incidents and assault-related trauma – particularly knife crime – have all increased.”

Safeguard Medical is dedicated to equipping responders at every skill level to saving life, in any environment. Which is why its training arm, Prometheus Medical, is providing over 500 free places on its medical training courses across the UK to help prepare the public and businesses to respond better to medical emergencies by understanding bleed control.

Elite medical training company Prometheus Medical, is offering free training on trauma response and bleed control in Edinburgh on 15th and 16th February 2022

Register interest here: 

https://news.prometheusmedical.co.uk/p/6X1A-1S7/worldtraumaday

To find out more and register your interest for the free training sessions, visit www.prometheusmedical.com

To learn about how Safeguard can supply bleed kits for general public use, visit:

https://safeguardmedical.com/en-gb/products/haemorrhage-control/prometheus-bleed-control-kit-daniel-baird-foundation/.

A demonstration of how to use the Bleed Control Kit can be viewed here:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRmt5E8b1lg

Amazon boost for women’s charity

A Glasgow charity that supports vulnerable young women has received a £2,000 donation from Amazon Development Centre Scotland in Edinburgh.

SAY Women offers safe, semi-supported accommodation and emotional support for young women aged 16 to 25 who are survivors of sexual abuse, rape or sexual assault. The charity also supports women who are homeless or threatened with homelessness. 

The charity allocates tenants a key worker who provides practical and emotional support through a care plan system. This donation will go towards a winter package for young women with some fuel and food vouchers.

Amazon previously supported the charity with a donation earlier this year. 

Graeme Smith, Managing Director at Amazon Development Centre Scotland, said: “SAY Women is a great charity offering vital services in to the Glasgow community.

“The staff and volunteers go that extra mile to ensure the safety of young women and we hope this donation will help the charity continue its services.”

Pam Hunter, CEO at SAY Women, said: “I would like to thank Graeme and the team for their continued support this year.

“It’s been a particularly difficult time for vulnerable women, so our services are needed more than ever. Thank you, Amazon.” 

Kaukab Stewart, Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow Kelvin, added: “I welcome this donation to SAY Women. As winter will be soon upon us, Amazon’s efforts will make a significant contribution to lifeline services for sexually-abused young women facing homelessness.

“I urge other corporations to join Amazon in supporting SAY Women.”

Amazon Development Centre Scotland has been based in Edinburgh since 2004 and is responsible for devising and growing innovations that bring new levels of choice and convenience to hundreds of millions of customers around the world. 

It houses teams of leading engineers, scientists, designers and product managers who work on everything from interactive user interface design to large-scale distributed systems and machine learning. 

Community donations are one of a number of ways in which Amazon is supporting communities across the UK during COVID-19. 

Throughout the pandemic Amazon has provided disadvantaged students with free online STEM resources and supported virtual classrooms with no-cost resources from AWS and Amazon Future Engineer.

The company has also teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver more than four million healthy breakfasts to children at risk of hunger in disadvantaged areas around the UK.

For more information on how Amazon is supporting the UK during COVID-19, click: https://blog.aboutamazon.co.uk/amazons-actions-to-help-employees-communities-and-customers-affected-by-covid-19. 

Heart Research UK: Grab some art and help some hearts

National charity Heart Research UK have launched the ‘anonymous heART project’ 2021, an online fundraising campaign that will see hundreds of anonymous one-of-a-kind masterpieces created by huge names from the worlds of art and entertainment go up for auction on eBay. 

Heart Research UK Patrons Robert Smith (The Cure) Paul Insect and Christopher Kane have joined the likes of Chvrches, Jamie Hewlett, Ralph Steadman and hundreds of international stars and artists who have created stunning A5 pieces.

The twist? Though the list of artists will be available to all bidders, the artist of each individual piece will be kept anonymous, only being revealed once the auction is over. Could you bag yourself an original masterpiece for a bargain price? 

Their pieces will be auctioned alongside almost 500 others pieces created by a host of celebrities and international artists on eBay from 22nd October – 31st October 2021.

You can bid on your favourite piece here www.heartresearch.org.uk/heart-auction

The anonymous heART project is back for its 4th year, with previous editions raising over £130,000 in total. All the money raised will fund Heart Research UK’s vital medical research into the prevention, treatment, and cure of heart disease. 

Kate Bratt-Farrar, Chief Executive of Heart Research UK, said: “The anonymous heART project is one of the most exciting projects Heart Research UK has ever run. We are delighted to welcome it back for another successful year, as we have received an astounding number of artworks from artists, designers, and celebrities all over the world. 

“At Heart Research UK, we are always looking for fun and innovative ways to raise money to help us continue our vital medical research, helping us benefit patients as soon as possible. 

“The anonymous heART project is a fantastic event allowing people to own their own mini-masterpiece created by an artist or celeb but allows them to get involved and give a little something back. 

“What makes this project so special is that everyone has the chance to own a piece of iconic art; it really is making high class art available to all whilst, allowing people to support our ground-breaking medical research which helps save lives.” 

The anonymous heART project is proudly sponsored by international law firm Walker Morris.

Walker Morris, who partnered with the charity to launch the first anonymous heART project in 2018, are reinforcing their long-standing reputation for innovative sponsorship of the arts with a two-year sponsorship of the project, including the Anonymous heART Project’s 5th anniversary year in 2022.

Nigerian hospital reports surge in child ops thanks to KidsOR charity

A hospital Operating Room for children in the capital of Nigeria, which was newly installed in August 2019 thanks to a Scottish-based charity, has managed to increase the number of paediatric operations carried out by more than two-thirds in just a year.

From July 2018 to July the following year, 229 operations on children at the National Hospital in Abuja were carried out. Then, thanks to Kids Operating Room, a new Operating Room was installed in August 2019. This new Operating Room has enabled the surgical team in Abuja to undertake 381 operations from September 2019 to September last year – a staggering rise of more than 66 per cent.

Commenting on the difference that the new Operating Room has made, Dr Olubunmi Majekodunmi, the hospital’s Chief Paediatric Surgeon, said: “Having a KidsOR Operating Room has made surgeries far more effective. We have paediatric-sized instruments and do not have to struggle with larger ones meant for adult surgeries.

“As for the children, they move into an Operating Room filled with beautiful wallpapers and exciting toys and are so engaged that they do not even realise when they are put under anaesthesia. But, most importantly, our backlog of patients which used to involve a waiting list of a year or sometimes more, has been cleared.

“The relief on the faces of parents when they realise that their kids can have surgeries within a few days – enough time for pre-operative preparation – is priceless. Thank you KidsOR for such a tremendous gift!”

Rosemary Mugwe, Africa Director at KidsOR, said: “The Surgical Team at National Hospital were carrying out fantastic work before KidsOR came on board; however, they lacked specialist paediatric equipment to provide safe, quality surgery.

“We were happy to provide the tools – metaphorically and literally – to give them even greater capacity to help the children of Abuja. And we are delighted to learn of the large increase in the number of operations being carried out meaning that children do not have to wait for life saving or life changing surgery.”

The charity’s research also revealed that the percentage of wound infections decreased from 1.3 per cent to 0.29 per cent during the year after the new Operating Room was installed. This figure represents the percentage of surgical cases in which the patient developed a surgical infection and is another quality of surgery measure.

KidsOR is a Scottish global health charity with bases in Edinburgh, Dundee and Nairobi with an ambition to provide all children around the world with access to safe surgery.

The charity also funds training of surgeons and anaesthesia providers and works with National Ministries of Health to develop sustainable healthcare services.

£5 million for cutting-edge treatments for injured veterans

  • Chancellor expected to provide £5 million at Budget for new UK-wide Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund.
  • Investment will help to ensure veterans who have suffered injuries or mental health challenges receive the most cutting-edge treatments.
  • Innovative new surgery techniques and treatment options for amputees and blast victims to receive funding.

Veterans who have suffered injuries or mental health challenges are set to receive innovative and cutting-edge treatments thanks to a new £5 million fund, the Chancellor is expected to announce next week.

At Wednesday’s Budget and Spending Review, Rishi Sunak will unveil the new UK-wide Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund – which will be used to help develop ground-breaking treatments to help veterans with physical injuries, and those with hard-to-treat mental health injuries such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Between 2001 and March 2021 there were more than 300 UK service personnel whose injuries included a traumatic or surgical amputation as a result of sustained injuries in Afghanistan.

One in ten serving military personnel were also seen by medics for a mental health-related reason last year, while the number of veterans entering psychological therapies on the NHS increased by around 45 percent between 2014 and 2020.

The Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund will provide grants for research into cutting-edge surgery techniques and treatments for amputees and veterans with blast injuries, new treatments for mental health challenges, and new technology to help injured veterans rebuild their lives and participate in work, education and sport. It will also fund research and treatment options for veterans with mild traumatic brain injury.

Grants could fund research into new surgery techniques such as Direct Skeletal Fixation, which enables artificial limbs to be permanently fixed to bones, removing the need to use traditional socket-based technology.

The Fund will also aim to support drug-assisted therapy trials, currently underway in the US and Israel, which have shown promising results in treating patients suffering with PTSD, and could also help with restoring patients’ function after brain injuries.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said: “We hugely value the sacrifices made by so many brave men and women in our Armed Forces. Supporting injured veterans and those with mental health needs is a crucial part of repaying the huge debt we all owe them.

“This new Fund will help ensure veterans get the support they deserve with the very best ground-breaking research and treatments.”

The fund will be distributed by the Office for Veterans’ Affairs (OVA) as part of the Government’s commitment to support veterans.

In addition to the new £5 million Veterans’ Health Innovation Fund, the Government has provided £10 million for veterans with mental health needs in both the 2021 and 2020 budgets. These funds are distributed through the AFCFT.

In September 2021, the Prime Minister also announced that Armed Forces charities would receive £5 million in additional funding to support veterans, including those who may be struggling following recent events in Afghanistan.

Register your defibrillator to help save lives across Scotland

The Circuit: Charities and health organisations urge people to register their defibrillators on database to help save lives  

A new campaign has been launched across Scotland to urge defibrillator owners to register their devices on a national database to help save more lives from cardiac arrests.

Leading charities and health organisations have come together calling for defibrillators to be registered on The Circuit – The national defibrillator network, which connects defibrillators to NHS ambulance services across the UK, so that in those crucial moments after a cardiac arrest they can be accessed quickly to help save lives.

  • There are around 3,200 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests every year in Scotland, but only one in ten people survive.
  • Every minute that passes without CPR or defibrillation reduces the chances of survival by up to 10 per cent in some instances, but immediate CPR and defibrillation can more than double the chances of survival.
  • It’s estimated that public-access defibrillators (PADs) are used in less than one in ten out-of-hospital cardiac arrests across the UK – often because 999 call handlers aren’t always aware that a defibrillator is available nearby because the ambulance service hasn’t been told about it. If they don’t know it is there, they can’t direct someone at the scene to retrieve it while waiting for the ambulance to arrive. 

To help save more lives, The British Heart Foundation (BHF), Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) St John Ambulance and Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE), are urging people who look after defibrillators in places such as offices, communities, shopping centres and leisure centres, as well as in public places, to register them on The Circuit.

James Jopling, Head of BHF Scotland, said: ““Every second counts when someone has a cardiac arrest and, alongside CPR, prompt use of a defibrillator is critical in giving them the best chance of survival.

“To put it simply, knowing where the nearest defibrillator is could be the difference between life and death.

“The Circuit is pioneering technology which will help emergency services direct bystanders more quickly to a defibrillator when someone collapses with a cardiac arrest. But for The Circuit to save lives, it is vital that unregistered defibrillators are put on the system. If you, or somebody you know is a defibrillator guardian, then we urge you to register your device on The Circuit. You could help save a life.”

Pauline Howie, Chief Executive of the Scottish Ambulance Service, said: “When someone calls 999 to report a cardiac arrest, the call handlers in our control rooms are trained to provide the location of the nearest registered defibrillator within 500m of the call. 

“Studies show that using a defibrillator within three minutes of collapse, along with starting CPR, can greatly increase chances of survival.  

“This swift action can make a real difference, and The Circuit is a vital tool in helping increase bystander action to help someone in cardiac arrest. Over the last five years, the Save a Life for Scotland (SALFS) partnership which includes SAS, the Scottish Government and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has equipped over 640,000 people with CPR skills, and the survival rate after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest has doubled to one in ten people. 

“However, there’s more we can do, and to help save even more lives, we would urge everyone to register the defibrillators that they are responsible for on The Circuit, so that they can be easily located and accessed when needed.”  

Dr James Cant, Chief Executive Officer at Resuscitation Council UK, said: “A cardiac arrest can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time. Not only is defibrillator use a crucial step in the Chain of Survival, the presence of defibrillators in public places can help raise awareness and stimulate people to think about what they would do in an emergency. 

“Survival depends on all links in the Chain of Survival being carried out quickly. This means early recognition and calling for help, early CPR, early defibrillation and post resuscitation care – and The Circuit plays a vital role in giving people their best chance of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest.”

While the 14 UK ambulance services have previously had their own regional databases, The Circuit will eventually replace these with a new national database that lets the ambulance services see defibrillators across the UK once it has been rolled out. This will allow them to direct people to the nearest defibrillator when somebody is having a cardiac arrest, wherever they are.

The Circuit, which is already live in 12 of the 14 ambulance service regions across the UK[1] and will become nationwide soon, could help to save thousands of lives – but it is vital that as many defibrillators as possible are registered on the database for it to work effectively. 

It’s free to register your defibrillator onto The Circuit, and you only have to do it once. You can also register multiple defibrillators if you are the guardian to more than one.

Visit TheCircuit.UK for more information or to register your defibrillator.