health

Tests offered during National HIV Testing Week

The Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust (NDHT) is joining in the national campaign to raise awareness during National HIV Testing Week, which begins on Saturday 21 November in the run up to World AIDS Day on 1st December.

National HIV Testing Week (NHTW) is a targeted, high profile, national campaign that encourages England’s key populations most affected by HIV to consider taking an HIV test.

These groups include gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) and African people

During the week, people in higher risk communities will be encouraged to take...

Campaign to tackle antibiotic misuse launches

A county-wide campaign to help parents care for their children when they have minor ailments like coughs and colds, without using unnecessary antibiotics, has been launched across Devon.

The Devon County Council Public Health campaign, ‘Listen to your gut’ follows a successful pilot by parents at the Braunton and Ilfracombe Children’s centre, which saw the development of a social media campaign consisting of an animation of ‘talking tums’. These tums represent parents in the playground sharing tips for treating minor ailments, looking after healthy gut bacteria and avoiding the...

Celebration of clinical research at RD&E

Authored by RDE Comms
Posted: Tue, 11/03/2015 - 11:58am

Members of the public are invited to an exhibition of clinical research currently being undertaken by clinicians at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, the leading research hospital in the South West Peninsula.

The event takes place on 5th November from 11.30am-1pm in the Research Innovation, Learning and Development (RILD) building on the hospital’s Wonford site. It will include a chance to view presentations on the exciting developments in clinical care currently being investigated by RD&E teams and an opportunity to meet with clinicians to discuss their work....

Celebration of Clinical Research 2015 at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust

Event Date: 
05/11/2015 - 11:30am to 1:00pm
Venue: 
Research Innovation, Learning and Development (RILD) building, Wonford

Members of the public are invited to an exhibition of clinical research currently being undertaken by clinicians at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, the leading research hospital in the South West Peninsula.

The event takes place on 5th November from 11.30am-1pm in the Research Innovation, Learning and Development (RILD) building on the hospital’s Wonford site. It will include a chance to view presentations on the exciting developments in clinical care currently being investigated by RD&E teams and an opportunity to meet with clinicians to discuss their work....

75% of suicides are among men

Statistics show that men are half as likely as women to be diagnosed with depression but three times more likely to end their own lives.

The failure to understand male depression is due to a continuing silence about the emotional world of men, according to a study to be showcased during the Economic and Social Research Council’s (ESRC) Festival of Social Science.

The research, which is carried out by Dr Ali Haggett of the University of Exeter, suggests that, although men are three times as likely to become alcohol dependent and more than twice as likely to use Class A drugs...

Cancer support group relaunches

FORCE is relaunching its support group for younger women with breast cancer.

From November 11, drop-in sessions will be held at the charity’s Support and Information Centre in Exeter on the second Wednesday of each month from 1.30pm-3pm.

Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women but it is less common in the under 50s for whom it presents specific issues.

The Younger Women’s Breast Cancer Support Group (under 50s) offers an opportunity to talk in a supportive and informal environment.

For more information, contact FORCE Oncology Support...

Five Trust projects showcased at national awards event in London

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Tue, 10/06/2015 - 5:40pm

FIVE successful projects launched by the Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust were showcased at one of the industry’s biggest awards events.

The Trust was a multiple finalist in the HSJ Value in Healthcare Awards, which recognise and reward outstanding efficiency and improvement by the NHS.

The Exeter Community Nursing Centre, Exeter cluster pharmacy team and orthopaedic department at North Devon District Hospital were shortlisted for the event at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Also in the spotlight were ComPAS, the Trust’s community patient administration...

Research transforms treatment of long-term conditions

South West patients with long-term health conditions are getting to see health experts when they need to, in an exciting project driven by research.

Under the existing model of care, patients with conditions such as arthritis are given routine appointments that often take place when their symptoms are mild. Yet when their condition deteriorates it can be difficult to secure an urgent appointment.

Now, a new approach known as Patient Initiated Clinics is hoping to transform the delivery of care across the South West by putting patients in control. Instead of appointments...

Proposed health cuts concern charity

As new figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show the number of drug-related deaths in England and Wales has increased for the second year in a row, drug and alcohol treatment charity Addaction has called for the government to rethink proposed cuts to local authority health spending.

“These tragic figures paint a stark picture of the shifting landscape of drug misuse in England and Wales,” said Simon Antrobus, Chief Executive of Addaction, which works in partnership with EDP to delivery drug and alcohol services across Devon as RISE Recovery.

“Drug treatment...

Exercise could reduce risk of dementia

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Wed, 09/02/2015 - 11:45am

More than seven in ten people from the South West (77 per cent) are not doing the amount of average weekly exercise recommended by NHS guidelines, despite evidence that taking part in regular exercise can reduce a person’s risk of developing dementia, according to a survey carried out by Alzheimer’s Society to mark the start of Memory Walks on Saturday.

Taking regular physical exercise is proven to be one of the best things that can be done to reduce the risk of getting dementia, yet over half of those surveyed from the South West (56%) didn’t know that regular exercise and...

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