The Heart of Scotland appeal, launched by national charity Heart Research UK, has partnered with Scottish Women in Sport (SWIS) in a bid to increase the activity levels of women across Scotland.
Every year, coronary heart disease, including heart attacks, kills around 2,600 women in Scotland – seven women every day.
The Heart of Scotland appeal was launched in 2019 to raise awareness of the problem of heart health in Scotland, as well as generating vital funds for pioneering research at Universities’ and hospitals across the country.
Coronary heart disease is Scotland’s single biggest killer, with lifestyle factors such as obesity and lack of exercise directly impacting upon a person’s risk.
In an effort to combat the statistic that more than a third of adults in Scotland do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity, the Heart of Scotland appeal has teamed up with SWIS to inspire women across Scotland to get more active.
Today, the Heart of Scotland Appeal and SWIS will be celebrating International Women’s Day by featuring inspirational video interviews with some of Scotland’s leading female athletes, including Hannah Rankin, Katie Archibald MBE, Jasmin Paris, Rebecca Sellar, Samantha Kinghorn and Rachel Corsie.
They will share their experiences of reaching the pinnacle of their respective sports and their advice for any young person wishing to follow in their footsteps.
Heart Research UK have collaborated on this latest campaign, which has been backed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, to highlight the relationship between an active lifestyle and a healthy heart whilst encouraging more women in Scotland to get active.
This is the second collaboration between Heart Research UK and Scottish Women in Sport who together produced a series of video interviews with four of the leading Scottish female researchers, academics and practitioners who have devoted their time and expertise to taking on heart disease for International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
Maureen McGonigle, Founder of Scottish Women in Sport, said:“It is a privilege to work with Heart Research UK, as they are such an established and passionate organisation.
“Together along with some of Scotland’s top sportswomen, we hope to raise awareness of the impact of heart disease on women, and hopefully encourage more women to get active and take on heart disease.”
Dr Helen Flaherty, head of Health Promotion and Education at Heart Research UK, said: “We all know how important it is to be active – it’s one of the best things we can do to improve our heart health.
“However, many people find it difficult to get motivated, or struggle to fit the recommended 150 minutes of exercise into a week.
“Women often find it difficult to engage with physical activity due to a lack of confidence and time. Through this partnership with SWIS, we hope to be able to encourage women all across Scotland to increase their activity levels, and also to encourage the next generation of Scottish sportswomen, as well as helping to reduce the gender gap in physical activity and sport.”
Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by Dr Helen Flaherty, Head of Health Promotion at Heart Research UK
It’s never too late in the year to think about setting some personal targets. Research indicates that the first key step to making positive changes to our lifestyle is setting a goal.
With this in mind, here are some of the things you may consider when setting a target to improve your heart health:
Be Clear About What You Want to Achieve
Detailed, specific goals that use some sort of framework such as SMART can help us to set correspondingly clear actions on how to achieve our goal. Try and avoid goals which include statements such as ‘do your best’ and rather opt for an objective measure to assess your performance against such as ‘score above 80%’.
Be Like Goldilocks
We know that setting goals that are either too challenging or too easy will reduce your likelihood of success. Goals need to be ‘just right’ by offering a level of challenge whilst also being realistic.
Break It Down
Try to include regular check-ins to assess your progress and adjust your goal if necessary. For example, if you are looking to lose weight, you may schedule a monthly weigh-in.
Write It Down
It can be useful to commit to your goal with a pencil and paper. Interestingly, those who sign a ‘contract’ of commitment to their goal will typically improve their chances of goal achievement; this could be a post-it note on the fridge or a handwritten pledge that you keep on your desk.
Share It
Research also indicates that sharing our goal with someone else can improve accountability, and thus increase our likelihood of success.
For more tips on how to improve your heart health, visit the ‘Healthy Tips’ page on our website.
Scotland’s vaccination programme has now delivered second doses of the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine to more than half of care home residents.
In total, 17,258 care home residents (58% of residents in older adult care homes and 54% of residents in all care homes) have received the second dose which offers longer lasting protection.
Supplies of vaccines were specifically deployed in order that second doses could be delivered on time to these cohorts, who are among those at greatest risk from coronavirus (COVID-19).
For the population as a whole 1,743,869 have received their first dose, and 114,081 have been given their second dose. Invitations are now being issued to all groups in phase one of the roll-out and subject to supply, the programme remains on track to offer first doses to all over 50 year olds, unpaid carers and those with particular underlying health conditions by the middle of April.
Heath Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “I am pleased to see that more than half of care home residents have received their second doses, giving them longer lasting protection.
“I want to thank all those who have taken up their offer of a vaccination – the high take up in these settings has contributed to a reduction in outbreaks of the virus in care homes.
“Alongside other protections in place, vaccination has also helped to enable the resumption of indoor visiting, reuniting families with their loved ones.
“Scotland’s COVID-19 vaccination programme continues to deliver at pace, which is down to the enormous efforts of our vaccination teams and I want to thank everyone who is working tirelessly to make this a success.
“The vaccination programme is one of three key ways we are working to beat this virus, along with our expanded testing programme to identify cases and break chains of transmission and the important lockdown restrictions everyone in Scotland must follow. All these measures work to greatest effect when they work together.”
The Scottish Liberal Democrat spring conference has today backed a package of proposals to “fix overwhelmed mental health services for good”.
As part of the party’s call to put recovery first, the seven-point plan will:
Increase the number of training places for psychiatrists and clinical psychologists, especially those specialising in CAMHS;
Add counsellors to NHS workforce planning so their skills can help more people;
Expand the trained counselling workforce through new bursaries and training routes to widen access;
Fully resource mental health services through a target for them to receive 15% of future health spend increases;
Make every health service contact count through enhanced signposting to existing counsellors and third sector resources;
Provide new community services that young people can access with their families;
Restart and ramp up mental health first aid training with a new aspiration that every workplace should benefit.
Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “It’s time for Scotland to put the recovery first and fix our overwhelmed mental health services for good.
“That means increasing the number of training places for psychiatrists and psychologists. We need to dramatically expand the number of counsellors and get the health service to help them tackle mental health problems in communities, schools and workplaces.
“The Scottish Government’s mental health strategy was years late and short on ambition. Even before the pandemic struck we had a record number of children waiting over a year for help.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats have consistently championed our national mental health. Already this year our research has shown the toll it is taking. We’ve led Parliament in declaring a crisis and secured £120 million more for services next year. But it needs the full weight of our proposals and a government that will put recovery first to fix this for good.”
Scottish Liberal Democrat mental health spokesperson Rebecca Bell said: “This election is about putting the recovery first and that can only happen if we put both physical health and mental health at the core of the recovery.
“Far too often mental health services are reliant on third sector provision with only a short- term funding commitment from the government. Meanwhile the Scottish Government cancelled training for mental health first-aiders during the pandemic despite similar courses continuing to run elsewhere in the UK.
“These first-aiders can make all the difference, for example, someone to talk to at work when they start feeling unwell, before problems get worse. At the same time 1 in 8 specialist positions in child and adolescent mental health are unfilled, with young people in long queues waiting for treatment whilst they and their families are desperate for help.
“It’s time for a radical change. Scotland needs this realistic investment in order to achieve the long-term solutions we require to emerge from this crisis. You shouldn’t have to wait years for mental health support, any more than you should for cancer or a broken leg.
“These proposals from Scottish Liberal Democrats demonstrate our commitment to making Scotland a mental health world leader.”
Staff and volunteers at a mental health and wellbeing charity have received a £2,000 donation from Amazon Development Centre Scotland in Edinburgh.
Health in Mind has been promoting mental health and wellbeing in Scotland since 1982. The charity provides a wide range of services such as Peer Connections Edinburgh, which helps adults who want to improve or manage their mental health by spending time with a peer volunteer that has their own experiences of mental health recovery.
The charity also runs iThrive Edinburgh, an online resource hub for the people of Edinburgh that provides information on mental health and wellbeing.
The donation from Amazon will go towards supporting their vital work in Edinburgh, including our Peer Connecting Service and Equal Access, which supports people from ethnic minority communities
Commenting on the donation, Graeme Smith, Managing Director at Amazon Development Centre Scotland, said: “We are pleased to support the great work of Health in Mind with this donation.
“The staff and volunteers go the extra mile to ensure the people of our community struggling with their mental health are supported.”
Lynne Stanford, Fundraising Manager from Health in Mind, said: “We want to say a huge thank you to Graeme and the Amazon team for this donation.
“It means a great deal to us to have this support at this time – COVID-19 has had a huge impact on people’s mental health. This donation helps raise awareness and importance for the support we provide and ensures we are here for people when they need us the most.”
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. The team is currently recruiting for a number of positions including software developers, engineers and applied scientists.
The donation was made as part of the ‘Amazon in the Community’ programme, whereby the company supports the communities around its operating locations across the UK.
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 students with free online STEM resources and supported virtual classrooms with no-cost resources from AWS. The company has also teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver over 3 million healthy breakfasts to disadvantaged children around the UK.
For more information on how Amazon is supporting the UK during COVID-19, click here.
That’s the message from NSPCC Scotland, which says to deliver on long-held policy aspirations and to make Scotland a country that fully respects children’s rights, the new Scottish Government needs to radically transform early childhood.
Ahead of May’s election, the charity has outlined its call for a £100m Fair Start Fund to be invested in public services, as the country emerges from the pandemic, to support the emotional wellbeing of babies’ and their families. This will ensure that all young children in Scotland receive nurturing care and thrive; not just survive.
The charity is setting out its calls as it holds its UK flagship How Safe conference online, which brought together a panel of guest speakers who discussed mental health in pregnancy and the child’s first year, and the impact of the pandemic.
Despite overwhelming evidence that people’s experiences in early childhood lay the foundations for their future health and wellbeing, and over a decade on from the Scottish Government’s Early Years Framework, there is still a massive gulf in the support young children need, and the support they receive.
NSPCC Scotland research shows that before the pandemic hit, there were very few services across the country that specifically addressed the emotional and developmental needs of infants or children under the age of two1.
Research undertaken during Covid-19 has underlined how closely attuned a young child’s mental and emotional wellbeing is with that of their parents. A UK-wide survey by Parent-Infant Foundation, Best Beginnings and Home Start found that six in 10 new parents shared significant concerns about their mental health and a third of parents reported that interaction with their child had changed2.
Also, a Public Health Scotland survey found a clear association between a child’s wellbeing and their parents mental and emotional health during the lockdown period3.
It is vital to scope out the level of need among young children and families and ensure that sufficient community and specialist services are available across Scotland to support very young children’s social and emotional development.
“With plans to incorporate the UNCRC into Scots law, which places the rights of all children, including babies, on a statutory footing, it is vital we radically transform early childhood in Scotland – a challenge we urge the new government to fully embrace.
“We recognise that advances in early years policy have been made in Scotland in the last decade but this needs to be matched with funding. Huge investment is needed to ensure that all children in our country are offered the best start in life. Also, it is imperative that those who have experienced early adversity, including the effects of the pandemic, receive the specialist mental health support they and their carers need to heal and move on.”
NSPCC Scotland’s Fight for a Fair Start campaign is calling on the public to back its petition urging the next Scottish Government to invest heavily in early childhood.
Fight for a Fair Start is supported by Jo Malone London who have also funded direct services to new and prospective parents, focusing on support with their mental health problems, to help them develop secure and healthy relationships with their children.
The Stroke Association in Scotland is reminding people that stroke remains a clinical priority in Scotland amidst concerns that current stroke improvement work could be lost to Covid-19.
The charity is highlighting this on the day it launches its manifesto ahead of the Scottish Elections.
Colin Oliver, Public Affairs Officer for the Stroke Association in Scotland said: “Covid-19 has been tough for all of us.
“Thanks to the amazing commitment of some truly dedicated people working in the NHS and in social care, lives have been saved and people have been cared for. Stroke teams up and down the country, have in many areas managed to continue to offer specialist care and treatment to patients throughout the pandemic.
“We cannot thank them enough. We really do owe them a huge amount.
“But we are concerned. The fallout from Covid-19 is going to pose challenges for everyone in health and social care. Our Recoveries at Risk report[i] last autumn highlighted the real life impact of the pandemic on people recovering from a stroke. Emerging evidence of links between Covid-19 and stroke[ii] means that now, more than ever, a renewed national focus on stroke is needed in Scotland.
“Health officials have been working during the pandemic to review evidence and define what ‘a progressive stroke service for Scotland’ should look like. This will include improved stroke care bundle figures, improved stroke prevention measures, a national thrombectomy service and stroke-specific, person-centred rehabilitation. The charity is pleased that people affected by stroke will be included in the development of this work.”
A draft paper will be with the Scottish Government in the next few weeks. Whatever the outcome of May’s election the Stroke Association in Scotland expects the next government to push this work on, and for a new, improved, progressive stroke service to be implemented.
Around 10,000 people have a stroke every year in Scotland.[iii] Stroke and cerebrovascular diseases kill over 3,800 people annually.[iv] Many more have to live with the effects. There are now over 128 000 stroke survivors living in Scotland.[v] It’s estimated there will be almost 175 000 by 2035.[vi]
Stroke is a brain attack and happens when the blood supply to part of your brain is cut off and brain cells are damaged or die. The impact varies from person to person depending on which part of the brain is affected. It could be anything from wiping out speech and physical abilities, to affecting emotions and personality.
Brenna Collie from Strichen near Fraserburgh, had a stroke four years ago when she was just 14. Brenna was in her bedroom texting a friend when the phone slipped from her hand and she realised she couldn’t pick it up again.
“It happened very quickly. I lost all movement down the left side of my body. I couldn’t walk. My speech was all slurred and I couldn’t call for help. I have never felt so scared.”
She knows only too well that her life would be very different without the stroke specialist treatment and support she received.
Brenna received good care throughout her stroke journey. She underwent thorough investigations and received speedy access to treatment. She had intensive rehabilitation which helped her to walk again and begin to return to an independent life.
“I had to learn how to do things I took for granted like getting dressed and brushing my teeth. I have received amazing support from health professionals, my teachers at school, family and friends. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say how tough it’s been.
“After coming home from hospital, I started to have problems with anxiety and my self-esteem. At school, I was ‘the girl who’d had a stroke’, and many of my classmates didn’t understand what had happened, which made school challenging. That was hard and I felt very alone. But I’ve pulled through and my family have been my rock.”
After returning to school Brenna slowly picked up her hobbies again including cycling, archery and photography. In 2019, she won the prestigious Scottish Portrait Award Young Photographer Award for a self-portrait of how she felt the night she had her stroke.
During lockdown, Brenna took to cycling and has cycled 22 miles to Fraserburgh and back –a big moment for her. Her granny has also taught her how to knit over the lockdown period, which helps strengthen Brenna’s weak arm.
Brenna is now studying Primary Education at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh.
The Stroke Association in Scotland, is urging people to read its election manifesto launched today and to support its call for the implementation of a new progressive stroke service.
Colin said: “The implementation of a new, improved stroke service across the entire pathway from prevention to hospital treatment, rehabilitation and support, in tandem with forthcoming changes nationally to delivery of social care presents an opportunity for the next government to make a profound difference to the lives of thousands of Scots families.”
Scottish Ensemble is putting wellness centre stage with brand new events aimed at enhancing wellbeing through both music, and techniques and tools aimed at helping people find calm.
At a time when so many are struggling in terms of their mental health – coping with working from home, home-schooling, loneliness and even bereavement – SE launch Breathe: Music and Your Mind with Maggie’s, three events inspired by their longstanding relationship with the charity.
Supporting and developing their brilliant work with people with cancer and their families by bringing live music into their centres, which they have been doing since 2016, SE are taking their music and mindfulness sessions online with three free, one-hour events on Sunday 28 March at 3pm and Tuesday 30 March at both 2pm and then again at 5.30pm.
The ensemble will continue to share its trademark music for strings alongside reflections from Maggie’s Lead Psychologist, Lesley Howells, on how we can all use music in our daily lives to help us feel better.
Listening to music is one of the easiest ways to enhance well-being and the ensemble are encouraging audiences from all over the world to join them in escaping the rigmarole of the daily grind and restrictions and to help restore focus in an undeniably tumultuous world.
Young people’s mental health is also at risk due to the pressures and anxieties stemming from the pandemic, so the ensemble has also programmed a Maggie’s event for schools on Monday 29 March at 12.30pm.
Like the events for adults yet tailored to the needs of school age children (years P6-S6) this event will address the types of stresses these young people might be encountering, while perhaps also introducing them to new music.
With the increase in pressure on everyone’s mental health, we could all do with taking some time out for ourselves and these special performances will help viewers find new ways to listen and give them a taste of how to channel music to sweep away daily pressures.
William Norris, Interim Chief Executive at Scottish Ensemble said:“These free events give people a much-needed opportunity to switch off, step back, and put their own wellbeing centre stage.
“Maggie’s Centres are at the forefront of the quest to improve mental wellbeing with music and conversation, and the way they resiliently continue to improve the lives of so many every single day is truly inspiring.
“We’re delighted to be working with them again to help bring the soothing and stress-relieving power of music to as many people as possible, and can’t wait to see what this partnership brings in the future.”
In addition to these events, Scottish Ensemble continue to promote innovation and collaboration with 2021 digital programme as they announce new film First Light with celebrated Guest Director Max Baillie.
Premiering online on Thursday 29 April at 7.30pm (and available to view online thereafter for ticket holders until midnight on Monday 7 August) First Light is a collaboration between SE and self-described cross-pollinator, soloist, chamber musician, improviser and member of Lodestar Trio and ZRI, Max Baillie.
First Light is an uplifting concert featuring works by Haydn, Vivaldi, Jessie Montgomery, Steve Martland and Max Baillie himself, performed by SE musicians Kate Suthers, Kana Kawashima, Tristan Gurney, Laura Ghiro and George Smith on violin, Jane Atkins and Andrew Berridge on viola, Alison Lawrance and Naomi Pavri on cello, Diane Clark on bass and Jan Waterfield on the harpsichord.
Bringing life and energy to audiences via their screens, First Light signals the transition from darkness to brighter times and Max will lead viewers on a journey through joyful, uplifting and optimistic music, bursting with luminosity.
From Jessie Montgomery’s explosive Starburst, through the tempestuousness of a new string ensemble arrangement of Haydn’s ‘Fifths string quartet to Vivaldi’s vivacious Concerto Grosso in G minor, the programme presents a visual and sonic dialogue between old and new, between the human and the natural, between darkness and light.
Working with Flux Video to create a striking film, Scottish Ensemble invite audiences old and new to join them online to re-energise. Created under Covid-secure conditions First Light was filmed in the Engine Works, Glasgow; a venue that brings the tradition of Glasgow’s proud industrial history and blends it with a modern, contemporary and visionary concept.
William Norris,Interim Chief Executive at Scottish Ensemble, said: “First Light symbolises the transition that we are all going through right now, both in terms of slowly coming out of restrictions and also the changing of the seasons.
“Max brings a unique creative flare to everything he does, and his music-making reflects our values around innovation, reaching new audiences and promoting cross pollination of sounds and styles; it has been a privilege to have worked with him.
“We really hope our audiences, both new and existing, enjoy tuning in.”
Max Baillie, First Light Guest Director, said:“It was an absolute pleasure working with Scottish Ensemble to create First Light, which to me symbolises positivity and hope as we look towards spring and the rest of 2021.
“We have all had to adapt over the past 12 months and to be able to work with such a forward thinking, adaptable and innovative organisation was a hugely refreshing and rewarding experience. I really hope that audiences the world over enjoy First Light as much as I enjoyed making it.”
National charity Heart Research UK have launched their first charity cookbook, featuring 17 recipes from celebs, chefs and some of the web’s biggest food bloggers.
The e-book, which is available to download here for a suggested donation of £5, features a selection of well-balanced recipes from some of the best known faces in food and fitness, including Joe Wicks, The Hairy Bikers, Heart Research UK ambassador Sally Bee, Gennaro Contraldo, Michelin Star Chef Tom Kitchin, Masterchef winner Shelina Permaloo and many more.
Recipes range from light breakfasts and brunches, through to healthy snacks, show-stopping main meals and family favourites, and even a few desserts.
Dr Helen Flaherty, Head of Health Promotion and Education at Heart Research UK, said: “As someone who loves cooking and eating nutritionally balanced dishes, I know that healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring or expensive.
“We put together this cookbook to provide everyone, from families and first time cooks to the home-chef extraordinaire, a selection of recipes that are healthy, full of flavour and unpretentious.
“I often advise people on making dietary changes to reduce their risk of heart disease and manage their weight. A healthy, well-balanced diet contains plenty of fruit, vegetables and wholegrain foods and not too much fat, sugar or salt. By using this cookbook, we hope you will discover some delicious new recipes that will enable you to keep looking after your heart.”
The cookbook can be downloaded here, for a suggested donation of £5.
All of the money raised will support Heart Research UK’s life-saving work, funding pioneering research into the prevention, treatment and cure of heart disease.
