Stronger language testing for GPs

Doctors whose English is not up to scratch could be struck off amid fears that patients lives are at risk.

There have been calls for stronger language testing since the death of David Gray in Cambridgeshire in 2008.

David Gray Credit: Picture: ITV Anglia

New book launched to guide bereaved families

WHAT do I do if someone close to me dies?

Answers to this question are what many people search for at the most difficult of times.

'Vital for families': Gary Fox, end-of-life project manager for Care Plus Group, and Lisa Revell, strategic lead for palliative and end-of-life care, with the new booklet.

And help is now available in the style of a 32-page booklet launched to guide bereaved families.

Bipolar disorder sufferer aims to tackle stigma of mental illness with support group

A BIPOLAR disorder sufferer hopes to lift the stigma put on parents with mental health issues by setting up the area's first support group.

Robert Palmer, of Cleethorpes, knows all too well the challenges of bringing up a child while fighting your own health battles.

SUPPORT: Bipolar disorder sufferer Robert Palmer, of Cleethorpes, has set up a website and support group called Parents First to bring together parents living with a mental illness. Picture: Michelle Adamson. Buy photos at www.thisisphotosales.co.uk/grimsby or by contacting 08444 060910

He has suffered from bipolar disorder for the past 14 years, while bringing up his disabled 12-year-old son Morgan.

Now 53, Robert wants other parents living with a mental health problem to feel included within society and to be able to share their experiences with others like themselves.

Battling Chloe to carry Olympic Torch

A GIRL who has suffered an immobilising condition her whole life has been chosen to carry the Olympic Torch.
Chloe Osborne, 13, of Broadway, Grimsby suffers with spina bifida, a birth defect in which the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth.

Chloe Osborne

This means Chloe is not able to walk more than a few feet without becoming tired.

However, defying the odds and out of sheer determination, Chloe will carry the Olympic Torch in Sutton-on-Sea on Wednesday, June 27, the day after celebrations to mark its arrival in Cleethorpes.

Inappropriate visits prompt urge to only use A&E if it's an accident or emergency

THE dog weeing on a plaster cast, toothache for a week, a sore throat and earache, are just some of the inappropriate reasons people have visited A&E.

And now Accident and Emergency staff at Grimsby's Diana, Princess Of Wales Hospital, are urging people to stop and think before they dash off there as a first port of call – especially with the Easter Bank Holiday weekend coming up.

THINK FIRST: The Diana, Princess Of Wales Hospital, Grimsby.

Clinical director for A&E at Grimsby, Oltunde Ashaolu said: "I would ask people to think very carefully whether their injury or illness really is an accident or an emergency. There are many alternatives to A&E which will see people get the right treatment, if needed, easily and quickly.

"We see a lot of people come to A&E who have dental pain, who have forgotten to renew their prescription from their GP, or who want the morning after pill.

Daughter tells of sadness at seeing her father coping with dementia

With the news that a new care home specifically for people with dementia is to open in July, and a Government pledge to double funding for research in the illness by 2015, Colette Stirling speaks to the daughter of a sufferer.

IT IS one of the most common diseases to affect people in the UK and yet many people are still unaware of the symptoms of dementia. But Linda Stirling is not one of them.

'Always on my mind': Linda Stirling with her dad Samuel Neilson. Submitted picture

Her father, Samuel Neilson, was diagnosed with vascular dementia several years ago, yet at first doctors diagnosed him with Alzheimer's disease – the most common form of dementia.

Linda explained: "When my mother died in 2005, I stayed with him for two weeks as his carer.

"I didn't know he had dementia then, so I just handled it with an inner strength, the way anyone would when faced with that situation.

"One night he came into his bedroom looking lost and confused, he picked up a picture of his wife, sat and cried – I just held him, not knowing what else to do."

It is said 2,975 people in North East Lincolnshire will be living with dementia in 2025.

'When Someone Dies' booklet to be launched

A new booklet providing advice and support about what to do when someone dies is being launched at the end of the month.

The booklet brings together information on all the issues that may need consideration when a loved one dies from practical details like registering the death, local funeral directors and informing government agencies to how to contact support groups and where to go for advice.

LINk AGM and 3rd Birthday

Today is the North East Lincolnshire LINk's AGM.  On Tuesday 20th March 2012 at 1.30pm in Corpus Christi Community Centre, we will celebrate our third birthday and launch our DVD about services for older people in North East Lincolnshire.

There will be cake and light refreshments, as well as a free raffle to win a £20 voucher for Freshney Place.
So why not pop along for all this and more?

 

Community helps 'Rays' funds for brave little Rio

A COMMUNITY came together for a fundraiser in support of a "very special little boy".

The event, at St Martin's Church Hall on Saturday, was held to raise money for baby Rio Jacombe.

DIGGING DEEP: A fundraiser for Rio Jacombe was held at St Martin's Church Hall, Nunsthorpe. Picture: Abby Ruston. Buy this photo at www.thisisphotosales.co.uk/grimsby or by contacting 08444 060910

​
As reported, he was born prematurely with trachea bronchial malacia, a condition where the airway is soft and weak.

Thankfully, the condition is curable with treatment but Rio, who was born five weeks early and weighing just 3lb 11oz, also has Down's Syndrome and holes in his heart.

His mum, Nicola Hallett, desperately wants to create a sensory room at her home in Milton Road, Grimsby, for Rio – who is now 26 weeks old – after seeing him smile for the first time while receiving treatment at a similar facility at Sheffield's Children's Hospital.

First phase of £4.4m hospital upgrade is finished

PHASE one of a £4.4 million scheme to upgrade wards at Grimsby's Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital is complete.

The work – designed to redevelop the oncology, haematology and rheumatology wards – has created a new haematology and oncology unit to replace ward A1 and the former Macmillan Suite.


 

Closure of autism centre in Grimsby delayed for four months

THE closure of a schooling centre for autistic children in Grimsby has been delayed until at least July.

North East Lincolnshire Council leader Chris Shaw yesterday told parents that the Asdrel service would continue in its current form until the end of the academic year.

SAVED: Parents and children celebrate after the proposed closure of Asdrel, an outreach centre for autistic children, has been saved until at least July. From left, Guy Hunt,15, Mandy Hunt, Louise Osborne, Thomas Portus, 11, and Denise Portus. Picture: Michelle Adamson

The news was welcomed by parents who had feared the centre was going to close at the end of this month.

And although Mr Shaw said it was likely that Asdrel would close in July, he added that the four-month extension would allow for a smoother transition to whatever service replaces it.

Unique health experts offer multiple support

PATIENTS can now receive multiple care from a single individual thanks to new roles within the Care Plus Group.

Twelve unique health professionals have completed a two-year foundation degree course at the Grimsby Institute to become assistant practitioners.

STUDENT SUCCESS: A celebration lunch was held at the ABP port office, to mark the achievement of 12 Care Plus staff who have completed a Foundation Degree. Far left, is practice learning facilitator Judi Green. Picture: Abby Ruston

This new role will provide a more joined up, multi disciplinary care to those who need it as it combines the skills, knowledge and competencies of three areas of work. These include health, social care and therapy skills.

Call the midwives – they have been given a top award

FIRST-time mothers throughout North East Lincolnshire are benefiting from an award-winning midwifery team in the area.

The Community Midwifery Team has won a Creating Valued Partnership award for its work with council children's centres.

​GLOWING AWARD: Members of the Community Midwifery Team, pictured with, standing centre left, Lynda Waters, acting community manager, Joanne Hewson, deputy director of children's health and family services and Julie Dixon, acting operational matron, with their Create Valued Partnerships Award. Also pictured are mothers, from left, Katherine Cioni, with Gabriel Cioni, 21 weeks, Suzzanah Smith, with Ruby Fynes, 5 weeks, Dawn Gallagher, with Maisy Gallagher, 5 weeks, and Jemma Taylor, with Rafe Reilly, 7 months. Picture: Rick Byrne.

Made up of community midwives and midwifery support workers from the Diana, Princess Of Wales Hospital, they have brought post and ante-natal clinics to 13 children centres across the borough over the past four years.

Home for people with mental health problems passes inspection, despite fears

A HOME for people with mental health problems has passed its latest inspection – despite residents' ongoing concerns.

As reported, the property in Grimsby Road, Humberston, was last summer converted into a home for people with a history of forensic mental health problems – including former offenders – by North East Lincolnshire care company Carmand.

INSPECTED: Amber House home for people with mental health problems in Grimsby Road, Humberston.

Nearby residents were concerned about the plan, and those worries were intensified by the fact that the Care Quality Commission (CQC) – which regulates care standards – had previously found "serious failings" in the quality of care at another Carmand house in Grimsby Road, Cleethorpes.

However, despite residents' concerns, and claims that police had been called to the property, Amber House has been found to be compliant in the most recent inspection by the CQC, which took place in December.

Fears over location of new care centre for sex workers, drug users and the homeless

UNHAPPY residents have voiced their concerns about the location of a new healthcare centre for sex workers, drug users and the homeless.

As reported, planning permission was granted for the former Strand Infant School in Albion Street, Grimsby, to be turned into a community healthcare facility, incorporating a new Open Door centre.

CONTROVERSY: The former Strand Infant School building which is going to be demolished to make way for a new Open Door centre.

Open Door provides care for problematic drug users, homeless people, those who have recently left prison, sex workers and asylum seekers, among others.

Residents are concerned because the site is next to a school, a children's park and a residential home for the elderly.

St Hugh's Hospital offers free removal of PIP implants

ALL 42 women who had PIP implants fitted in Grimsby will be able to have them removed and replaced for free.

And today, we can reveal that 10 of those have suffered ruptures or leaks.

Here to help: St Hugh's hospital director Donna Read with one of the implants.

As reported, it came to light in the new year that the breast implants, made by a French company, could be toxic and at a high risk of rupturing.

Free health check gives peace of mind

ONCE you reach 40 years old, you are at greater risk of suffering from diabetes, heart and kidney diseases and a stroke.

That is why doctors' surgeries are contacting patients between the ages of 40 and 74 years old, every five years, urging them to pop in for a free health check.

health check: As part of National Heart Month, The Ashwood Surgery, on Ladysmith Road, Grimsby, held a drop-in session offering advice for patients. Practice nurse Gillian Roberts and health trainer Wayne Gould were there to help. Picture: Jon Corken

NHS Health Check – as it is known – aims to offer life-extending advice before people develop chronic illnesses.

Phillipa Hobson, programme co-ordinator for NHS Health Check, said: "There was a nationwide survey done which showed that people are at a much greater risk of developing a number of diseases when they are above 40 years old."

A special coffee morning was held at the Ashwood Surgery, on Ladysmith Road, Grimsby, offering patients the chance to have their health checked.

First-class idea gives teacher a close shave

AN INSPIRATIONAL teenager with diabetes has put his own worries aside to help others with the disease.

Ben Brown, 14, of Grimsby, has organised a series of events over the next few weeks to raise awareness and money for blood sugar detection dogs.

CLOSE SHAVE: Ben Brown, 14, came up with the idea to shave off assistant principal Roland Ward's beard. Picture: Michelle Adamson.

Currently the Medical Detection Dogs charity, which supplies the specially-trained canines, has a five-year waiting list with 30 people on it nationally.

This is because the charity relies on public funding to maintain each dog, which costs on average £10,000 throughout its lifetime.

Those suffering aggressive diabetes or low awareness can be eligible for a blood sugar detection dog as they can prompt a person to check blood sugar levels and take action before the need for acute medical assistance arises.

We're here for you

MEET two new faces who are helping patients throughout North East Lincolnshire.

Charles Thody is hoping to make a flying start to his new role as chaplain of Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

FORMER PILOT: Reverend Charles Thody has taken over as the new chaplain for the Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The 49-year-old former pilot will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the chaplaincy team and will spend time on the wards and departments across the hospitals.

Mum's plea for more to sign up as organ donors and help life go on for others

WITHOUT a donated kidney, first-time mum Gemma Wardle wouldn't have been able to bring her daughter into the world – now she wants others to have the same chance.

There are currently 25 people in North East Lincolnshire waiting for an organ transplant according to NHS Blood and Transplant, and in the past 12 months, 15 local people received an organ donation for either the liver, kidney or cornea.

WELCOME HOME: Transplant recipient Gemma Wardle cuddles her ten-week-old daughter Lexie Wardle, with her father Doug Pickett. Picture: Abby Ruston. Buy this photo at www.thisisphotosales.co.uk/grimsby or by contacting 08444 060910

And now, Gemma, who was given a new kidney 21 years ago, is urging members of the public to register as donors so others like her have the opportunity to bring new life into the world.