Health

A South Holland charity has won a major national award for its work to improve diagnosis and care for people with a genetic condition. Haemochromatosis UK is the country’s only charity dedicated to people suffering from the most common genetic condition. It can lead to iron overload and cause a range of symptoms including liver disease, diabetes, dementia and heart ...

“It’s fantastic to have everything here in Lincolnshire,” that was the reaction of Ken Watson as he became the first patient to undergo an operation using a state-of-the-art robotic surgery system in Lincolnshire.Mr Watson’s procedure was carried out by a surgeon sat at a special console connected to a robot which is designed to mimic the surgeon’s hand movements, enabling ...

A drop in COVID-19 vaccination session is in Spalding this Saturday while the main centre in Boston is being repaired after storm damage. Jabs will be available to those eligible at Broad Street Methodist Church from 10am to 4pm. Storm Eunice caused considerable damage across the entire country, including at PRSA Mass Vaccination Centre, Boston, where it damaged the roof ...

A mum says her teenaged son’s life was saved by a Spalding surgery after a hospital missed his cancer diagnosis. Sam Clark was just 17 when, on leave from Army training, he discovered a lump in his neck which turned out to be stage four Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. But that was only diagnosed after intervention from concerned doctors at the Spalding ...

Blood donor Terry Day has made his 100th donation more than 50 years after his first. Terry was ‘encouraged’ to donate while serving with the Royal Navy at HMS Drake in October 1971. He still has the original certificate issued at the time. Now a member of the Spalding Royal Naval Association Branch, he travelled to Bourne Corn Exchange to ...

A Spalding GP surgery created to replace a failing centre is itself in need of improvement, according to a recently published report. The surgery at the Johnson Community Hospital was established to replace the former Pennygate practice which was in special measures before closing in 2018. The Lincolnshire Community Health Services Trust (LCHS) acted as a caretaker and was registered ...

Healthwatch Lincolnshire has announced a new date for an event discussing dental care problems in the area. The YourVoice event will be held on March 30 and a panel of experts will be talking about key issues. Residents are invited to submit questions ahead of the online forum and the panel members will answer on the day. The initial date ...

The Care Quality Commission has published its latest report on the United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and it still ‘Requires Improvement.’ Inspectors visited Boston’s Pilgrim Hospital and Lincoln Hospital in October 2021 before giving the same rating it received in 2019. Children’s services at the Pilgrim went up from ‘Requires Improvement’ to ‘Good’ as did urgent and emergency care across the ...

A public forum to discuss issues around the availability of NHS dentists in the county has been postponed. Healthwatch Lincolnshire was hoping to host a live panel event this week, but it has been moved to Wednesday, March 30. The lack of dentists in Lincolnshire has been a concern for some time and the Your Voice panel will continue to ...

A team of 30 military personnel is supporting United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust – due to staffing shortages caused by COVID-19. Boston’s Pilgrim Hospitals is among the place the 20 military healthcare trained and experienced staff are helping out after the trust declared a critical incident. They’re helping with patient care in the emergency departments and other wards and areas. ...

Pop-in COVID-19 vaccination centres will be at Springfields tomorrow (Tuesday, January 11) and in Long Sutton on Thursday. Those eligible for the jab, be they first, second or booster injections, can attend the sessions. The event at Springfields takes place between 10am and 7pm on Tuesday. Thursday’s session in Long Sutton is being held at St Mary’s Church Hall from 1pm ...

Those visiting patients in the Johnson Hospital in Spalding will now have to provide proof of a negative test of COVID-19. Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS) has announced visitors will need to have taken a lateral flow test before arriving at the hospital and those it also runs in Lincoln, Grantham and Skegness. Visitors currently have to book ...

A health trust that runs several hospitals in Lincolnshire, including Boston’s Pilgrim Hospital, says they remain “fully open” despite announcing a “critical emergency” due to the number of staff off sick. An internal email sent by the the United Lincolnshire Hospital NHS Trust (ULHT) leaked to The Times national newspaper revealed the special measures were announced on Saturday (January 1) ...

A pop-up COVID-19 vaccination centre is at Springfields in Spalding until 4pm today (Wednesday, December 29). Members of the public can walk in for a jab without having to make an appointment. It can be for boosters, first or second doses.  The team will also vaccinate 12-15 year-olds provided a parent/guardian is present to consent. Rebecca Neno, director of covid ...

Lincolnshire hospitals have committed to investing an extra £2.6m into the nursing and midwifery workforce.The money will come in over the course of a year, to ensure wards remain safely staffed and to further improve the quality of patient care.United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust recently undertook an ‘establishment review’ looking at nurse and midwifery staffing across all of its hospitals.The ...

A face-to-face consultation session on proposed healthcare changes is coming to Spalding tomorrow Tuesday (November 16). The Lincolnshire NHS Care Commissioning Group (CCG) are seeking your views on proposed changes to Orthopaedic surgery; Urgent and emergency care at Grantham and District Hospital; Acute medical beds at Grantham and District Hospital and Stroke services. The Spalding event is from 10am to ...

In a boost for the county’s ongoing fight against Covid, two new pharmacies offering vaccinations have opened in Spalding and Pinchbeck. Broadgate House in Westlode Street, Spalding, is run by Pharmacy2U, and Pinchbeck Library and Community Hub, on Knight Street, is being run by Knight Street Pharmacy. This means that people in Spalding and Pinchbeck will be able to book ...

A medical practice that was threatened with closure after twice being rated ‘inadequate’ has been rated ‘good’ across the board in its latest report. Holbeach Medical Centre was placed in special measures by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in March 2019 after inspectors rated it inadequate on safety, responsiveness and leadership and said it required improvement in caring and effectiveness. ...

A Spalding filling station has its own defibrillator thanks to the fundraising effort of a staff member. The Applegreen site on the A16 took delivery of the life-saving equipment this week after supervisor Kieran Vertannes started raising money in June. The new piece of kit is voice activated and literally ‘talks’ users through the procedure. “It is very easy to ...

Lincolnshire had more than 82,000 patients on hospital waiting lists in August – up 18,000 in a year. The figures ‘compare well’ to the rest of the country, says a report to the county’s Care Commissioning Group which met yesterday (Wednesday) morning. The report also says that 47 per cent of patients who contact their GP are seen on the ...