GrumbleSmiles

This is a continuation of the CAFE Health survey.  ( Other posts in this series can be found either by clicking on “CAFE Project” in the Tag Cloud or by clicking on  “GrumbleSmiles Trust” in the Topics list)

This undoubtedly accounts for the relatively high use of the GP services and the high level of hospital admissions.  No doubt these figures would be much higher still with an even older group of people.

Multiple chronic conditions are a major reason for the long lengths of stay that older people spend in hospital.

This is a continuation of the CAFE Health survey.  ( Other posts in this series can be found either by clicking on “CAFE Project” in the Tag Cloud or by clicking on  “GrumbleSmiles Trust” in the Topics list)

The good news is that half the group have not been in hospital in the last 3 years.  The not so good news is the other half have been admitted to hospital and a quarter have been admitted more than once.  In itself this represents significant use of hospital services but given the relatively young and mobile profile within this group, it’s probably a significant understatement of the demands placed on the health service by the majority of older people in Coventry.

This is a continuation of the CAFE Health survey.  ( Other posts in this series can be found either by clicking on “CAFE Project” in the Tag Cloud or by clicking on  “GrumbleSmiles Trust” in the Topics list)

Don’t be thrown by the graph — the scale is set incorrectly —  what it shows is that only half the group have an annual health check.   As I recall, all older people are entitled to an annual health check, so is it that they are not offered one , or are they just not turning up.  Either way, they should all be getting a six monthly medication review, I wonder if this is happening.

FOOTNOTE :-          There must be scope for health improvement in this area.  A HEALTH APP to prompt you to get your medication and annually to arrange with your GP to have your overall well being checked could be useful.

This is a continuation of the CAFE Health survey.  ( Other posts in this series can be found either by clicking on “CAFE Project” in the Tag Cloud or by clicking on  “GrumbleSmiles Trust” in the Topics list)

The vast majority of the group  (90%)  had visited their GP in the last 12 months,  which maybe surprising in such a young profile of older people.  Unless it was related to preventative visits, for example :-  flu vaccinations.

The high demands put on medical services are reflected in the 40% of the group who visited their doctor on more than 3 occasions in the last year.

The difficulty of getting an appointment with GP’s has been much in the news recently.  ( See my blog entitled “Disappearing GP’s” ).  Within this group 70% of people had some difficulty getting an appointment with their GP in what they considered a timely way.  The alternatives for them would be to contact NHS Direct or now its successor – the 111 service.  The NHS Direct service was rightly or wrongly blamed for significantly increasing the number of people turning up at Accident and Emergency services.  The new 111 service is reputedly in all sorts of difficulty recruiting suitably qualified staff.  Neither options seem a good alternative to the once universally respected GP family doctor.

This is a series of graphs which show the results of our second CAFE group meeting held in the Welcome Centre, adjacent to Coventry University Technology Park, on Friday 7th June 2013.   The focus of this survey was HEALTH and HAPPINESS as perceived by the  “expert” group of older people.   It is representative only of their views of themselves and doesn’t purport to be typical of other groups of older people in Coventry.

The commentary on the graphs is entirely my own personal reflections.  ( Other posts in this series can be found either by clicking on “CAFE Project” in the Tag Cloud or by clicking on  “GrumbleSmiles Trust” in the Topics list).

Overall this is a very positive rating of their health by this group of people.  Over 70% rated their health as very good and the remainder rated it moderately.  Obviously on one level this is not surprising because everyone had to have the ability and mobility to come out to the meeting.  But later graphs will qualify this view.