NHS North West London community update 8 February 2024

Mental health consultation extended to 16 February 2024

NHS NW London has extended the consultation on acute mental health services in Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea until Friday 16 February 2024. Extending the consultation will help us to gain more insight and feedback to the proposals that have been made to mental health services for residents in Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea. It will also give residents, service users and carers additional time to respond to the proposals.

The consultation will help us to understand what your views are on the proposals to:

Expand the mental health crisis assessment (MHCAS) service (previously piloted at St Charles) and move it to the Gordon Hospital.
Keep 67 inpatient beds at St Charles (as now), supplemented by the MHCAS at the Gordon Hospital with room for 12 patients, including space for 4 patients to be admitted overnight alongside a full range of community-based services.

Find out more here

An increase in measles cases

In the last few weeks there’s been an increase in the number of measles cases across NW London. Measles spreads easily and can cause serious illnesses, including pneumonia and meningitis.

Measles usually starts with cold-like symptoms, followed by a rash a few days later. Some people may also get small spots in their mouth. Initial symptoms may include a high temperature, a runny or blocked nose, sneezing, a cough, red, sore, watery eyes and then a rash usually appears a few days after the cold-like symptoms. Please contact your GP if you suspect measles and further details regarding symptoms can be found here.

Children can be protected from this serious infection by receiving two doses of the MMR vaccine. The first dose is given at the age of 12 months and the second dose is given at around 3 years and 4 months, before starting school. Having both doses gives long lasting protection against measles, mumps and rubella.

If you are unsure if your child is up to date with all their routine vaccinations, please check their Red Book (personal child health record). If you are still not sure, or if you need to bring your child up to date with their vaccines, contact your GP practice to check and book an appointment. You do not need to be registered with a GP to have these vaccinations.

The following graphic shows the vaccinations your child should be having by age.

To find out more about childhood vaccinations, please visit the NHS website.

We are also looking for community groups who would like to help support local education sessions around the MMR vaccination. Please follow this link to find out about the funding available for this work.

Hillingdon Community Health Charter

Work is ongoing in Hillingdon to develop a Community Health Charter.

There are two live questionnaires where residents and community partners can feedback. The first of these is aimed at Hillingdon residents (click here) and the second for Hillingdon’s partner organisations and voluntary-community sector (click here). If you would like to find out more or have a conversation with the team supporting, please contact: james.connell@nhs.net.

Women's health in NW London

We are looking for insight from women who live in NW London about women’s health and well-being services and experiences. We want to better understand the unique challenges and experiences that women face in their healthcare journeys. Share your thoughts and experiences through our survey.

Responses are confidential and the information provided will be used for NHS research purposes only. Sharing experiences will help us to understand the challenges women face in their healthcare journeys and how we can improve the quality of services for them.

Click here to complete the survey.

Please share the survey link with those it may be relevant to.

Harrow Citizen Health Forum

On Monday 19 February 2024 at 10am, the NHS will be hosting the Harrow Citizen Health Forum focusing on local Maternity services. The forum will be held in collaboration with Blossom and Maternity Voices Partnership. The meeting will be hosted online via Microsoft Teams, and members of the public can join for free using this link.

The Harrow Citizen Health Forum is a public meeting open to all Harrow residents, offering the opportunity to engage with senior leaders from the local health and care executive. Each forum features a diverse panel made up of Harrow borough leaders from the NHS, GPs, the local authority (council), Public Health, and clinicians. The meeting takes place quarterly and is chaired by NHS NW London’s engagement and equalities team.

If you’re interested in finding out more, please do get in touch with NHS NW London’s engagement and equalities team for Harrow by emailing nhsnwl.healthiernwl@nhs.net

Find out more here.

Chair: Charlie David, Engagement & Equalities Manager, NHS NW London

Panel:

Lisa Henschen, Managing Director, Harrow Borough-Based Partnership, NHS NW London

Isha Coombes, Borough Director – Harrow, NHS NW London

Dr Radhika Balu, GP, Medical Director Harrow, NHS NW London

Improve your employability skills at the West London Employment Expo

Are you considering a career change? Or do you want to improve your knowledge and skills to further your career progression?

Consider attending the West London Employment Expo, Sponsored by the NHS. Come and meet with employers and explore a diverse range of career opportunities.

The event will be held from 10am to 4pm on Friday 9 February 2024 at The Drum at Brent Civic Centre, HA9 0FJ.

You will get the opportunity to meet employers, attend interactive workshops and take part in on-the-spot interviews, and much more!

Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

You can either turn up on the day or pre-register your interest.

Please note on the-spot-interviews must be booked in advance. Click here to get tickets.

There will also be a chance to get free NHS health checks. The event is sponsored by the West London Alliance, NHS North West London, North West London Integrated Care System and Shaw Trust.