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Category Archives: News
Help with the activities of daily living at the click of a mouse!
From time-to-time, we can all find that things aren’t quite as easy as they used to be. Sometimes, it’s difficult to reach something on the top shelf in a cupboard, or pick something up which has fallen on the floor. Or perhaps you’ve had difficulty opening those pesky packets containing your medication ….. help is at hand! Continue reading
Fill your social calendar with events prescribed by your GP
Following concerns about the increase in social isolation and loneliness in communities, GPs are being encouraged to prescribe trips to lunch clubs and museums as part of new measures to tackle the problem. Read and view more from the BBC There is also evidence that learning basic computer and internet skills can reduce loneliness.
GPs to send care.data ‘opt-out’ letters
NHS care.data scheme
Following the Government’s decision to run a pilot scheme with 500 GP practices this Autumn, the Chair of the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) announced that a pilot study involving the extraction of patients’ medical records from 100 GP practices will start in the autumn. GPs continue to express their concern about the lack of of patient awareness of the care.data project. GPs involved the pilot study have therefore decided to send out ‘opt-out’ letters to their patients in order to ensure that they can make an informed decision about whether or not they wish to have their medical records made available for possible purchase by academics and commercial enterprises.
To follow the progress on care.data, please view the previous blogs on this page and also the Government survey article on the ‘Have your say’ webpage. Closing date August 8th.
Time to prepare for a cyber attack! Computer users take action!
Alarming news from the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA): you have “two weeks” to protect yourself from a major cyber-threat. A warning has been issued to all users of MS Windows based equipment.
Crisis talks postpone Government’s medical records data project
NHS care.data scheme
The government has announced that the implementation of its care.data project has been postponed until the Autumn, following concerns expressed by the Royal Colleges, charities, private companies, patients and the British Medical Association that there has been inadequate public notification and that many people do not understand the implications of the scheme. There are concerns that NHS England has failed to inform patients about how the data collected will be used, and by whom. Nor has the right to opt-out of the scheme been publicised adequately.
On June 27th the British Medical Association voted in favour of an opt-in policy.
Annoyed by 0800 calls which are not ‘free’?
Good news for mobile phone users! Giff-Gaff and ‘3’ now both offer free calls to 0800 numbers. For further information about how to reduce the charges to 0800 numbers, via other networks please click here.
Come and join us!
If you are interested in having your say about local issues and influencing decisions about services for older people, come and join us!
Details of future meetings and venues can be found on the ‘Forum Events’ page.
The Forum is keen to link with other older people’s organisations on areas of joint concern and of joint interest.