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Welcome to the latest Independent Living news roundup.
29.05.19 Contents:
Diabetes education
Glass half full or half empty?
Skills for Care Accolades
Profound Impact Day
Rules about mobility scooters
Latest - Loneliness; Care Act webinar
1. Diabetes education

I had never come across an "Information Prescription" before, so when I heard that Diabetes UK had developed one to help diabetes patients learn about managing their condition, I wanted to find out more.

We frequently hear about the relentless increase in people living with diabetes. Each week, diabetes leads to more than 169 amputations, 680 strokes, 530 heart attacks and almost 2000 cases of heart failure. 

Only a minority of people feel that they are in control of their condition, so improving access to education must be a good thing.

Read more here

 

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2. Glass half full or half empty?

Quick question: where would you expect to find more fully accessible toilets – in hospitals or motorway service stations?

You can find the answer to this as well as more about the current situation in the Changing Places landscape, including which supermarkets have shown some commitment to their most disabled customers, in an interesting article written for us by Closomat's Claire Haymes.

Read it here

 

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3. Skills For Care Accolades

Skills for Care is an information hub which provides practical tools and support to help with recruitment, development and training of social care staff, including personal assistants (PAs).

If you employ your own personal care assistants using a care or health budget, and are committed to their learning and development, you can now enter Skills for Care Accolades 2020.

Last year's winner, Claire Steeples and her team shared their tips on being a great employer with Independent Living:

Read more here

 

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4. Profound Impact Day

There are at least 30,000 people in Britain with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD), and the number is growing. 

People with PMLD have more than one disability, which can include sensory and physical disabilities, complex health needs or mental health difficulties, have high support needs and unique ways of communicating.

At the same time that a report has highlighted the shocking disparity in NHS treatment of people with learning disabilities, Mencap has produced new guidance for healthcare professionals, which it says will save lives.

Read more here

 

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5. Rules about mobility scooters

We've had a few enquiries recently which have made me realise that there is a lot of uncertainty still about the rules on mobility scooters:

  1. You can't automatically take your scooter on a bus
  2. You shouldn't carry a child with you on a scooter
  3. Shopkeepers don't have to allow scooters into their premises
  4. Mobility scooters can only be used by people with disabilities!

The full picture is more nuanced – we have an article about scooters and public transport as well as one on the legal status of mobility scooters (check out the comments beneath, as well). And some top tips on safe scooter driving.

 

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6. Latest – Loneliness; Care Act webinar

Social isolation is becoming increasingly prevalent, and we know that the effects of loneliness on health can be as serious as those of smoking and obesity.

As well as older people, loneliness can also hit particularly hard at freelancers and others who work from home – could volunteering help alleviate this problem?

More about tackling loneliness here

 

The latest in CASCAIDr's series of Care Act webinars takes place tomorrow, and it's all about the rules on Care Plans.

Find out more here

 

Don't forget that you can apply to join the Independent Living Facebook group, if you would like to spend more time discussing these themes with other interested people. 

There are various ways you can get in touch with us: email me; visit our Facebook page and leave a message there; or if it's short and sweet, Tweet!

Previous newsletters are archived here.

If you are reading a copy of the Independent Living newsletter that has been passed on to you by a colleague or friend, why not sign up for your own free subscription – it's quick and easy, and won't lead to your inbox being bombarded with other stuff!

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Until next time, best wishes,

Frances

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Frances Leckie
Editor

e: editor @ independentliving.co.uk
t: +44 (0) 208 133 0628
Skype: francesleckie
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