• ❤️ Your Health Visitor, save our services!
    Health Visitors provide a service to every child and family. They are Specialist Community Public Health Nurses who care for all under fives from the antenatal period to school age. Their value is long recognised in the protection of children, child development, growth, promotion of emotional health and wellbeing in parents and children. We support those suffering domestic abuse, in poverty and with complex health needs in any way that protects children and enables them to thrive. health Visitors make a difference to families. The effectiveness of Health Visiting is well documented. U.K. Government recently trained and recruited 4200 extra SCPHN (Health Visitors) and yet without the funds in Councils many of these Health Visitors may be facing redundancy. Along with cuts to libraries, Children's Centres and Social Services budgets, the risks to our children are mounting. In Scotland the devolved Govt has increased the mandated contacts by Health Visitors to 11 in the first 5 years, recognising that the outcomes for children will be better. In England these contacts are only 5 with a real possibility in some areas this will not involve a Health Visitor contact. Health Visitors support every child, with the emphasis and knowledge that visible children and community support for parenting is the best way of Safeguarding our under 5s. Health Visiting is 120 years old, babies and yet children require support more than ever right now in these austere times. Please ask our Government to protect our Children by funding our service.
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    Created by Su Lowe
  • Stop pharmaceutical companies hiking vital drug prices unfairly
    Update (28 August, 2016): Since I started this petition the NHS Trust where I live has decided, due to the huge increase in cost imposed by Univar, the manufacturer, that it can no longer supply me with Trientine Dihydrochloride, the drug that I rely on to control an otherwise fatal rare liver condition called Wilson's Disease. The situation for me and other Wilson's Disease patients has taken a turn for the worse so please sign the petition and please share it and encourage as many people as possible to do the same. Thank you so much! Jude ___________________________________________________________ The amazing NHS, funded by us through our taxes, buys drugs and provides them to us, our family members, our friends, our colleagues, to help us beat, alleviate and control all kinds of physical and mental health conditions. My case is just one example of how pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers unfairly hike the prices of vital lifesaving drugs in order to inflate profits and company share prices. It's not the only example out there and I'm sure it's not the worst. We need to stand up and let them know that unethical price hikes are not acceptable. I have a rare genetic liver condition called Wilson's Disease. To control this, I take a drug called Trientine Dihydrochloride, which is a product that's been unchanged since it was developed for the treatment of this potentially fatal condition in the 1960s. Trientine is owned by multinational corporation, Univar, and it's been a registered product in the UK since 1985. Trientine is a great drug! It's kept me alive and healthy for the past 30 years when other drugs haven't worked. The fantastic NHS provides Trientine to me free of charge (I just pay the tiny prescription fee). The hospital pharmacist that supplies me with Trientine told me that until recently it cost the NHS about £400 for 100 Trientine capsules (that's a lot, right!) and that was about 16 days' worth for me. Univar has, over several incremental rises, increased the cost by about 750% so it now costs the NHS nearly £3,400 for the same amount. That's £205 each day to keep me alive and healthy; £1,431 each week; £6,219 each month; £74,624 each year... I now face periods without this vital drug because the NHS pharmacy cannot provide enough due to their spending limits and the increased cost. I don't know what this means for my health exactly but it's not good - I know that much. I'm not the only person. Others with Wilson's Disease are facing the same uncertainty over their health and prospects for controlling this condition. This is the ugly, greedy, unethical face of the pharmaceutical industry. Companies often have a monopoly on the rights to a certain vitally important drug and abuse this status to make profit hand over fist and inflate their share prices with no care for good organisations like the NHS that they're ripping off, and no regard for the patients that ultimately suffer, fall ill and die by being priced out of the treatment that they need. It can cost a pharmaceutical company a lot of money to develop new drugs but we're talking here about products that are long established and unchanged. There's no justification for astronomical price hikes. We need to show that we care and demand better ethical standards and enforce fair pricing regulations with us the people and our NHS at the heart. Thanks.
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    Created by Jude Pearson Picture
  • End Parking Charges at Beeches Green Health Clinic
    We are a Stroud-based community action group and we have received a number of complaints regarding the new parking system at Beeches Green. We have sent the following to PropCo and Parking Eye. We would like to register our disapproval – we believe the new system is unnecessary and is resulting in unfair and unjustifiable impacts. Neither patients nor people who work in NHS/Social Care at the site should be forced to pay to park. Staff in the various facilities at Beeches Green report many patients – daily - complaining of confusion regarding the use of the registration machines, many unsure if they are meant to be paying or registering for free parking. The signs are complicated and the two sections of car park (free/paid) are not clearly defined as separate - those with literacy problems may have difficulty with the signs (1% of the population are illiterate and 4% severely dyslexic). Many patients have paid unnecessarily due to fear of charges from Parking Eye and many more have simply not realised that they had to register, resulting in fines. For a several weeks, the pay machines were broken – with several people being fined as a result due to their not having access to the mobile phone app which was presented as the only alternative way to pay. We have spoken to members of staff who tell us that they had never received reports of patients being unable to park under the previous system, though parking was sometimes difficult. When parking became difficult in the past, the caretaker was very successful in preventing non-NHS users from leaving their cars at the site. The new system does not only prevent non-NHS users, but also excludes users and staff of services relating to the new Redwood building and the mammography unit. Previously, many of the people working in this new building were able to park within other parts of the estate. As a part of the NHS, users and staff of the breast screening unit were also able to park for free. Now we have a system where staff and users of some – but not all – NHS and social care services have to pay to park. This has led, amongst other things, to the breast-screening unit moving to a site further from the town centre, creating inconvenience and confusion for those accessing the services.
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    Created by Stroud Against The Cuts
  • Keep Salisbury NHS Walk-In Centre open 84 hrs a week
    This service serves the public very well and is well used. I believe that this is a crucial service, particularly because of the difficulty accessing health care both in normal working hours and OOH services.
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    Created by Jen Nelson
  • Save Hinchingbrooke Hospital
    The future of Hinchingbrooke Hospital is under threat and the proposed merger with Peterborough and Stamford Foundation NHS Trust may see the closure of Accident & Emergency, Maternity and Haematology and also the downgrading of the hospital. We will fight for the retainment of Hinchingbrooke Hospital. Hinchingbrooke Hospital currently provides medical and emergency care for 160,000 residents in Huntingdon and the surrounding rural area. Further housing stock has been planned and approved for development in the near future, which will increase the need to have a District Hospital in Huntingdon. Peterborough and Addenbrookes, the two nearest alternative hospitals are 40 minutes journey time at best, along very busy roads assuming you have your own transport. Not ideal if you are very unwell. We will fight to save Hinchingbrooke. https://s.bsd.net/38degrees/main/page/-/CBY/Hands_Off_Hinchingbrooke_Logo_large.jpg
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    Created by Daniel Laycock
  • MAY'S CAMPAIGN. Mum's Against Your Suicide.
    MAY'S CAMPAIGN is a campaign to try and get more help for people with Mental Health issues who need to be able to talk to someone when they are having a bad time or are in an unstable state of mind. At the moment people with mental health issues are advised to go to their nearest A&E department who are often over stretched and don't always have the staff to spend time talking to people with mental health issues. Sometimes people with mental health issues are put in touch with a Crisis team, but again they are voices on the end of a telephone telling them to go to A&E, or 20 minutes per day home visit. If there were walk-in centers, that these people could go to, it would relieve the pressures on A&E departments and quite often people with mental health issues just need to be able to talk to someone face to face, who is willing to listen to them and make them feel that what they are going through is important and that they, as people, are important to their families and to society in general. Today a young girl named MAY had her funeral, she was 21 and had suffered with mental illness for a number of years, but because she couldn't get the help she desperately needed, she took her own life. There were a lot of young people at the funeral who had known May as a friend, and who had also received support on-line from all across the country. People loved May for what she did to help them, she tried to help many people with their problems and she also worked as a volunteer at a center for people with suicidal tendencies, where they could go for support and even be able to stay for a few nights, so they could feel safe. Yet when May needed this help there wasn't anywhere for her to go. My daughter was one of the people at the funeral who has also suffered with mental health issues and has often been through very difficult times, where she has needed support, but has not been able to get to talk to anyone without being told to just go to A&E where she has had to sit for hours while waiting to be seen and in the meantime her anxieties have reached suicidal levels. No mother, father, family member or friend should have to bury their sons or daughters, because the support that they need isn't in place for them to use. There are walk in centers for the homeless, for food banks, people who are unable to handle the amount of alcohol they drink and other problems, but there isn't enough being done for mental health sufferers. It could be organized and run by volunteers in empty shops, mobile buses or safe houses. It doesn't have to be big new buildings, just somewhere people can feel safe and listened to. So please sign this petition and share it with your friends, family and everyone who means something to you, also your loved ones, as we all know someone who has had mental health issues from depression to suicide, and we all need to show them our support by getting something done to help them where they can go and feel safe instead of suicidal. Thankyou for taking the time to read this, now please sign it, we need as many signatures as there are people who love someone out there.
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    Created by Pat Jarvis
  • Help us get treatment for are son in Wales so we can go home
    Riley was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called hunter syndrome when he was two,it's a proggressive disease with a life expectancy of 12-15years. When he was diagnosed we had an email off Welsh government saying it wasn't cost effective to give him treatment that would give him a better and less painful life. We had to move from Wales to England to get treatment,not only had we just found out are son had a life limiting disease but we would have to leave all are friends, family and are complete support network behind. We struggle on a daily basis were we are now with no support, we just want to go back home to be with family and have more of a support network for the boys. Please sign and share hopefully someone will listen
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    Created by Gary Harlock
  • Access for the 88 dwellings not to be through Sandringham Gardens
    Will seriously increase the traffic and road use of Sandringham Gardens and I believe this will have huge implications on Health and Safety for the residents of Sandringham Gardens. I believe Pearce Homes have a duty of care to reconsider moving the access from Sandringham Gardens, and moving the access. This is due to the amount of children that use the Park, which is located on the main through road. This will cause massive health and safety issues for any users of the park. The road that would go through from Sandringham Gardens is too narrow to cope with potentially 176+ extra cars that would use this access (considering most households have 2 cars). Information regarding the proposed planning Planning Application Number: 60871 Site Address: LAND EAST OF OLD TORRINGTON ROAD STICKLEPATH DEVON Description: ERECTION OF 88 DWELLINGS, PARKING AREAS & ASSOCIATED ENGINEERING WORKS http://planning.northdevon.gov.uk/detail.asp?AltRef=60871
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    Created by James O'Sullivan
  • Petition for the Return to Use of Hartlepool Hospital
    Hartlepool is a city of 100,000 people. Our General Hospital, later called the University Hospital of Hartlepool, covered not just that population, but another 100,000 people in towns and villages to the North of Hartlepool. Since the closure of our Accident Emergency and the moving of many of our services from our state of the art modern hospital to another hospital to the South, some fifteen miles away of Hartlepool, there have been higher than expected annual death rates; to the extent that it has become a matter of concern. it takes a full extra 30 minutes to arrive at A&E from Hartlepool, and it takes more than an hour to arrive at that same overcrowded A&E from other local areas. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/07/14/article-0-141053F5000005DC-371_634x729.jpg The ill and infirm, and anyone who wishes to visit them, have a very long journeys when sick, or to visit. This is intolerable hardship when a hospital still stands which could serve all the needs of the local population. This not only increases the financial hardship in terms of travelling costs, but it increases travelling times and the need to travel for all of the staff too. To add to this all of the data regarding privatisation has shown that patients are not the first priority. Fortunately we have been promised that a fully funded national service is now within our remit and a solid possibility, and this will better serve the population and less profit will go to large business based in other countries. We ask for direct funding to again have the NHS and the Hospital which our society deserves.
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    Created by Robert Price
  • Get Orkambi treatment on NHS for Cystic Fibrosis patients
    Orkambi is a drug that is vital in the preservation of the lives of people suffering from cystic fibrosis. It's currently not available to patients on the NHS and deemed "not value for money" by NICE. The aim is to get this drug available to all cystic fibrosis patients and start saving lives.
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    Created by Darren Waite
  • Maintain UK science funding
    The UK is one of the science power-houses in the world. We attract and produce some of the best scientists and contribute greatly to increasingly important scientific areas including cancer, bacterial resistance, renewable energy and food research as well as a whole host of research areas that span all areas of science, technology and engineering. Leaving the EU has the worrying potential to restrict the amount of funding these research areas get, causing the UK to fall behind in world leading research but also slowing scientific progress. The UK is part of EU funded projects such as Horizon 2020. As a PhD student in cancer research I have seen first hand in the labs the reaction to the UK leaving the EU. Everyone is worried about what this means for science here and whether we'll be able to maintain our excellent work. This petition is to raise awareness in the hope that we can get a deal whereby scientists and funding can move between countries as easily as possible in order for research to progress as it always has done.
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    Created by Alina Finch
  • Make Lewes District pesticide-free
    There is clear evidence that pesticides (such as the herbicide glyphosate) used for pest and weed control across Lewes District are causing declines in biodiversity and are harmful to human health, especially children. Our children need to be able to play safely in the parks of Lewes face down on the ground without fear of exposure to glyphosate and other potentially harmful chemicals. But it is not just children. Everybody who lives, works, plays, visits, or walks their dog anywhere in this beautiful district should have the right to enjoy the area without the fear of coming into contact with unnecessary, toxic chemicals. Glyphosate alone is linked to cancers, infertility, birth defects, and neurological disease. The World Health Organisation has publicly stated that glyphosate ‘probably’ causes cancer. However there are 40 different types of pesticide that can be and are used in and around towns and cities in the UK. Progressive cities such as Paris, Toronto - and recently Brighton - have already voted to end the use of toxic chemicals in all public spaces. If they can do it, so can Lewes District! Effective alternatives for weed control already exist which are not harmful to people, pets, or the environment. Furthermore, the use of non-toxic alternatives will encourage greater local biodiversity - and give us all the pleasure of seeing more bees buzzing, butterflies fluttering, and birds singing! The increase in pesticide use since the 1970s has seen farmland bird populations decline by over 50% and catastrophic declines for insects such as several butterfly and bumblebee species (of up to 70% for some species). The loss of bumblebees and other pollinators has knock-on effects for growing food, as 75% of crops are pollinated by wild insects. So why risk the health of our children, ourselves, and the environment when there is another way? Let us employ non harmful ways of dealing with – or living with- those things that toxic chemicals are used to kill. These products are already available. We can start this process in our local district, and in Lewes. PS - Get informed! Read up on this issue by visiting the Pesticide-Free Towns campaign page on the Pesticide Action Network website.
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    Created by Stone Adams