health trainer news letter

HARINGEY HEALTH TRAINERS AND HEALTH CHAMPIONHARINGEY HEALTH TRAINERS AND HEALTH CHAMPIONissue 1

The Health Trainer Service is commissioned by Haringey Council. Health trainers are qualified and highly trained local people who provide one-on-one advice, motivation, practical support and information to adults to help them to adopt healthier lifestyles:- • Healthy eating• Smoking • Physical activity• Sensible drinking Health Trainers see people over six sessions and support them to set achievable goals and personal health plans. Progress is monitored, reviewed and revisions made to health plans when necessary. Sessions are scheduled based on the needs of the individual, for example, weekly, fortnightly or even monthly. The first session lasts for an hour and the remaining five sessions last for half an hour each. The Health Trainer role contributes towards addressing health inequalities by helping local people to adopt healthier lifestyles to help prevent and manage a range of long- term conditions, including diabetes, and obesity. Former client Anthony Clarke who has completed the programme stated:

“I think the Health Trainer Service is a valuable community resource. I have lost 20lbs in weight. I am very grateful for the help, advice and support given to me by Anthony Hardley (Health Trainer) and look forward to achieving my target weight in the next 3 months”. The Health Trainer Service is open to:• Adults aged 18+. • Haringey residents, or those who

have a GP based in Haringey. How do I access the service?For an appointment or for more information about the service call 0208 379 5269. Information can also be found on the Haringey Council website at http://www.haringey.gov.uk/healthtrainerservice You can also express an interest to your GP/Nurse who will be able to refer you to the service. How do health professionals refer someone to the service?By completing a referral form which can be found at www.haringey.gov.uk/healthtrainerservice

WELCOME TO THE FIRST EDITIONAbout the Health Trainer Service

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Introduction to the Health Trainer Service 1

The Management Team 2

Where are the Health Trainers Based 2

Meet a Health Trainer 3

Haringey Health Champions 4How to become a Health Champion 4

Men’s Health in Haringey 5 Haringey Man MOT 5

Health Champion Story 6

Health Update - physical activity 7

Get Active in Haringey 7

SPECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST

Haringey Man MOT

Health Champion Story - ”A Pharmacist Saved my Life”

Health Trainers and Health Champions: who are they and what they can offer you or your service?

Physical activity guidelines and how YOU can get more physically active in Haringey

newsletter

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The Health Trainer Service Management Team

Deborah Saunders(Senior Health Trainer)

Deborah is responsible for the day-to-day running of the Health Trainer service and supporting the Health Trainers in their role.

Paulette Yusuf(Service Manager)

Paulette has overall responsibility for the management of the service, its design and development. This includes managing and developing staff to meet the needs of the service.

Eunice Ashmeade(Health Champion Co-ordinator)

Eunice co-ordinates the Health Champion activities that take place in the community. She is responsible for their supervision and for their ongoing training and development.

Where are Health Trainers Based?Health Trainers work from a range of community based venues and GP surgeries in Haringey.

These include:

• Bridge House Medical Practice

• Broadwater Farm Health Centre

• Cypriot Centre

• Living Well Hub, Northumberland Park

• Lordship Lane Health Centre

• Morum House Medical Centre

• Pembury House Children’s Centre

• Somerset Gardens Family Health Centre

• The Laurels Healthy Living Centre

• Tottenham Green Leisure Centre

• Triangle Children’s Centre

• Wood Green Central Library

For an up-to-date schedule visit:www.haringey.gov.uk/healthtrainerservice

The Health Trainer Service contributes towards addressing health inequalities by helping to prevent and manage a range of long-term conditions, such as diabetes and obesity.

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Please can you tell me a little about yourself?In addition to being a Health Trainer, I am a qualified Youth Worker, an Arsenal supporter and a keen volunteer.

What attracted you to the Health Trainer Role?It is community based and the service is located in many different settings around Haringey. I have always liked outreach work and learning new things, so the Health Trainer role was a new challenge. It involves supporting local people on a one-to-one basis to help them to make healthier lifestyle choices.

How long have you worked for the service?I’ve been here since 2010 — 5 years!

What skills/experience did you bring to the post?I am self-motivated, flexible and a good listener. My previous experience set me in good stead for the Health Trainer role. I was a leader of the volunteering group for Rescue of Dignity (ROD), a service that writes to imprisoned inmates to empower and support them and their families. I also worked as a volunteer for the Help Desk at Camberwell Magistrates Court, and worked for the Howard League for Penal Reform, a charity campaigning for lesser sentencing for young people.

Please can you tell me about a success story of a client you have helped to change their behaviour that sticks out in your mind?A previous female client accessed the service for support around losing weight as she had tried to lose weight in the past but was not successful. When we had our last session, she told me, frankly speaking, that she was not impressed when she saw me for the first time. She thought to herself ‘this man is incapable of giving me support, what can he offer me that is new?’ However, with regular monthly meetings with me and weekly sessions with Weight Watchers, she achieved her weight loss target of two stones. She was approached by Weight Watchers and is now a Weight Watchers Consultant.

Meet a Health Trainer

What aspects of the role do you enjoy the most and what do you find most rewarding?Everything! From when the client first sets their goal, through to when they achieve them. Even when clients do not reach their goals, the time spent together, I think, is still beneficial to them, because they have gained a better understanding of the benefits of adopting a healthier lifestyle and how to make these changes.

Anthony Hardley(Health Trainer)

Even the smallest of changes are beneficial and

to be a part of that is amazing.

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Haringey Health ChampionsHealth Champions are local people who are trained and supported to promote healthy living in the community. They are effective in reaching Haringey residents and make a real difference locally. The Health Champion role involves motivating and empowering people to adopt positive lifestyle changes such as sensible drinking, healthy eating, being regularly active and stopping smoking. They also raise awareness about diabetes and cancer prevention. When appropriate, Health Champions signpost people interested in making healthier lifestyle choices to local health services such as the Health Trainer, NHS Health Check, Stop Smoking, leisure, drugs, alcohol and mental health services for further support. Health Champions have a strong local presence and conduct outreach activities in a range of settings, such as community centres, faith groups, GP surgeries, libraries, shopping malls and at a range of local events, including festivals, health/employment fairs and at community-based NHS Health Check events. The Health Champion programme started in January 2012. Through volunteering, Health Champions have gained qualifications, skills and experience which has enabled many to move into further education, paid employment, eg. as Health Trainers and other volunteering activities.

All Health Champions hold the Royal Society for Public Health Level 2 award in ‘Understanding Health Improvement’ and are provided with regular supervision and ongoing training to support them in their outreach activities. Training provided includes the following: alcohol and diabetes awareness, cancer prevention, mental health, smoking cessation, healthy eating and physical activity.

Cheryl West(Senior Health Champion)

How to become a Health ChampionWe are looking for more volunteer Health Champions to join our Team. No formal qualifications are required, but a good local knowledge of the area would be beneficial.

Health Champions receive free training to support them in their role, in addition to regular supervision.

The role of a Health Champion is to raise awareness in the community providing health information and signposting Haringey residents to local health services to help them to make lifestyle changes.

Health Champions work in a range of community settings on a regular basis. They volunteer in GP surgeries, libraries, community centres, shopping malls, in addition to supporting a range of local events. It is an exciting opportunity to get to know the local community, meet people, gain new skills, qualifications and work experience.

If you are interested in becoming a Haringey Health Champion, please call 0208 379 5844 or email [email protected]

Health Champions are local people

who are trained and supported to promote healthy living in the community.

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Men’s Health in HaringeyOn average women live longer than men and there are many complex reasons for this. The health behaviours and beliefs of men have been connected to differences in health seen between men and women. For example, men generally tend to be reluctant to use health services and are less likely to visit their GP when ill. They also have a tendency to present at the later stages of

illness and are less likely than women to present with concerns about mental health.

Everyone can improve their health and well-being by making small changes to their lifestyle! Men’s health in Haringey could be greatly improved if lifestyle changes in

Shaun Perry(Health Champion)

The health behaviours and beliefs of men have been

connected to differences in health seen between men and women.

Man MOT is a Men’s Health Forum programme, funded by the Department of Health, working in partnership with Haringey Council and the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation.

Man MOT is a FREE, confidential and personalised online health information and support service through which men can ‘chat’ directly to a GP about any health problem at all via a mobile phone, computer or tablet. No appointment necessary.

Man MOT was designed with and for the men of Haringey. It aims to remove some of the barriers associated with accessing traditional health care services. It is not a diagnosis service, nor does it aim to replace existing services.

It has an emphasis on prevention and early intervention and has a number of unique features including:• A GP surgery

via ‘text chat’• Information on

local health services

• Signposting to other health services

• Lifestyle information

Haringey Man MOT

Man MOT is designed with

the aim of removing some of the barriers associated with accessing traditional health care services.

the areas of stopping smoking, becoming more active, reducing alcohol consumption and eating a healthy diet were made.

Haringey men are the first in the country to be offered a pioneering online service.

Haringey Man MOTMan MOT is a FREE, confidential and personalised online health information and support service for men accessible via mobile phone, computer or tablet, designed with and for the men of Haringey.Man MOT is designed with the aim of removing some of the barriers associated with accessing traditional health care services. See page 6 for more information about Man MOT.

Man MOT Surgery hours are:Mondays and Thursdays7pm-10pm - live chat with a GP on all topics.

Wednesday Workshop7pm-10pm - live chat with experts. New topic each month.

To access the service visit:www.menshealthforum.org.uk/Haringey

For more information about Haringey Man MOT contact: Jim Pollard, [email protected]

A number of reports have been produced which have informed the development and design of Haringey Man MOT. They are available on the Men’s Health Forum website. www.menshealthforum.org.uk/haringey-man-mot-project

Man MOT Health Champions, pictured (left to right); Shaun Perry, Steve Dunkely, Cheryl West and Nigel Lascells Brown

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Nigel lives in Haringey and has been a Health Champion for over a year and was made a Senior Health Champion in May 2014. After experiencing ill-health and being unable to return to work in the catering industry he volunteered to become a Haringey Health Champion. To enable Nigel to carry out his role he has gained numerous vocational qualifications and has undertaken various training, including Understanding Health Improvement, Encouraging Physical Activity, Understanding Behaviour Change, Healthy Hearts and Smoking Cessation. He promotes health across Haringey in a range of settings, including job centres, Morrisons and Tesco supermarket, the local college and within local gyms.

Nigel’s storyIn December 2010, I had a cold. That wasn’t unusual. I worked in a hot kitchen. But this one just lingered on and eventually I went to the pharmacist to get some cough mixture. I don’t know what it was, perhaps it was the way I looked; she asked me when I’d last seen a doctor. I said ‘about 20 years ago’. She told me I’d better go.

I went to see the GP the next day. I don’t know why. Normally I wouldn’t have bothered. The GP said he didn’t like the look of my blood tests. I went for repeat tests the same day and he called me that evening. That got me worried. Doctors don’t normally call you in the evening.

I went back. My blood pressure was sky high. My creatinine count, a test that shows kidney function, was over 1,000. The usual level apparently is 100-120. The GP said ‘I think you’ve got chronic kidney failure and to be honest I don’t think you’ll last over Christmas.’ He phoned the Royal Free Hospital, gave me a note and I went. The hospital told me to send my friend home because I wasn’t going anywhere.

The next morning I saw the renal and kidney consultant. She told me that without intervention I had about a week to live. I still couldn’t believe it. I didn’t think I had any symptoms. I was a bit breathless but thought that was the cold.

They got my blood pressure down and over the new year, I was put on a dialysis machine. I learned how to do the dialysis at home. I was on dialysis for 18 months - 13 and a half hours a night. I felt so much better on dialysis that it made me realise just how tired and run down I had been before.

Health Champion Story “A pharmacist saved my life”My kidney failure was caused by high blood pressure and the fact that my kidneys were small to begin with. I’d had a terrible lifestyle - smoking, drinking, eating rubbish and working 90 hours a week.

After a couple of false alarms, in February 2012 I got a call saying they had a live kidney donor for me. I felt fantastic immediately after the transplant.

Now it’s still going well. I have a few side-effects from the medication but they’re not uncommon. I’m a very lucky man. I met the right people at the right time. I’ve had a lot out of the NHS and this (being a Health Champion) is my chance to give something back. Now my thing is to get people to look at their lifestyles. They call kidney disease the silent killer but it’s not the only thing that can creep up on you.

That pharmacist saved my life.

Nigel Lascells Brown(Senior Health Champion)

I’ve had a lot out of the NHS and this

is my chance to give something back.

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Tottenham ActiveThis program is aimed at increasing numbers of people accessing sport and physical activity in the Tottenham Area.

Further information and the latest list of activities on offer, can be found at: www.haringey.gov.uk/tottenhamactive

Get Active in HaringeyHaringey leisure centres work in partnership with Fusion Lifestyle, offering a range of sports and activities in the community to suit all.

Activities include:• Swimming• Gym sessions• Racquet sports• Football• Group Classes• Health Walks

Visit the Fusion Lifestyle Website for more information:www.haringey.gov.uk/leisure-centres

Leisure centres in Haringey:Tottenham Green Leisure Centre1 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4JAT: 020 8885 7300

Broadwater Farm Community CentreAdams Road, Tottenham, N17 6HET: 020 8801 4115

Park Road Leisure CentrePark Road, Hornsey, N8 8JNT: 020 8341 3567

White Hart Lane Community Sports CentreWhite Hart Lane, Wood Green, N22 5QWT: 020 8881 2323

What are the current recommendations for adults?Adults should aim to be active daily. Over a week, activity should add up to at least 150 minutes (2½ hours) of moderate intensity activity in bouts of 10 minutes or more. One way to approach this is to do 30 minutes on at least 5 days a week. Moderate-intensity activity will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster and feel warmer – you can talk, but you cannot sing!

Alternatively, comparable benefits can be achieved through 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity spread across the week or combinations of moderate and vigorous intensity activity. Vigorous-intensity activity will make you breathe harder and faster and will increase your heart rate quite a bit. You will not be able to say more than a few words without having to pause for a breath. Adults should also undertake physical activity to improve muscle strength on at least two days a week. All adults should minimise the amount of time spent being sedentary (sitting) for extended periods. In addition, older adults (65+) who participate in any amount of physical activity gain some health benefits, including maintenance of good physical and cognitive function. Some physical activity is better than none, and more physical activity provides greater health benefits. Older adults at risk of falls should incorporate physical activity to improve balance and co-ordination on at least two days a week, e.g., yoga or tai chi. Examples of moderate intensity physical activity include: • Brisk walking • Cycling • Ballroom dancing (older adults)

Examples of vigorous intensity physical activity include:• Running • Sports such as swimming or football • Climbing stairs (older adults)

Physical Activity Update Examples of physical activity that strengthen muscles include:• Exercising with weights • Carrying or moving heavy loads such as

groceries • Chair aerobics (older adults)