People want more information on common ailments
The booklet describes the different types of help available from
the NHS |
People want more information about how to manage common ailments, a survey conducted by Developing Patient Partnerships has shown.
The survey results, published this week, revealed that two-thirds of
people would be less likely to take time off work if they had more information
about managing common ailments. At the moment, 13 per cent said they
would stay at home if they had a cold.
To help tackle this, the DPP has produced a new booklet called “Better
health at home and at work”. It provides information about how
to manage common health problems,
including stress, back pain, irritable bowel syndrome, coughs and colds,
headaches, hangovers, diarrhoea, constipation, indigestion, skin problems
and minor injuries as well as information on how to stop smoking.
The booklet outlines the help that people can get from the NHS, including
from
pharmacists. Its three-step guide to treating common health problems
is:
· Step 1: self-treat the problem using medicines kept at home or work
(advice is given on which medicines to keep)
· Step 2: ask your pharmacist for advice and treatment
· Step 3: seek further advice or treatment from NHS Direct, a walk-in
centre, the over-the-counter medicines advice telephone line or from
an accident and emergency department
In step 2, the booklet states: “Pharmacists are medicines experts
and are usually the quickest and easiest way to get on the spot advice
and treatment about many common health problems.” The booklet points
out that many pharmacies have quiet areas in which the pharmacist can
be consulted
privately.
The booklet will be made available through primary care organisations
and parts of it can be downloaded from the DPP website
The survey follows the publication of a Department of Health report last
week outlining the importance of self-care in the NHS. It is examined
in a News feature on p78. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
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