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Macmillan Cancer
Services gets £500 boost in memory of Liverpool bus inspector
MORE than £500 has been
raised for a cancer support charity in memory of a Merseytravel bus
inspector from Liverpool, who died from the disease.
Lee Bishop-Hunter handed over the
cash to Macmillan Cancer Support Services following the fund-raising
event at the Boots store in St Helens where he is manager, in memory
of his dad Joe. His colleagues at the store in Church Square
Shopping Centre donned fancy dress and organised a raffle for
Macmillan Cancer Services to raise the £500, as part of a regional
fund-raising target of £15,000. For Lee, the charity is close to his
heart as both his dad and his aunt died as a result of cancer.
"I understand how supportive Macmillan is to those who have
cancer, and their families as well. Unfortunately for my dad Joe, we
weren't able to get very involved with Macmillan nurses, as it was
only three months between when he was diagnosed with cancer of the
kidneys and when he died, as it spread rapidly through his body. He
was only 64, and hadn't long retired from his job as an inspector on
the buses, with Merseytravel. That was 3 years ago, and then 18
months ago my auntie, my mum's sister, was diagnosed with cancer of
the lungs and she died after it spread through her body. Staff at
Macmillan were very supportive then, though it was a difficult time
for all of us." added Lee, manager of Boots in Church Square
Shopping Centre Manager, St Helens." said Lee, who also lives in
Liverpool.
Church Square Shopping Centre Manager Steven Brogan said:-
"I'm a big supporter of Macmillan with the care and support it
offers those who are undergoing cancer treatment, along with their
families. The work Boots staff have been doing to raise money for
the charity is admirable; this was a fun way to raise money for
Macmillan; visitors to Church Square Shopping Centre are always
generous for such appeals."
The fund-raising event was one of
several that were held at the Boots store last year, said Lee.
"At Boots we do feel that's important to give something back to
the community; we take our corporate social responsibility role very
seriously. For example, here at Boots at Church Square Shopping
Centre, along with 15 other stores in the region, we have raised
£6,750 for Macmillan in the last 6 months, and we've raised £2,400
for Children in Need. We have a pharmacist who is specially trained
by Macmillan in helping cancer patients with their medication, and
in 2014 we will be rolling out a new make-over service. This will
help offer advice on how cancer treatments; especially chemo and
radiotherapy; affect patients' skin, nails and hair, especially if
they become sensitive to their usual make-up or skincare, or want
advice on what to do when they lose their eyebrows or eye lashes."
Church Square Shopping Centre is open daily and home to a range of
big name stores - such as River Island, BHS, Boots and Superdrug;
along with independent retailers plus the busy St Mary's Market.
More details on what's happening at the Centre at:-
churchsquaresthelens.co.uk. |
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Call for more
support for people with diabetes to stop smoking
THE charity Diabetes UK has
called for more support for people with diabetes to stop smoking, as
a new survey has revealed that significant numbers of smokers with
the condition are not being offered support and advice about giving
up.
The charity's annual survey about the healthcare people with
diabetes are getting has found that just 45% of smokers were offered
support and advice on giving up over the previous 12 months. This is
despite the fact that every person with diabetes is supposed to have
their smoking status recorded at their annual review and if they are
smokers then this should be the start of the process of supporting
them to give up.
While the number of smokers who completed the survey is not
sufficiently large; just 166 of the 1,643 participants said they
smoked; to be confident this is an accurate reflection, it does
support anecdotal evidence that significant numbers of smokers are
not getting the support they need to stop.
Diabetes UK is concerned by this
because smoking is especially harmful for people with diabetes. This
is because the condition puts them at increased risk of heart
disease, stroke and other circulatory problems, and so if they smoke
then the increase to their risk of these conditions is even greater.
1 in 6 people with diabetes are smokers and the charity wants more
to be done to help reduce this.
It is calling for all GPs to make sure they use the annual recording
of people's smoking status as an opportunity to have a conversation
to offer advice and support about stopping. It is also urging people
with diabetes who smoke to start the New Year by making a resolution
to give up.
Barbara Young, Chief Executive of Diabetes UK, said:- "Smoking
dramatically increases risk of a number of conditions, including
cancer and heart disease, and so is extremely dangerous whether you
have diabetes or not. But because diabetes puts a strain on the
circulatory system and smoking adds to that strain, smoking is even
worse for you if you have the condition. Given this, it is important
that healthcare professionals make sure the annual conversation they
have with people with diabetes about smoking as part of their care
planning review is the start of a process of supporting smokers to
give up. Providing information about, and access to, the different
ways to help people give up smoking is an important part of
improving support for people with diabetes. Also, structured
education programmes help people understand what they need to manage
their condition as well as providing effective motivation to support
people to give up smoking but far too few people go on them.
Supporting people to give up smoking is one of the many potential
benefits and GPs have an important role in encouraging people to
attend. We want to raise awareness of how harmful smoking is when
you mix it with diabetes and get the message across to people with
diabetes who smoke that giving up could be the best thing they ever
do for their health. Making it their New Year's Resolution to give
up could mean they see many more New Year's Days than would
otherwise be the case."
Getting advice and support if you are a smoker is one of Diabetes
UK's 15 Healthcare Essentials, which set out the healthcare that
every person with diabetes is entitled to. These include the nine
annual checks that the National Institute for Health and Care
Excellence recommends everyone with diabetes should get. They are
available to download at:-
diabetes.org.uk/15-essentials.
For support giving up smoking, call Smokefree, an NHS stop smoking
service, on:- 0800 169 0 169; call QUIT, the charity aiming for a
smoke-free UK, on:- 0800 00 22 00; or talk to your GP.
MERSEYSIDE
TRAMWAY & LIGHT RAILWAY SOCIETY EVENT NOTICE
THE Merseyside Branch of
the Tramway and Light Railway Society are holding an event on
Monday, 20 January 2014, at The
Greenbank Sports Academy, Greenbank Lane, Liverpool, L17 1AG, from
7.35pm. The event will have a talk by Ian Longworth, Director of
Public Transport, Isle of Man. He is well known tramway and
transport enthusiast and he has had a lifetime involvement in
transport operation both professionally (buses and coaches) and as
an active amateur supporting tramcar restoration. This talk will
give us an insight into the many and varied aspects of his job
operating a heritage railway system in the modern world. "To
those of us interested in trams and trains and buses generally, it
should prove to be an interesting and entertaining evening and an
occasion not to be missed." said the branch Chairman. Tea,
Coffee and biscuits will be served during the interval. £2 per head.
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