|
NICE
LAUNCHES NEW ERA FOR MILLIONS WITH OSTEOARTHRITIS
IN guidelines
hailed by Arthritis Care as a giant leap towards more
patient-centred services, the National Institute of Health and
Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommends that osteoarthritis (OA)
patients needing NHS joint surgery are referred promptly when other
treatments have failed them.
For the first time, NICE stipulates that age, obesity, gender,
smoking, or people’s other illnesses should not dissuade GPs from
referring them for joint replacement surgery where this is
clinically appropriate. Breaking with a past in which people
were often kept waiting until their joints had worn out, the new
NICE guidelines for England and Wales recommend action before people
experience severe pain or prolonged loss of function. This may
include consideration for surgery once osteoarthritis starts having
a ‘substantial impact’ on quality of life.
"It’s fantastic news for people with OA. Surgery may be the
kindest cut when other treatments have failed, especially as modern
techniques mean you needn’t wait to lose a joint to save it. The
clarity of these guidelines should bring some much-needed
consistency", said Neil Betteridge, chief executive of
Arthritis Care, the UK’s leading organisation for people with any
form of arthritis.
Some 8.5 million people in the UK have osteoarthritis. Symptoms
include pain and stiffness in the joints, often resulting in
sleeplessness, fatigue, and depression. Mobility and ability to work
may be compromised. With a plummeting income, involvement in sport
and social life can diminish, leading to isolation, depression, and
a loss of self-esteem.
"Osteoarthritis can hit you like a truck. Many people develop
it quite early. One day you have a life brimming with opportunity,
and bustling with activity, the next, you are painfully aware that
your skeleton is on strike. You're wondering how to take your shoes
off, do the shopping, lift the kids, get into work. This guidance
will help people with OA and doctors work together to take charge of
the condition - with the right medical support, having
osteoarthritis doesn't mean you have to lose your get-up-and-go,
just find new ways of maximising it." said Jo Cumming,
Arthritis Care's helplines manager, who was diagnosed with
osteoarthritis in her early 40s and was a patient representative on
the NICE osteoarthritis Guideline Development Group.
As well as emphasising the need for surgery referral where joint
pain has a ‘substantial impact’ on quality of life, NICE has
set out a groundbreaking package for the holistic assessment and
active management of osteoarthritis.
"It's robust, far-sighted, and innovative, a genuine first.
Until now, people with OA have had a Cinderella service, and have
often felt sidelined by the system. OA has never even featured in
the government’s pay-for-performance targets for GPs, making those
who live with it feel short-changed. Now millions with OA can demand
the treatment to which they are entitled, and which NICE says will
boost their ability to live life fully." said Betteridge.
The new standard recommends a whole-person prescription which may
include: exercise, weight management, pain relieving gels and
medications, as appropriate, and provision by health professionals
of myth-busting information to help people understand their
osteoarthritis and the control of its symptoms.
"It recommends the holistic and can-do approach that Arthritis
Care has always promoted. The package means that people should never
again be told that "nothing can be done", that "osteoarthritis is a
natural part of getting old", and something you "just have to put up
with. These
guidelines are a giant leap in the right direction. But they mean
little if not supported by the range of services needed in GP’s
surgeries, hospitals and the wider community. The real challenge is
to ensure that NHS commissioners provide doctors, nurses, and all
allied health professionals with resources to put these
patient-centred recommendations into action. If properly implemented, the NICE guidelines can become a
framework for the 'smart' healthcare of the future – partnerships in
which health professionals and patients team up to provide active
management and effective coping strategies for people with long term
conditions like osteoarthritis. With an ageing population, the way
forward must be a future not of “patients” but of “people living
successfully with arthritis within the family, community and
workplace” said Betteridge. |
Radio 1 presenter Fearne Cotton, Samantha Mumba and The Hoosiers
fast for World Vision's 24 Hour Famine campaign...
SHUNNING the
typical celebrity lifestyle of indulgent dinners and glam parties,
TV and radio personality and World Vision 24 Hour Famine Ambassador,
Fearne Cotton will be going without food for 24 hours, over the
weekend of 14 March 2008 to 16 March 2008. Fearne is hoping to raise money for street
kids living in Chennai, India by taking part in the UK's largest
youth fundraising event, the World Vision 24 Hour Famine.
Indie Trio, The Hoosiers are also taking part and when asked what
they'll be giving up for the 24 Hour Famine lead singer Irwin
Sparkes said, "Give up something we love?
Make-up for Martin,
KFC for Alfonso and hot pants for Irwin. It's about time we did
something for somebody else.
You game?
Give the kids in Chennai,
India the opportunities most of us take for granted. Do yourself a
favour, no, do someone else a favour and support World Vision's 24
Hour Famine on 14 March to 16 March 2008, by giving up something important for 24
hours."
The World Vision 24 Hour Famine has, over the past 22 years, raised
over £20 million for children and young people in the developing
world. This year funds raised from the campaign will make a
life-changing difference to 2000 street children in Chennai, India,
who live in danger of abuse and exploitation and go without many of
life’s basic needs such as clean, safe water, shelter or regular
nutritious meals.
World Vision supporter and Ambassador for the 24 Hour Famine, Fearne
Cotton said, "I am really excited to be working on World
Vision's 24 Hour Famine campaign and I'm hoping that as many kids as
possible from across the country will get involved.
World Vision is
doing a vital job that doesn't just improve the lives of people in
need, it transforms them.
This year we are asking you to go without
something important for just one day so that we can help get kids in
Chennai, off the streets and instead give them the opportunity of a
better, safer life and future."
Also showing their support, Dancing on Ice star Samantha Mumba,
singer-songwriter Sandi Thom, new band, The Bad Robots, and Andy
Scott-Lee are all taking part in World Vision's 24 Hour Famine.
To join these
celebrities and thousands of supporters who are taking part in this
year's Famine visit:-
www.24hourfamine.org.uk
There are also useful resource packs full of tips and group
activities to help teachers and youth leaders organise fun and
engaging events for young people and school children taking part in
the 24 Hour Famine.
To get involved in
the 24 Hour Famine you can also text FAMINE to 81222. Alternatively you can call 01908 84 12 12 |
