Portfolio Health Volunteering
A helping hand
Katie Mackintosh Health Correspondent
Volunteers bring added value to healthcare Arriving at hospital can be an anxious experience
so it is nice to see someone with a smile on their face, says Christine, who is one of the volunteer meeter and greeters at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital, Clydebank. “Tey come in and they are full of
Volunteer meeters and greeters at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital, Clydebank Beyond the headlines Contraception
A campaign that offers women the chance to stock up on ‘the morning after’ pill ahead of the high-risk festive period was widely reported in the press last week. The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS)
campaign warned that women could find it difficult to obtain emergency contraception – which is effective for the first 72 hours after sex – quickly over the holiday period, and so offered free emergency contraception throughout December via an online booking form on its website –
www.santacomes. org – and a 15-minute telephone consultation. The pill will then be despatched with condoms and ‘advice literature’ to the woman’s home address. The charity hopes the move will help women prevent
unwanted pregnancy over the Christmas and New Year period. However, the campaign, while well- meaning, has some significant flaws. First, it highlighted the importance of timing. The
charity, which is the UK’s leading abortion specialist, sees more women with an unplanned pregnancy in January than at any other time of the year. And yet the day after the campaign became front- page news its website carried the following message:
46
www.holyrood.com 12 December 2011 “We are still committed to providing the ‘morning
after pill’ in advance for you, however, due to unprecedented demand for this service – regretfully, we may not be able to deal with your request until after the Christmas holiday period.” This, unfortunately, rather negates one of the key
aims of the campaign. Secondly, BPAS’ argument that the £25 cost at
pharmacies in some parts of the UK could prove prohibitive and discourage women from getting hold of it when needed was widely reported in the press. However, much of the coverage failed to highlight an important point, namely, that a free Emergency Hormonal Contraception Service has been available in Scotland since 2008. “Community pharmacy contractors through the
community pharmacy network of 1234 pharmacies across Scotland provide a consultation service for emergency hormonal contraception which is free at the point of care for patients requiring emergency contraception,” Community Pharmacy Scotland pointed out. “Community pharmacy provision is available 365
days of the year in all health board areas. Local newspapers or health board websites will carry information about which pharmacy is open close to you over the festive period should the public need to
apprehension and they don’t know what is happening,” she says. “We’re there just to be an ear and a cheery face.” Standing behind the neatly arranged information desk with Christine today is Margaret. Tey welcome patients and visitors to the hospital, offer assistance such as providing directions and travel information, and simply pass the time of day with people. Tis customer-service approach is quite in keeping with their surroundings, as the hospital shares its entrance with an adjoining hotel. Te
access the service.” The review of the service in Scotland, which
dispenses around 7,000 items per month, was published by the Scottish Government last month. “Overall it was felt that the EHC service offered a
valuable service across the country, particularly in rural areas and that it required little adjustment,” the report summarised. Over 90 per cent of community pharmacy staff
felt that it should continue to be offered and over 80 per cent of NHS board staff felt that the service was effective. What the campaign did achieve, however, was
extensive media coverage of the issue. However, while the campaign and media reports
focused on emergency contraception, it is worth pointing out that alternative methods of contraception are also available. It may not be considered as newsworthy to report, but if individuals are considering contraception in advance then it is worth also highlighting that other more long-term preventative methods, such as condoms – which would also help prevent the transmission of sexually- transmitted diseases – the pill or contraceptive implant are easily obtainable, and it may be more suitable to plan ahead rather than stockpile emergency contraception.
Follow me on Twitter @HolyroodKatie
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76