Find out about the most compelling care sector news stories from November 2017 with a little help from the friendly team at The Good Care Group.
Welcome back for the November edition of Care Sector News Review.
Each month, we’ll introduce you to some of the most compelling stories from across the care sector, including care news, medical research and awareness initiatives.
Read on to find out what’s been happening across the care sector in November 2017:
Care services
- 40-60-year-olds are more concerned about arranging care for elderly parents than they are for their own children. Research from Which? found that 36% worried about the former, compared to just 19% for the latter.
- The NHS is set to open its first A&E department dedicated to providing healthcare for older people. Patients aged 80+ arriving at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital will soon receive treatment a separate facility. This is a move senior doctors hope will lead to reduced waiting times and improved outcomes.
- Age UK Director, Caroline Abrahams, has called for more to be done to prevent excess winter deaths following the release of new figures showing a sharp increase during winter 2016/17. According to these figures, 31,800 excess winter deaths were recorded last year – up by 11,000 on the numbers for 2015/16.
Medical research
- GPs should do more to encourage older people to stay physically active, according to an extensive new study conducted jointly by researchers from Cambridge and Amsterdam. The research found that even mild exercise reduces the risk of developing a cardiovascular condition by 14%.
- Billionaire Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, has pledged $50m (approximately £37.5m) towards finding a cure for Alzheimer’s. The philanthropist will invest this sum into causal research, dementia diagnosis and clinical trials of potential cures.
- Neighbourly actions like collecting newspapers and taking out bins can have enormous benefits for people with dementia. This is the key finding from a new University of Manchester study that surveyed people with dementia over the course of five years.
- A new theory has been put forward to explain the high rate of delirium and spatial neglect among people who have had a right-brain stroke. Researchers hope the findings will help improve recovery and rehabilitation-related processes.
Awareness initiatives
- Friday 24 November marked Carers Rights Day – an annual event aimed at helping family carers access the help and support they’re entitled to. Participants hosted a series of events nationwide, centred on this year’s theme: ‘Make connections, get support’.
- November was also designated COPD Awareness Month. An estimated 1.2 million (mainly older) people in the UK are affected by this potentially life-threatening condition. The initiative aims to empower patients and their caregivers, helping to enhance understanding and improve quality of life.
- Actor and Alzheimer’s Society’s Global Dementia Friends Ambassador, Carey Mulligan, has addressed the UN in support of Global Alzheimer’s & Dementia Action Alliance. Her speech called for action to end the stigma and often violent treatment directed towards women with dementia worldwide.
- Care home residents in Lincolnshire proved age is no barrier to fundraising potential this month. Residents at The Fountains Care Home, Tetney – all aged 80+ – held a low-impact game of netball to raise funds for Children in Need.
Join us again in the last week of December for the next edition of Care Sector News Review.
If you’d like to find out more about The Good Care Group’s live-in care services, contact our friendly team.
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