NORTH EDINBURGH COST OF LIVING CAMPAIGN GROUP MEETING
The Cost of Living Campaign Group for North Edinburgh are meeting on Tuesday 20th June, 10.30am until 1pm at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre:
“We are the Cost of Living Campaign Group, we are residents of North Edinburgh concerned with the cost of living. A major issue contributing to the cost of living is the state of housing. Our homes are filled with damp and aren’t well insulated. Reporting repairs to Repair Direct and other services doesn’t seem to solve the issues.
“Structural lack of investment in the existing housing stock is undermining the human rights of residents, impacting on health, wellbeing and our personal finances.
“We invite you to listen to our stories and contribute to our campaign to improve homes across North Edinburgh and demand Repair Direct be made fit for purpose and a comprehensive response to dampness.”
Throughout 2020 and 2021, Public Health Scotland (PHS) ran three national surveys to hear directly from the parents and carers of younger children about how the COVID-19 pandemic, and the associated restrictions, had affected their families.
PHS heard how the pandemic had impacted on relationships, behaviour, mood and parental wellbeing, with negative outcomes reported more frequently in low-income households compared to high-income households.
Now, three years after the COVID-19 pandemic began, PHS is checking in again to see how young children and their families are doing. Parents and carers of a child aged between 0–11 years old are being asked to complete a new national survey, even if they have taken part in previous surveys or are caring for a child born out with the time of the pandemic restrictions. The survey is running for a fourth time from 8–30 June 2023, and PHS is keen to gauge any ripple effect, as well as any impact of the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Dr Grant Aitken, Public Health Intelligence Adviser at PHS, said:
“It’s important that we find out if the challenges we heard about previously are reducing, or if there are still some families who are struggling to cope with lasting impacts of the pandemic.
“Equally, it could be that some impacts are only becoming apparent now, and it’s important we capture these if so. This includes understanding people’s financial needs, with many families struggling to afford basics like food, housing costs or household bills.”
As with previous surveys, findings will be used by PHS to support practitioners, service providers and policy makers to respond to children and families in need, in areas covering childcare, education and health. Doing so is vital to help create a Scotland where all children and their families are given the chance to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, and to thrive.
Please complete the survey, or help us to promote it by emailing phs.comms@phs.scot for social media assets and a flyer for distribution or display.
The British Dental Association has responded to new figures from the Scottish Liberal Democrats warning the oral health gap between rich and poor children will widen, given ongoing access problems, and the growing exodus from a broken NHS system.
Official data from Public Health Scotland has already shown the fall in participation is hitting those in most deprived communities the most. In September 2008, the gap in child participation between the most and least deprived areas was three percentage points; this had increased to seven percentage points by 2010, eighteen percentage points (55.3% compared to 73.1%) in September 2021. The figure now stands at twenty percentage points (55.9% compared with 75.8%).
The BDA has warned that lower levels of participation will inevitably translate into a higher dental disease burden, with deep oral health inequalities expected to widen even further given the cumulative impact of limited access to services, the temporary suspension of public health programmes, and the impact of lockdown diets. Lower participation will reduce the chance of picking up early signs of decay at routine check-ups, and delays in treatment will mean higher costs to the NHS and worse outcomes for young patients.
The professional body has stressed that reform to the broken low margin/high volume model the service works to are now essential, and that a new model has been pledged for rollout in the autumn. At present certain key treatments can be delivered at a financial loss, accelerating the exodus from the service. A recent BDA survey showed over half (59%) of high street NHS dentist reported having reduced the amount of NHS work they did since lockdown. Over four in five (83%) said they plan to reduce or further reduce their NHS commitment in the year ahead.
The BDA says that the future of the service hinges on reform providing it with firm foundations, with a decent, sustainable model that can deliver for patients and dentists across Scotland.
David McColl, Chair of the British Dental Association’s Scottish Dental Practice Committee said:“The oral health gap between rich and poor kids is set to widen.
“It’s a national scandal. Prevention is better than cure, but dentists are losing the chance to nip problems in the bud. The growing exodus from the NHS may make that permanent.
“Tooth decay is already the number one reason for hospital admissions among young children. It will take real reform to bring this service back from the brink.”
The Warm June project aims to help children in hospitals and to create a caring community among financial services users.
For each customer who signs up for a Bilderlings account from June 1 to 30, the company will donate €5 to the award-winning Hearts & Minds (UK) and Dr. Klauns (Latvia) charities.
Both organizations work with Healthcare Clowning which is a special kind of emotional support for children in hospitals. Through play, humour, and improvisation, the Clowndoctors help young patients to cope with stress and get better faster.
“As a financial institution, we know the value of making the right investments. We want to remind people that emotional health, the smiles of our children, and a humane environment are investments too, no less valuable than financial ones. That is why we encourage people to join our campaign to support Healthcare Clowning,” Bilderlings Executive Director Dmitry Kuvshinov says.
To make signing up easier and more enjoyable, account opening and maintenance will be completely free throughout June 2023 for certain rates.
According to Bilderlings, one of the main campaign goals is not only to support Healthcare Clowning directly but also to foster a community of people with big hearts.
Sean Donnelly, Hearts & Minds Chief Executive said: “We believe that meaningful human connection is vital for health and wellbeing, and so our Clowndoctors connect with those with challenging health conditions or additional support needs to bring colour, light and laughter creating moments of pure joy.
“We are very grateful for the support offered by Bilderlings and we hope that those signing up for this wonderful campaign will know that their contributions will spread even more joy and laughter to those who really need it most”.
Marianna Milovska, Dr.Klauns Chief Executive, said: “When Clowndoctors are coming to the hospitals, they bring joy to children, they help to relieve stress in parents, and support medical staff during procedures — and thus making hospital atmosphere warmer and more humane.
“But for Healthcare Clowning program to really work, visits should be regular, so children, parents, and medical staff could trust and rely on the Clowndoctors’ presence.
“As a charity we depend on private and corporate donations. Of course, we are thankful for any support given, but especially grateful we are to a more systemic and regular approach, which helps us to build long-term plans.
“This is why we highly appreciate this Bilderlings initiative to build one more caring and helping community with their clients”,
Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK
Healthy Heart Tip: Heart Health & Father’s Day
In the lead up to Father’s Day in the UK, we wanted to shine the spotlight on the heart health of the men reading our tips, or the men in your life.
Coronary heart disease generally affects more men than women and it’s important to be aware of this. It’s common for men to not prioritise their health until it stops them from living their life.
This Father’s Day, why not make a commitment to yourself or support a father figure in your life to take positive steps that contribute to the health of their hearts? Here are some ideas!
A heart healthy breakfast
Treat yourself or the fatherly figures in your life to a heart healthy breakfast. Instead of a greasy fry-up why not provide a breakfast full of omega-3 such as poached egg, smoked salmon and avocado on multi-seeded toast. It’s easy to make, healthy and delicious!
A healthy gift
Father’s Day usually means buying gifts which tend to be not so heart healthy, like chocolates and alcohol.
Choose a heart healthy gift option like an active day out such as paintballing, paddle boarding or even a set of cooking classes you can attend together to inspire you both to cook more from scratch.
Take up a healthy hobby together
Use Father’s Day as an opportunity to engage your dad or fatherly figure in a healthy hobby together, this could be walking, running, sailing or even climbing.
Everyone can benefit from being more active and you could buy lessons for an activity as a gift and make it something you do together long-term, which will also benefit your heart health.
For more tips on how to stay healthy, sign up for weekly healthy tips at www.heartresearch.org.uk/health-tips.
The British Dental Association has responded to new figures from the Scottish Liberal Democrats, acknowledging that the Scottish Government’s consistent use of registration figures to illustrate the supposed ‘recovery’ in the service is effectively meaningless.
Patients in Scotland are registered for life, so the key focus must be on participation, which remains stubbornly below pre-COVID levels.
The professional body has stressed that reform to the broken low margin/high volume model the service works to are now essential, and that a new model has bee pledged for rollout in the autumn.
At present certain key treatments can be delivered at a financial loss, accelerating the exodus from the service. A recent BDA survey showed over half (59%) of high street NHS dentist reported having reduced the amount of NHS work they did since lockdown.
Over four in five (83%) said they plan to reduce or further reduce their NHS commitment in the year ahead.
The BDA says that the future of the service hinges on reform providing it with firm foundations, with a decent, sustainable model that can deliver for patients and dentists across Scotland.
Charlotte Waite, National Director of the British Dental Association Scotland said:“When patients are put on the books for life registration is a meaningless metric.
“What really matters is the patients getting through our doors, and on that note NHS dentistry has not returned to anything resembling ‘business as usual’.
“This service is at a tipping point. Without reform there can be no recovery.”
Members of the public in Edinburgh are being encouraged to get their liver checked for free at The Mound Precinct, EH2 2EL on Tuesday 13th June with the arrival of a mobile liver screening roadshow.
One in ten adults in Edinburgh may be walking around with liver disease and be completely unaware because there are usually no symptoms in the early stages, warns the British Liver Trust.
People can go along to the mobile unit from 10am to 4pm to find out what preventative measures they can take to keep their liver healthy and be offered a free liver scan.
Nine in 10 cases of liver disease are preventable with the main causes being alcohol, obesity and viral hepatitis.
Pamela Healy, Chief Executive of British Liver Trust, said, “One in three of us are at risk of liver disease and the numbers of people being diagnosed have been increasing at an alarming rate.
“Liver damage develops silently with no signs or symptoms and people often don’t realise they have a problem until it is too late. Although the liver is remarkably resilient, if left until symptoms appear, the damage is often irreversible.
“The Love Your Liver roadshow is a great opportunity for people to find out their risk of liver disease. Approximately 20% of the people we scan need to have further checks.”
The British Liver Trust’s Love Your Liver campaign focuses on three simple steps to Love Your Liver back to health:
1. Drink within recommended limits and have three consecutive days off alcohol every week
2. Cut down on sugar, carbohydrates and fat, and take more exercise
3. Know the risk factors for viral hepatitis and get tested or vaccinated if at risk
The roadshow comprises a mobile unit where people can take a free online screening test and find out if they are at risk. Free liver health scanning will also be available using a non-invasive device. There will be expert guidance on how to keep your liver healthy from healthcare professionals who will be on hand to provide advice on diet, exercise and healthy living.
In addition to the roadshow in Edinburgh, the mobile unit will also be stopping at:
Aberdeen: St Nicholas Street, AB10 1BF – Sunday 11th June
Dundee: City Square, DD1 3AJ – Monday 12th June
If you can’t attend this event you can still find out if you are at risk and check your liver health online by doing the online screening test at:
More people living with obesity will have access to the newest and most effective obesity drugs to help cut NHS waiting lists, following the UK Government’s announcement of a £40 million two-year pilot yesterday
Two-year pilot backed by up to £40 million will explore ways to make obesity drugs accessible to patients living with obesity outside of hospital settings
The newest weight loss drugs can help adults living with obesity lose up to 15 per cent of their body weight when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity and behavioural support
Pilots build on government’s work to tackle obesity, reducing pressure on the NHS and cutting waiting lists
More people living with obesity will have access to the newest and most effective obesity drugs to help cut NHS waiting lists, following the announcement of a £40 million two-year pilot yesterday.
Earlier this year, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended the use of Semaglutide (Wegovy) for adults with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of at least 35 and one weight-related health condition – such as diabetes or high blood pressure. Other drugs are currently under consideration in clinical trials.
There is evidence from clinical trials that, when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity and behavioural support, people taking a weight-loss drug can lose up to 15 per cent of their body weight after one year. Taking them alongside diet, physical activity and behavioural support can help people lose weight within the first month of treatment.
Obesity is one of the leading causes of severe health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer, and it costs the NHS £6.5 billion a year. There were more than 1 million admissions to NHS hospitals in 2019/2020 where obesity was a factor.
Using the latest treatments to tackle obesity will contribute to cutting waiting lists by reducing the number of people who suffer from weight-related illnesses, who tend to need more support from the NHS and could end up needing operations linked to their weight – such as gallstone removal or hip and knee replacements.
NICE advise that Wegovy should only be available via specialist weight management services, which are largely hospital based. This would mean only around 35,000 people would have access to Wegovy, when tens of thousands more could be eligible.
The £40 million pilots will explore how approved drugs can be made safely available to more people by expanding specialist weight management services outside of hospital settings. This includes looking at how GPs could safely prescribe these drugs and how the NHS can provide support in the community or digitally – contributing to the government’s wider ambition to reduce pressure on hospitals and give people access to the care they need where it is most convenient for them.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “Obesity puts huge pressure on the NHS.
“Using the latest drugs to support people to lose weight will be a game-changer by helping to tackle dangerous obesity-related health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and cancer – reducing pressure on hospitals, supporting people to live healthier and longer lives, and helping to deliver on my priority to cut NHS waiting lists.
Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said: “Obesity costs the NHS around £6.5 billion a year and is the second biggest cause of cancer.
“This next generation of obesity drugs have the potential to help people lose significant amounts of weight, when prescribed with exercise, diet and behavioural support.
“Tackling obesity will help to reduce pressure on the NHS and cut waiting times, one of the government’s five priorities, and this pilot will help people live longer, healthier lives.”
Health Minister Neil O’Brien said: “We know that obesity puts additional pressure on the NHS and is linked to a whole host of health problems – including diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“Expanding how to access these innovative new drugs will ensure as many eligible patients as possible have the opportunity to try these treatments if they are right for them to help achieve a healthier weight.
“These pilots build on our ongoing work to tackle obesity – including introducing calorie labelling on menus to empower people to make informed decisions and investing in school sport to give children an active start in life.”
NHS medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said: “Tackling obesity is a key part of the NHS Long Term Plan – it can have devastating consequences for the nation’s health, leading to serious health conditions and some common cancers as well as resulting in significant pressure on NHS services.
“Pharmaceutical treatments offer a new way of helping people with obesity gain a healthier weight and this new pilot will help determine if these medicines can be used safely and effectively in non-hospital settings as well as a range of other interventions we have in place.”
NICE is also considering potential NHS use of another drug known as Tirzepatide – which is currently licenced to treat diabetes but may also help with weight loss – if it receives a license for weight loss in the coming months.
NHS England is already working to implement recommendations from NICE to make this new class of treatment available to patients through established specialist weight management services, subject to negotiating a secure long-term supply of the products at prices that represent value for money taxpayers.
Losing weight can help to reduce the risk of obesity-related illness which in turn can reduce pressure on the NHS, cut waiting times, and realise wider economic benefits.
The pilot builds on the firm action the government is already taking to tackle obesity, including:
Introducing calorie labelling on menus, which are expected to bring health benefits of £4.6 billion and provide NHS savings of £430 million
Restrictions on the location of unhealthy foods in shops, which are expected to bring health benefits of over £57 billion and provide NHS savings of over £4 billion over the next 25 years
Introducing the Soft Drinks Industry Levy which has seen the average sugar content of drinks decrease by 46 per cent between 2015 and 2020
Last year the government announced £20million for the Office of Life Science’s Obesity Mission. This will explore innovative ways to best utilise promising medicines and digital technologies to help NHS patients achieve a healthy weight.
The Better Health: Rewards App is also being piloted in Wolverhampton. It is offering incentives such as vouchers for shops, gym discounts and cinema tickets for people who eat healthily and exercise more.
The 2019 Health Survey for England estimated that over 12 million adults were living with obesity – 28 per cent of the population in England – while a further 16 million (36 per cent) were overweight. This means that around two-thirds of the adult population were above a healthy weight – defined as having a BMI of 25 or above.
DHSC launched a call for evidence in May to inform the Major Conditions Strategy, including further work to tackle obesity.
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), an alliance of leading providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people, is calling on all Scotland’s political parties to come together and make mental health a key focus.
The call comes as new waiting time figures out yesterday (6th June), highlight that 469 children and young people had been languishing on waiting lists for more than a year for treatment from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) at the quarter ending March 2023.1
Indeed, just 74.2 per cent of patients with mental health problems were seen within 18 weeks of referral to CAMHS, with more than a quarter waiting longer than this time. This is short of the Scottish Government’s waiting time target of 90 per cent being seen within 18 weeks. 1
The new figures indicate that it has failed to deliver a key pledge to clear waiting lists by March 2023, as outlined in the NHS Recovery Plan.2
Figures also show that as many as 7,701 children and young people were still stuck on waiting lists to start treatment at the end of the quarter ending March 2023, an increase of 138 on the previous quarter ending December 2022.
The new figures are set against the backdrop of a mental health emergency, which is set to worsen given the cost-of-living crisis and services already at breaking point.
The SCSC is calling on a cross party approach to prioritise spending on mental health, avoiding a potential lost generation of children and young people with mental health problems, such as anxiety, depression and self-harm.
Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, cases of poor mental health in children and young people were at unprecedented levels, with under-resourced services struggling to keep pace with growing demand, leaving an increasing number of vulnerable individuals unable to access support. Children and young people are still battling with the long shadow of lockdown, and the rising cost of living is adding to the pressure.
A spokesperson for the SCSC commented: “The latest figures highlighting that more than 460 of our children and young people have been languishing on waiting lists for treatment more than a year is extremely alarming.
“Disturbingly, this means that the Scottish Government has totally failed to achieve its pledge to clear waiting lists by March 2023, leaving many thousands of children and young people waiting for treatment.
“Even before the Covid-19 pandemic demand for already overstretched and under-resourced mental health services was increasing. The mental health of our children and young people has deteriorated markedly over the past decade, and both the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis are making matters even worse, creating a potential lost generation of vulnerable children and young people.
“We are facing a mental health emergency and many of our children and young people are at breaking point, with stress and anxiety reaching alarming levels as they battle with the long shadow of lockdown and the rising cost of living.
“We must make the delivery of adequately resourced mental health services for our children and young people an absolute priority and would urge all of Scotland’s political parties to come together and make this a reality.”
