Live Well - Hetton Group Practice

Child Immunisation

One of the most important things that a parent can do for their child is to make sure that they have all their routine childhood vaccinations. It’s the most effective way of keeping them protected against infectious diseases.

Ideally, kids should have their vaccines at the right age to protect them as early as possible and minimise the risk of infection.

Vaccination Checklist

Here’s a checklist of the vaccines that are routinely offered to everyone in the UK for free on the NHS, and the age at which you should ideally have them.

2 months:

6-in-1 – first dose (DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB)
Meningitis B
Rotavirus – first dose

3 months:

6-in-1 – second dose (DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB)
Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV)
Rotavirus – second dose

4 months:

6-in-1, third dose (DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB)
Meningitis B – second dose

Between 12 and 13 months:

Meningitis B – third dose
Hib/MenC – fourth dose (Hib/MenC given as a single jab)
MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) – given as a single jab
Pneumococcal infection – second dose

3 years and 4 months, or soon after:

MMR – second dose
DtaP/IPV – given as a 4-in-1 pre-school booster

Around 12-13 years:

Girls and boys offered whilst at school the HPV vaccine, which protects against cervical cancer – two vaccines given within 6 months-24 months.

Around 14 years:

Diphtheria, tetanus and polio booster (Td/IPV) – given as a single jab
MenACWY

Vaccines For Risk Groups

People who fall into certain risk groups may be offered extra vaccines. These include vaccinations against diseases such as hepatitis B, tuberculosis (TB), seasonal flu and chickenpox. See the NHS Choices pages on vaccines for adults to find out whether you should have one.

What do I need to know about the MMR vaccine?

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, there has been a significant drop in the number of parents and carers getting their children vaccinated against MMR and taking up other childhood vaccines.

More than one in ten eligible children under the age of five in England haven’t had the MMR vaccine or are only partially vaccinated.

This leaves these children unprotected and increases the risk of measles outbreaks occurring in nurseries and schools. We are reminding parents and guardians to ensure their children are protected by taking up two doses of the MMR vaccine at the right time.

Why is it so important that we’re up to date with our MMR Vaccines?

Measles is highly contagious so even a small decline in MMR uptake can lead to a rise in cases. As international travel resumes, there is more chance for measles to be brought in from countries where it is common.

Catching-up children who missed out on their MMR vaccines during the pandemic is a priority, in order to help prevent a rise in measles cases.

Stop Smoking

Want to quit?

Talk to your GP,

contact your local NHS stop-smoking services,

or call the NHS Smoking Helpline on 0800 328 8534

GPs are delighted to help people who have decided to quit smoking. About 40% of smokers will die from a smoking-related condition, so they know that stopping is one change that will make a big difference to your life.

Patients will see health benefits within days, such as improved taste and smell, while important benefits, such as lower risks of heart attack, stroke, lung cancer and improvements in breathing will happen in the first year or two.

Your GP will probably have been chasing you to stop smoking if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, circulation problems or history of stroke, heart attack, angina, asthma or chronic lung disorders.

There are excellent local NHS stop-smoking services. These NHS services are very good at tailoring treatment to your lifestyle habits. With medication and the support of these services, you’re four times more likely to give up successfully.

Get Fit For Free

The secret to getting fit for free is to use every opportunity to be active.

Armed with a bit of get-up-and-go and good planning, you can be fitter than ever without spending a penny.

NHS Choices have enlisted the help of top fitness experts to help you explore new ways and places to exercise for free. Click on the following link to find out more NHS Choices:

Walk Everywhere
Free Running Podcast
Cycle to Work
Park Games
Home Exercises
Skipping
Trim Trails
Green Gyms
Outdoor Gym
DIY Boot Camp
Free Equipment
Park Football
Mall Walking
Contact your Local Authority
Free Gym Passes

Birth To Five

Your NHS guide to parenting in the early years

Whether your child is a newborn, a toddler or a pre-schooler, this Birth to five guide is for you. It has 150 pages of NHS-accredited information, videos and interactive tools to help you through the parenting process.

They answer all your questions, from how to soothe a crying baby to how to prepare your child for school. Learn how to spot the signs of serious illness, how to cope if an accident happens, and how to check your child’s development.

And they haven’t forgotten about you: as a parent or carer, your wellbeing is crucial too. The guide covers all you need to know about your health after having a baby, as well as your rights, benefits and NHS services.

Baby Essentials

Health and Development

You and Your Life

Contraception

Contraception is free for most people in the UK. With 15 methods to choose from, you’ll find one that suits you.

Contraceptive methods allow you to choose when and if you want to have a baby, but they don’t protect you from sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Condoms help to protect against STIs and pregnancy, so whatever other method of contraception you’re using to prevent pregnancy, use condoms as well to protect your and your partner’s health.

Where to get it

Contraceptive services are free and confidential, including to people under 16 as long as they are mature enough to understand the information and decisions involved. There are strict guidelines to for care professionals who work with people under 16.

You can get contraception free from:

most GP surgeries (talk to your GP or practice nurse),
community contraceptive clinics,
some genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics,
sexual health clinics (these offer contraceptive and STI testing services), and
some young people’s services (call 0800 567123).

Find sexual health services.

Many of these places also offer information, testing and treatment for STIs. If you’ve been exposed to the risk of pregnancy, you’re also at risk of catching an STI.

Before you make an appointment, make sure you’re as informed as possible about the contraceptive options available. People’s choice of contraception may vary over time, depending on their lifestyle and circumstances.

Contraception and menopause

Women who have sex with men and don’t want to get pregnant need to keep on using contraception until they haven’t had a period for more than 12 months (menopause).

This is because periods can become irregular before they stop entirely, and pregnancy can still occur during this time. Find out more about menopause.

The methods of contraception

There are lots of methods to choose from, so don’t be put off if the first thing you use isn’t quite right for you; you can try another. You can read about each of the different methods of contraception by visiting these pages:

There are two permanent methods of contraception:

To find your nearest contraception clinic you can use the NHS Choices service search. Enter your postcode, click ‘search’, then click ‘contraception’.

You can also look in the phone book under ‘sexual health’, or use the fpa clinic finder.

You can find out more about each type of contraception by contacting:

CASH on 0300 303 8565.
Brook Advisory Service (for under-21s) on 0800 988 2209.

In addition to your chosen method of contraception, you need to use condoms to prevent STIs. Always buy condoms that have the CE mark on the packet. This means that they’ve been tested to the high European safety standards. Condoms that don’t have the CE mark won’t meet these standards, so don’t use them.

Winter Health – Beat The Blues

Winter depression (seasonal affective disorder or SAD) is thought to affect up to one in 15 Brits every year between September and April. Many more of us (about 17%) get a milder form of the condition, known as the winter blues.

Key symptoms

depression
sleep problems
lethargy
overeating
irritability
feeling down and unsociable

According to Sue Pavlovich of the Seasonal Affective Disorder Association (SADA), these 10 tips could help. “Everyone’s affected differently by SAD so what works for one person won’t for another. But there’s usually something that will help, so don’t give up if the first remedy you try doesn’t work. Just keep trying,” she says.

1. Keep active

Research has shown that a daily one-hour walk, in the middle of the day, could be as helpful as light treatment for coping with the winter blues. Read more about walking to get fit.

2. Get outside

Go outdoors in natural daylight as much as possible, especially at midday and on bright days. Inside your home, choose pale colours that reflect light from outside, and sit near windows whenever you can.

3. Keep warm

Being cold makes you more depressed. It’s also been shown that staying warm can reduce the winter blues by half. Keep warm with hot drinks and hot food. Wear warm clothes and shoes and aim to keep your home between 18C and 21C (or 64F and 70F degrees). For further information on what you can do, including applying for grants to keep your home warm, read our article on keeping warm and well.

Severe symptoms

If your symptoms are so bad that you can’t live a normal life, see your GP for medical help.

4. Eat healthily

A healthy diet will boost your mood, give you more energy and stop you putting on weight ove r winter. Balance your craving for carbohydrates, such as pasta and potatoes, with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.

“Some people tell us that taking extra vitamin D helps,” adds Pavlovich. Good food sources of vita min D include oily fish and eggs.

Summer Health

Hay Fever – Allergy UK helpline: 01322 619898

Hay fever affects around 20% of people in the UK. Lindsey McManus of Allergy UK offers some tips on avoiding the causes and reducing your symptoms.

“The main triggers of hay fever are tree and grass pollen,” says Lindsey. “The pollen count is always higher when it’s a nice, bright, sunny day.”

Top Tips:

If grass makes you sneeze, get someone else to mow your lawn. If you react to grass and you spend time on the lawn, you’ll get symptoms.
Create a barrier by smearing Vaseline inside your nostrils.
Don’t sit outside between 4pm and 7pm or in the early morning, as the pollen count is highest at these times.
Don’t sleep or drive with the windows open, as this will allow pollen to come in.
Damp dust regularly.
Wash your hair. Pollen is sticky and may be in your hair.
Vacuum. Pollen can live in carpet for up to three months.
Talk to your GP or pharmacist about any treatment you’re taking for hay fever as it might be worth trying a new treatment. The same antihistamine [anti-allergy treatment] doesn’t always work for someone year after year. Try something different, such as a nasal spray or a new antihistamine.

Sun Safety

It’s important to protect your and your children’s skin in the sun to avoid sunburn and heat exhaustion.

Click here for NHS Choices Questions and Answers

Stings

Knowing how to treat an insect sting and how to recognise when it needs medical attention will help you do the right thing if you or your child are stung.

Insects such as wasps and bees sting as a defence mechanism (when they feel in danger) by injecting poisonous venom into the skin. For most people, stings are painful but harmless. But some people can have an immediate allergic reaction to being stung, which can be very dangerous.

Click here to read more about stings

More Summer Health at NHS Choices

Travel Vaccines

There’s no point spending hours choosing your swimwear, beach bag and flip-flops if you barely think about the bugs and other health risks that could ruin your holiday.

Almost one in four UK holidaymakers don’t get any vaccinations despite travelling to areas that have life-threatening infectious disease.

Find out which travel jabs you need for your destination.

It’s not worth skipping travel vaccinations. Infectious diseases can make you very sick, spoil your holiday and even kill or cripple you.

Vaccinations protect you against many travel-related infections, such as yellow fever, typhoid and hepatitis A. Use the information on these pages to learn about travel vaccines, which ones you need for your destination, and when and where to get them.

For additional general information, read our articles on travel health.

The vaccines

The vaccinations currently available for travellers abroad.

Carers

Looking after someone?

Caring for someone can be very difficult and many people find that they need extra help with the care they provide.

Find out what support you might be able to receive here – provided by NHS Choices. This page also provides lots of help and advice.

Carers Direct – 0808 808 7777

Free, confidential information and advice for carers.

Lines are open 8am to 9pm Monday to Friday, 11am to 4pm at weekends. Calls are free from UK landlines or you can request a free call back.

You can also ask for a call back in one of more than 170 languages.

You can send a query to our advisers by email.

Find out more about the Carers Direct helpline.