Health

Every secondary school pupil in South Holland and some of primary age are to be offered a free flu immunisation by nasal spray this autumn. Lincolnshire is one of 12 areas to run the pilot programme nationally. Across England 700,000 schoolchildren will be offered the vaccine. Nurses from Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust will visit every secondary school in ...

Those people most at risk from flu are being urged to protect themselves and their families as a matter of priority with a free jab. Full protection from the vaccine takes up to two weeks to develop and can help prevent vulnerable patients from further health complications associated with flu, such as pneumonia. Those most at risk include pregnant women, ...

Staff at Johnson Community Hospital have been reminded that patients have priority in the main car park. It follows a complaint that staff appear to be shunning their own car park in preference to getting closer to the hospital’s main entrance. A reader of The Voice said: “I sat in reception from about 8.45am on a weekday while my wife ...

Medical experts admitted they were shocked to discover that a Holbeach pensioner had died from a very rare disease. A post-mortem revealed that Iris Grimwood was a victim of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), which doctors had not diagnosed – or even suspected – during a rapid descent in her health. At an inquest into her death, only one of five medical ...

Mothers and families in Lincolnshire now have access to a wealth of information about breastfeeding, thanks to a new website. Details about feeding patterns, cues, how to express and how to support your partner are among the top tips available at the click of a button any time of the day or night on the website launched by Lincolnshire Community ...

The son of an Alzheimer’s sufferer is coping with the disease which has “stolen” his dad by fundraising for a charity which he hopes will help “save the next generation”. Dan Wise (42), of Whaplode says research into a cure and a better treatments will come too late for his dad Graham, but he hopes that by raising cash for ...

More than a fifth of women are putting their health at risk by not having a simple test which could save their life. Cervical cancer is the country’s biggest killer of women aged under 35, yet one Spalding GP surgery says only 79 per cent of eligible patients regularly have a smear test. Cervical cancer is one of the few ...

A former councillor is calling for treatment facilities for cystic fibrosis sufferers to be made available in Lincolnshire. And sufferer Jane Jones says Spalding’s “under-used” Johnson Community Hospital could be a venue. Jane is a rare case in that she was only diagnosed last December, at the age of 62. Usually it is spotted in early childhood. The diagnosis after ...

Staff working in community health services across Lincolnshire have adopted a new scheme to enhance the support they offer to patients living with dementia. Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS) has adopted the Butterfly Scheme across its services, including hospital wards, community clinics and community teams. The opt-in Butterfly Scheme uses a discreet symbol to identify patients with memory ...

Allotment holders got together for some banter and a barbecue to raise cash for a hospital ward which cared for a friend’s wife. The green-fingered gang from Horseshoe Road allotments in Spalding sat down for a social occasion – and to compare the size of their spuds – and raised £350 for the Tulip Suite at Spalding’s Johnson Community Hospital. ...

A care home in Spalding is to close next month with the loss of 17 jobs and the displacement of nine residents. The owner of Grenoble Rest Home, in Cowbit Road, blames burgeoning government policy for her decision to shut the home on July 21 and take retirement at the age of 46. Sarah Corlett said: “It’s been a very ...

South Holland and the Deepings MP John Hayes wants to see Spalding a “capital of cycling”. The town’s cycle action group is confident its ambition for better promotion of cycling and its benefits will be heard in the corridors of power, following a meeting at the South Holland Centre last Friday. Mr Hayes was at PEDALS’ forum entitled Shifting Cycling ...

A Spalding woman who has lost seven stones of weight in less than 18 months has welcomed the push for more people to be given GP referrals to slimming classes. Under the NHS scheme, people needing to lose weight are offered 12-week courses free of charge. Last week it hit the headlines because doctors are being urged to refer people ...

St John Ambulance volunteers who helped a young finalist when he lost control of his car at a grass track event are backing a call for more people to train as first aiders. Spalding St John Ambulance volunteers Peter Houldershaw and Harry Griffen have lent their support to a campaign from the leading first aid charity to recruit new first ...

As gestures by best friends go, Jacky Mitchell was ready to show her utmost support for breast cancer sufferer Caroline Bunning. Caroline (38) started four months of radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment on Wednesday. So the night before, Caroline pre-empted losing her hair by shaving it off – and Jacky followed suit. Jacky (28) said: “Caroline was told that she would ...

Further national recognition has been awarded to a community nurse from Moulton. Candice Pellett, a senior case manager and community practice educator from Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS), was one of five nurses to collect The Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, Award for Outstanding Service last week. The award from the Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI) is presented to ...

Patients with life-threatening injuries or illnesses are waiting longer for an ambulance to arrive in south Lincolnshire than this time last year. In April this year only 66.67 per cent of calls to “Red 2” emergencies – those that were life-threatening but did not require a defribrillator – were answered within the target time. Last April 68.51 per cent of ...

NHS Lincolnshire East Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has been exploring options for additional inpatient palliative care in the east of Lincolnshire. Following a comprehensive analysis of local need, Lincolnshire East CCG invited providers to bid for the provision of six inpatient beds and the chosen provider is Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust in partnership with the Butterfly Hospice Trust. ...

Community NHS services in Lincolnshire have been ranked for the first time in the Stonewall Healthcare Equality Index. Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS) has been placed 16th out of more than 40 different healthcare organisations in England. The index, set up by the charity Stonewall, helps organisations to benchmark and track their progress on equality for their gay, ...

  When Alan Garrett was struck by a series of four strokes, he was rendered paralysed down his left side. But his extraordinary determination and courage has been key to the left-hander learning to become a useful indoor bowls player – with his right hand. Alan (82) is now a member of two league teams at Spalding Indoor Bowls Club ...