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Latest news from Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership - January 2019
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Looking back on 2018
It’s our first newsletter of 2019, and with 2018 done and dusted it seems the perfect time to reflect on the last twelve months and remember some of the highlights and successes.
There’s almost too much to mention but here’s a taste of what’s been happening across the region:
More out of-hours GP appointments have been made available across Greater Manchester – meaning that it’s easier than ever to see a doctor or health professional in your local area in the evening or at the weekend.
We’ve seen a big improvement in the early diagnosis of cancer, thanks to innovations like holding screenings in supermarkets car parks. Greater Manchester’s early diagnosis rate is now better than the national average.
We’re providing more mental health treatment close to people’s homes, last year we reduced the number of residents receiving treatment outside of Greater Manchester by fifty per cent.
And we’ve seen care home ratings in Greater Manchester improve faster than both the regional and national average. There is still work to be done be we are committed to continue the improvements to make sure all residents can get the high-quality care they deserve.
In March we kicked off a pilot with 31 schools across Greater Manchester to help provide children with more emotional and mental health support – we’re now about to roll out the next stage of our work to a further 30 schools.
In July the NHS tuned 70, we marked the momentous anniversary with a celebration at the birthplace of the NHS in Trafford – where Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham unveiled a blue plaque.
In August, at the conclusion of Manchester Pride, it was announced that over £1m will be committed to end the 300 new HIV transmissions in Greater Manchester each year.
And last month we formed a new partnership with the region’s four universities, which will allow us to create the first centre in the country dedicated to helping higher education students with their mental health.
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Mum urges parents to get their kids vaccinated against the flu
As cases of flu start to circulate in Greater Manchester one mum, from Oldham, is urging parents and guardians of young children to make sure their kids are vaccinated against flu – after she spent a week in hospital with her son.
Flu can lead to some children developing a very high fever as well as further complications such as severe chest infections, pneumonia and painful ear infections. Healthy children under the age of five are more likely than any other age group to be admitted to hospital with flu.
Local mum Ellie Davy has spoken about the worry she suffered when her two-year old son, Henry, developed a lower respiratory tract infection – possibly related to flu – that led to them both spending the week before Christmas on a children’s ward.
If you need to see a GP more appointments than ever before are available in Greater Manchester thanks to extended hours. Find out more
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Startling impact alcohol has on Greater Manchester
New figures have revealed the scale of the impact alcohol has on all of us in Greater Manchester.
Harms associated with alcohol are costing Greater Manchester’s public services £1.3 billion a year. That works out as almost £500 for every resident being spent on health, social care, crime and work costs - all because of the way we drink.
And new figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the Greater Manchester rate of alcohol-specific deaths is around 50 per cent higher than the England average (15.9 deaths per 100,000 people, compared to 10.6 nationally)..
In responsive to this stark situation we’re holding The Big Alcohol Conversation, to find out more about the scale and nature of alcohol-related harm across the region and how it can be reduced.
The Big Alcohol Conversation runs until the end of February - we want to hear what you think about the effects alcohol has on you, your friends, family, and your wider community.
Sarah Price, our executive lead for population health and commissioning, said: “These figures show just how important it is that communities in Greater Manchester join in The Big Alcohol Conversation and have their say on the impacts of alcohol.
"If we are to take positive action to tackle this problem then everybody’s views will be crucial in helping us to do this."
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Stopping the rot: Greater Manchester under-fives to benefit from programme tackling tooth decay
Thousands of young children are to benefit from a new £1.5m programme aimed at transforming the dental health of under-fives across Greater Manchester.
More than 1 in 3 five year olds across Greater Manchester experience tooth decay – well above the England national average of 25 per cent. In some local areas the number of young children affected reaches more than half. This has resulted in over 15,000 tooth extractions being carried out on local children in the past four years – 60% more than the national rate for England.
Our new initiative will see supervised tooth brushing introduced in schools and nurseries, plus dental care incorporated into health visitor checks in areas where particularly large numbers of young children suffer from tooth decay.
We’re targeting four areas in Greater Manchester – Salford, Rochdale, Bolton and Oldham – as they have each been identified by the NHS and Public Health England as areas that need to see a significant improvement in children’s oral health.
Working with local schools and nurseries, the new Partnership programme aims to reach 90% of under-fives in each area.
Claire Stevens, paediatric dentistry consultant at Manchester Foundation Trust and children’s oral health lead with the Partnership said: “This new initiative is aiming to tackle the very real problems we face in Greater Manchester with large numbers of young children experiencing significant tooth decay often before they even reach school age.
“Such problems can cause pain, sleepless nights and missed days of school for many children. Across Greater Manchester, this is adding to the daily challenges faced by many of our least well-off families and putting additional pressures on the NHS. Our new £1.5 million oral health programme will tackle these impacts and will hopefully play a vital role in our ambition of giving all of our children the best start in life.”
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Invented in Salford: the paperweight armband set to change thousands of lives in Greater Manchester
A simple paper armband, that offers a quick and easy way to check for malnutrition, could help up to 40,000 people across Greater Manchester.
The ‘paperweight armband’, invented in Salford three years ago, can detect potentially dangerous signs of malnutrition, particularly in older people.
By wrapping the small strip of paper around a person’s arm, carers, housing providers, pharmacists, fire service staff and local volunteers can detect malnutrition almost instantly.
Over 60,000 people in Greater Manchester are thought to be affected by malnutrition, costing health and care services across the region £1.1bn a year.
In the three years since the ‘paperweight armband’ was introduced in Salford, it has resulted in a 50 per cent increase in cases of malnutrition identified and a reduction of £300,000 spent on nutrition supplements by GPs.
Following these successes, we’re introducing the armband across more of Greater Manchester. It is being rolled-out initially in five areas (Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale and Stockport) where particularly high numbers of people are thought to be affected.
Sarah Price, our executive lead for population health and commissioning, said: “Weight loss and frailty are too often dismissed as a natural part of aging. But for many of our residents, and our health and care services, the impacts can be serious.
“By investing to make the innovative ‘paperweight armband’ more widely available, we’re empowering people and communities to better recognise and respond to malnutrition and helping thousands of older people stay healthy and independent in their communities”.
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Helping employers support working carers
More than half of us will become a carer at some point in our lifetime - looking after a friend or relative who due to illness, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction cannot cope on their own.
Balancing work and caring can be hard and employers have an important role to play in helping their staff manage their personal and professional responsibilities.
Which is why on Carers Right Day, Friday 30 November, we launched the Greater Manchester Working Carer Toolkit.
We worked with more than 400 carers, whose experiences and expertise shaped the toolkit.
The toolkit explains what employers can do to help working carers and the kind of support they may need.
It is estimated that there are over 140,000 working carers in Greater Manchester alone, which is why we're encouraging all employers to support them by using the new toolkit.
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Colin Kelsey awarded OBE
Congratulations to our head of urgent and emergency care Colin Kelsey, who was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honour’s List for his service to Greater Manchester following the arena attack.
In his role, Colin is responsible for emergency planning and making sure the NHS and care services can respond to major incidents including extreme weather conditions, outbreaks of disease and terrorism
Previously prepared plans were implemented soon after an explosion at the Manchester Arena on 22nd May 2017.
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Devolution Difference Roadshow
Our Chief Officer Jon Rouse has been attending events across the region explaining the difference devolution is making to health and social care in Greater Manchester.
If you’ve not managed to get to any of the events it’s not too late, the next Devolution Difference Roadshow will take place in Dukinfield Town Hall, Tameside, on Wednesday 30 January 2019.
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Children and young people’s mental health waiting times shared for the first time
Great Manchester has become the first place in the country to publicly publish waiting times data for children and young people’s mental health services.
Improving support for mental health, and specifically children and young people’s mental health, is one of our top priorities. This is why we’ve decided to be open about the scale of the challenge we face and our plans to make sure children and young people can get the support they need.
"We want to see all our children having the best chances in life no matter what their circumstances”
Sadly, it’s a fact that growing up in Greater Manchester is more challenging than in many parts of England.
Clearly this needs to change and if we’re going to make a difference we need to tackle all the factors than can stifle a child’s development early in their life.
Dr Carol Ewing, clinical adviser to Greater Manchester Strategic Clinical Network, has taken the time to explain how we how we are working to make sure children in Greater Manchester have the best start in life.
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