February 2013

Download our latest Information Sheet - 14 Mental Health, Deafness and Hearing Loss

Action on Hearing Loss has discovered that a significant percentage of people with hearing loss faced problems when trying to use these kinds of services.

Recent research carried out by the organisation - formerly known as the RNID - found that:

• 35% experienced difficulty communicating with their GP or practice nurse
• 15% avoid going to see their GP because of communication problems with this proportion doubling among British Sign Language (BSL) users
• 35% of the deaf and hard of hearing had been left unclear about their condition because of communication problems with their GP or practice nurse
• 24% of patients missed appointments because of poor communication including not being able to hear staff calling out their name

The findings raise the issue of how mental health problems are detected amongst deaf people - especially at an early stage - and how they are referred to appropriate mental health services.

Mental health services can be made more accessible to people with hearing loss through various means and you can find out more about how you can help from a professional perspective by reading our latest Information Sheet 14.

The Sheet outlines everything from communication tips through to helping make services more accessible for the hard of hearing and we'll be expanding on these subjects with blog posts next week.

Each of our Information Sheets have been developed to provide valuable information, training and support tools on primary care mental health in Wales and can be downloaded from our Information Sheets page.

If you have any questions about Information Sheet 14 or any other queries please contact our Project Manager Lesley Hills via email at lhills@rcgp.org.uk or on 029 2050 4516.

Download our latest Information Sheet - 14 Mental Health, Deafness and Hearing Loss

There are 534,000 people in Wales with some form of hearing loss and Information Sheet 14 provides professional advice, guidance and support on the impact of hearing loss on mental health.

People with hearing loss are at an increased risk of mental health problems including anxiety, depression and poor self-esteem.

By 2031 the number of people with hearing problems is set to grow to 725,000 so it is a subject which GPs and primacy care practitioners across the country really need to understand.

This latest Information Sheet outlines everything from communication tips through to helping make services more accessible and useful contact details.

Like all our Information Sheets this latest document aims to help raise awareness about and improve mental health services across the country.

Each of our sheets have been developed to provide valuable information, training and support tools on primary care mental health in Wales.

Their publication comes under the set objectives of our Gold Standard Project which has set the goal of providing good communication on mental health issues .

We have a range of other Information Sheets which are all available to download and view on and from our Information Sheets page.

If you have any questions about Information Sheet 14 or trouble viewing or downloading it please contact our Project Manager Lesley Hills via email at lhills@rcgp.org.uk or on 029 2050 4516.

A series of images depicting the life of a married couple affected by dementia have made it onto the shortlist for a prestigious world photography award.

It's no surprise that the subject of dementia has made it onto the awards shortlist as the most up-to-date statistics show the numbers of people with dementia are rising across the world with an estimated 35 million people with dementia worldwide.

The pictures - taken by Italian photograher Fausto Podavini - have been listed under the Lifestyle section in the Sony World Photography Awards, an annual competition hosted by the World Photography Organisation.

This year's contest attracted more than 122,000 entries from 170 countries with the entrants judged in 6 different competition categories.

The winners are scheduled to be announced in March and April and this is what nominee Podavini said about his series of images: "People affected with dementia, their families and friends are affected on personal, emotional, financial and social levels.

"Mirella is 71 years old. She spent 43 years of her life with the only person she loved, 43 years of sharing, difficulties, laughs and beautiful moments; a family, a house, values handed down.

"For the past few years her days are cyclic, monotonous, due to her husband's illness. She tries to look forward with devotion, strength and love - as long as there is life there is hope - even if memories are slowly wasted day by day."

To view the series of images which have put Padovini in the frame for an award please visit his short gallery on the World Photography Association website.

For further further information about the awards and a full list of nominees and categories please visit the Sony World Photography Awards page on the same site.

There are currently just over 42,700 people living with dementia in Wales and much work has been carried out to identify the areas which need to be addressed to improve the lives of those with and affected by dementia leading to the creation of the National Dementia Vision for Wales.

To find out more about dementia and hw you can find help and other support services across Wales please visit the Dementia section on our website.

We're offering two half-day Practical Dementia training days aimed at helping medical professionals and carers improve the lives of those with and affected by dementia across Wales.

The events will follow the similar successful events on the same subject which we delivered earlier in 2012 and each 3-hour course costs £30 per delegate which includes free on-site parking.

Both these practical courses are CPD events aimed at the following mental health roles with attendees provided with an Attendance Certificate and will take place in Cardiff and Wrexham this Spring:

• GPs
• CPNs (Community Psychiatric Nurses)
• Practice Nurses
• Consultant Psychiatrists
• Health Board Officials
• The Care Home Sector
• The Alzheimer’s Society

Both events begin at 1pm for lunch and registration with South Wales training taking place at the Novotel Hotel in Cardiff on 7th March 2013 from 2pm until 5pm with the second North Wales training day being held at the Ramada Plaza in Wrexham on 18th April 2013 from 2pm until 5pm.

Please note that each course concentrates on practice and not theory in relation to dementia and the proposed agenda for each event will cover the following issues:     

• Memory clinics and the interface with Primary Care
• Social Care – Interface Issues
• Vascular Dementia
• Dementia from a Carers Perspective – Interaction with Primary Care

To register for either event please fill in our Practical Dementia Training Application Form and return it to our Project Manager Lesley Hills at the following address along with your a cheque for £30 made payable to RCGP Wales:

Royal College of General Practitioners Wales,
Regus House,
Falcon Drive,
Cardiff Bay,
Cardiff CF10 4RU.

Alternatively, for further details or if you have any questions please contact Lesley on 029 2050 4516 or email at lhills@rcgp.org.uk.