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What methods did you use to successfully give up smoking? Take our poll and get the advice of others!


I gave up smoking after many years of trying and many attempts.  I have to say it is one of the best

Give up smoking!

Give up smoking!

things I have done for my body.  I don’t have a smokers’ cough and I can taste things.  You know like food!

In many respects I’m lucky.  here in the UK the National Health Service provides us with  free smoking cessation counselling.  In the UK smoking cessation counsellors are able to prescribe various products such as nicotine replacements just for the cost of the prescription.  So pretty much you are saving money as soon as you put out that last cigarette.

But what i was wondering is how you gave up smoking? (If you have).  To that end we have create a poll looking at what method people have successfully used to quit smoking.  It would be great if you could take part.

Even better we would love it if you could use the comments box below to share your smoking cessation story.  What works what didn’t.  It could really help those on the journey to be smoke free!

 


 

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In the last 12 months has your healthcare provision got better or worse? Please take our poll.


Healthcare reform

Healthcare reform

Healthcare reform seems to be the watchword of the day.

From Obamacare in the USA to the restructuring of the National Health Service in Great Britain the whole globe is chaning the way health is organised.

Not just that but a raft of new technologies and techniques are becoming available.  Add to this the rise of generic medical products which leads to lower costs especially in developing nations then we have a very interesting future,

But our interest today is a bit different.  yes there have been loads of changes.  But have they actually improved or even changed the quality of the healthcare we receive as members of the public?

To answer this question we have decided to run a short poll to find out what our readers think.

The poll is below and it would be great to find out what you think!

Thanks very much in advance!



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Healthcare Tourism. Should people from other countries be given access to publicly funded healthcare?



In the UK yesterdays papers were full of discussion about what was referred to as ” Healthcare

Healthcare Tourism

Healthcare Tourism

Tourism”.

In a nutshell this is where citizens of other countries use the UK’s National Health Service to obtain medical assistance .  It is claimed that this is often not just for emergencies but in some cases for routine procedures.

You can read more about it here at the BBc web site http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-24616801

So what do you think about healthcare tourism in your country.  It would be great if you could provide some feedback by taking our poll below.  Fell free to use the comments box to expand your thoughts.

Thanks very much in advance




 

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Caregivers of Patients needed by the University of Oxford to take part in a survey about the health related web sites!

Oxford University

Oxford University

Patient and carers experiences of health can be an important source of information to other people with similar concerns. Traditional health information has been based on facts and figures, not the experiences of other patients or carers of people with similar conditions. Today health websites can contain traditional health information, accounts or stories of people’s experiences of health, blogs about health and discussion boards. It is important to understand what impact these health websites have on patients and carers.

A research team in the University of Oxford are researching the effects of sharing online patient and carer health information. The wider aim of this research is to find out how the NHS and other health information providers should incorporate people’s experiences into online health information in an effective manner.

Just click here to take part

https://oxforddph.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_54JzaA3Ub5gWBG5

One component of this research seeks to pilot-test a questionnaire to measure the impact of using health-related websites. This measure will be used in a clinical trial to assess the impact of websites containing personal experiences. It is therefore extremely important to establish if this questionnaire is suitable for its intended use. The questionnaire will also be available for use in future research.

The development of the e-Health Impact Questionnaire is being carried out in collaboration with a number of study groups in Northumbria, Oxford and Scotland. The Programme is funded by the National Institute for Health Research.

Can you help with this research?

The research team are asking carers who are aged 18 or over and have access to the internet to complete this questionnaire. They must also live in the United Kingdom.

In this study a ‘carer’ is a family member or friend who provides care in terms of help and support to a person due to their health condition. Examples of care are:

  • Personal care such as help with dressing or washing.
  • Healthcare such as help with medications or medical equipment.
  • Household duties such as cooking or shopping.
  • Physical care such as lifting or helping with walking.

 

What will taking part in this study involve?

Those wishing to take part in the study will be asked a series of questions about their general views of online health information. They will then be asked to spend 10-15 minutes browsing a care related website and answer a series of questions relating to that website. Where participants provide an email address, they will be sent an email after a period of two weeks asking them to repeat a section of the questionnaire again. This is to test if they questions are reliable and accurate over time. Completing the questionnaire should take approximately 20-25 minutes on two separate occasions.

How can I take part?

Please click on the following link to access the questionnaire: https://oxforddph.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_54JzaA3Ub5gWBG5

If you would like to contact the research team, you can do so by emailing Laura Kelly at laura.kelly@hmc.ox.ac.uk