Newsletter
June 2004 Newsletter — Extracts
Opening Words
Wet Spring leaves.
Welcome to Spring! I am sorry to have missed the April evening (sounds like Glasgow Orpheus Choir) and Peggy Spencer’s wonderful night of dancing. My spies tell me everyone enjoyed themselves immensely.
You will read, further on, of the events that are forthcoming, most of which are arranged by the Committee. The Summer Outing we are attempting to arrange, the trip to Elgood’s Brewery, is seemingly at risk if there are not enough people wanting to go. So, please, if you are interested let Jill Fysh know, on 01553 772325. We need to have a rough idea of numbers before booking the bus, otherwise we may have to consider going by car and arranging lifts for people who are unable to drive.
Now, on to a contentious point. To be a member of this local osteoporosis group costs £10.00 per annum, for which members receive free entrance to the ten meetings we hold each year in the Methodist Hall, County Court Road. Members also receive the quarterly newsletter. This fee of £10.00 is in addition to any fee paid to the National Osteoporosis Society. There are also members who pay just £1.00 each time they attend a meeting. They too, receive the newsletter.
The question has been raised as to whether those who do not pay the £10.00 annual fee should pay more than £1.00 for those meetings they attend. I am ambivalent on this issue and seek your opinions. Speak on this matter to either me, or Edie, and it can be discussed fully at the AGM.
On a lighter note: I will be pleased to see you all at the Coffee Morning in West Winch on Sunday 13th June. Let’s hope we all have an eventful, happy and pain-reduced summer.
From the Chairman, John Fludgate
June 2004: Peripheral DEXA Scanning Day — A Great Success
Everyone who reads this newsletter regularly has heard about DEXA (Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry) and recently we have been talking about peripheral DEXA scans.
A wrist scanning day at Southgate’s Medical Centre had been organised by the Lynn Group of the National Osteoporosis Society for Saturday 5 June 2004 to allow 30 people who were concerned about their risk of osteoporosis to find out if they had fragile bones. In the end 39 people were scanned and there is already a waiting list of 18 people for the next event in September.
The day was supposed to start at 9.30 AM. Edith Finbow, Secretary, said “I knew people would come early but I was amazed, when I arrived at 7.30 AM, to find people already waiting.” Tony Bennett, the radiographer, agreed to start early and more people than planned were seen. The local group funded the day, with some support from Churchill Medical and Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical company, so the scans were offered free.
Due to the tremendous response there was some delay, even though appointments were given. The group would like to apologise for this.
Another similar event has been organised for Saturday 9 October 2004 at the Methodist Hall, Hunstanton, Norfolk. Availability is always limited, so please contact us first before coming.
If anybody would like to learn more about osteoporosis, the group would like to invite them to attend their next meeting at the Methodist Hall, County Court Road, King’s Lynn, on Thursday 24th June at 7.30 PM. Then Dr Norman Williams, Consultant Rheumatologist from the Edith Cavell Hospital, Peterborough will be speaking about current management and new treatments for the disease.
More about Peripheral DEXA Scanning
We thought it might be interesting if we gave some more details about peripheral DEXA scanning.
Bone Mineral Density — BMD — measurements by DEXA at the lumbar spine and proximal femur (hip) remain the current ‘gold standard’ for the diagnosis of patients with osteoporosis.
If this is not available, a BMD measurement in a peripheral skeletal site (wrist or heel) can be used to predict fracture risk.
Ours is a wrist scanner.
Intervention is recommended as follows:
- If the forearm T-score is less than -2.5, treatment is recommended, especially if other major risk factors for osteoporosis and/ or fractures are present.
- If the forearm T-score lies between –1 and –2.5 then lumbar spine and proximal femur BMD measurement by DEXA should be performed.
- If the forearm T-score is greater than –1.0, and no low trauma fractures are present, then no further treatment is required and the patient should be reassured that his/ her risk of fracture is low.
To put this in layman’s terms:
- if you are shown to have osteoporosis then you need treatment;
- if you are borderline (osteopaenic) you need to be referred for a full DEXA scan;
- and if you have strong healthy bones, you only need advice on diet and exercise in order to keep them that way.
All peripheral x-ray devices must be operated by trained staff. This is to ensure adequate quality control and reproducible results. Their operation should comply with legislation governing the use of ionising radiation.
Tony Bennett, who operates the scanning equipment, is currently Specialist Radiographer in Nuclear Medicine at the West Suffolk Hospital, and is very well qualified to use the machine and interpret the results. He will bring an assistant to help with giving advice. This will enable him to see as many people as possible during the day.
Fundraising
Coffee Morning | Sunday 13 June 2004
John Fludgate has invited anybody who would enjoy a cup of coffee to come and join him and Sally at their home, in West Winch.
Coffee will be available from 11.00 AM and he is asking everyone to buy a 50p ticket. This entitles people to a free raffle entry and will give him some idea of numbers — always helpful when catering.
There will be a few stalls, plants, cakes and treasures, plus information on osteoporosis. It’s also a good opportunity to talk and to get to know one another better.
Marathon | June 2004
Don’t forget Neil Fennel – we need your sponsorship of him. Nobody wants to run 26 miles to generate funds for a charity, only to receive a very small amount. Please help if you can.
He is running from Sheringham to Cromer, Felbrigg Hall and Weybourne, before returning to Sheringham.
Send your sponsorship money to the Secretary, Edith Finbow, or Neil Fennel (01553 761484).
Quiz 2004 | Thursday 15 July 2004
Jeff Hoyle has agreed to be Quizmaster again this year. The venue this year will be different. We have booked the Ballroom of the Duke’s Head Hotel (on the Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn), which will give us more room than last year. Although we were very pleased with the Millfleet’s generous offer (of a free venue) last year, we are hoping to attract more people to the quiz this year and will need the additional space.
As well as a different venue, the quiz will take place this year on a different day. It’ll be held on a Thursday. Every other year it has taken place on a Wednesday. This needs to be highlighted if you are encouraging people to take part. Otherwise people may assume that it is a Wednesday event.
Summer Outing | Thursday 12 August 2004
Something else we would like you to book early for is the Summer Outing. We have arranged to visit Elgood’s Breweries, Wisbech. This is £2.00 entry to the gardens, £5.00 for the Brewery Tour (steep steps involved) and £3.50 for the coach. That is £5.50 or £8.50, depending upon whether you choose to take the Brewery Tour.
If we can fill the coach, a 53-seater, then we can reduce the cost by 50 pence each. Alternatively, if we only have a very small response we will need to take cars BUT… we do need to know!
Jill Fysh is arranging this. Call her on 01553 772325. She would appreciate a call, as she will soon need to book the coach.
Saturday Night Dance #2 | Saturday 2 October 2004
The Peggy Spencer Dance at the beginning of April was so popular that we had to turn people away.
People were telling us they really appreciate a ‘Saturday Night Dance’ with live music. We were amazed at how many people danced for the whole evening, with wonderful skill and energy.
As this was so successful, raising over £500, Peggy has agreed to repeat the format, again at the Gaywood Community Centre, on Saturday 2 October. The tickets will be the same price as before, £5.00.
Anybody who would like tickets should please contact Edith Finbow, as soon as they can, on 01553 773309, and she will put your name on the list. She’ll then send you your tickets to you nearer the time.
The Eddie Seales Big Band and Guests | Tuesday 23 November 2004, 7.30 PM
An autumn show at the Corn Exchange, King’s Lynn. Tickets cost £11.00, £9.00 concessions, available from the Corn Exchange on 01553 764864.
Get Your Copy of Our Notepad
Greetings from King’s Lynn
Our notepad consists of 100 pages of good-quality white paper. The front cover shows a full-colour detail of a watercolour painting of Captain George Vancouver’s statue in front of the Customs House in King’s Lynn, by local artist and friend of the group, Helena Anderson.
It makes a very useful gift for people holidaying in this area to take back home. It’s also handy to have around for those short letters we often need to write. We are selling each notepad for £2.00 plus £1.00 postage & packaging if required. We are also offering them for sale as a ‘Baker’s Dozen’ — 13 notepads for the price of 12 — £24.00.
Of course, you want to get hold of at least one! There are several ways you can contact us to let us know. We’ll get back to you promptly. Please make cheques payable to NOS, and contact the Secretary, Edith Finbow, in the first instance.
Questionnaire — Are Patients Satisfied with Local Osteoporosis Services?
Many thanks to everybody who took part in this survey.
Our group has been invited to talk to the Primary Care Trust Board about a strategy for osteoporosis. This would be a very valuable opportunity to add the public viewpoint — as far as we could ascertain that — to the PCT’s planning process.
We felt it was not sufficient to give the views of a very small committee; we needed to add the comments from as many of our members and supporters as we could muster. So the questionnaire was developed, piloted and once agreed, sent out in the week of the 26 March to 120 of you.
Almost immediately we began to receive the responses, 20 on one day alone. The final number returned was 84, a 70% response rate.
We received some very interesting comments.
I would like to have DEXA scans in King’s Lynn. I live at Syderstone and my husband is nearly 80 years old. Peterborough is a long drive.
Questionnaire Respondent
I need more regular checks if on long term steroids.
Questionnaire Respondent
I need more information on prevention and how the disease progresses.
Questionnaire Respondent
Earlier diagnosis and treatment could keep patients fracture free, thus helping the hospital bed situation.
Questionnaire Respondent
No treatment because I am a man.
Questionnaire Respondent
Would like to see more exercise groups specifically targeted at people with osteoporosis.
Questionnaire Respondent
These are just a few of them. We were not able to include all the comments we received in the final report, but overwhelmingly these were the main points raised.
We need:
- Regular monitoring, early diagnosis with a local scanning facility.
- A specialist nurse to give information, advice and support.
- A local osteoporosis clinic.
- A lead clinician.
- Medically-approved exercise classes.
Targeting Osteoporosis — Recommending a Strategy
In the NSF (National Service Framework) for Older People, Standard Six, the UK Secretary of State for Health declares that,
…older people who fall should, with their consent, be referred to a specialist falls service.
Source: NSF for Older People
There, a specialist assessment should be carried out by the falls service in collaboration with primary and secondary care to identify patients at highest risk of fracture within primary care:
GPs should take responsibility for assessing risk of osteoporosis and identifying those who need prevention or treatment.
Source: NSF for Older People
The strategy we are recommending to the Board is based on The Primary Care Strategy for Osteoporosis and Falls, published by the National Osteoporosis Society in 2002. If anybody would like a copy, let us know and we will obtain one for you. Call 01553 773309.
In Our Healthier Nation, the Secretary of State for Health highlighted the role that osteoporosis plays in causing fractures in older people, noting that, as a result of this disease, falls are a major cause of death and disability. Osteoporosis prevention was therefore included as one of the measures recommended to achieve a 20% reduction in accidents by 2010.
It is an important issue, highlighted in national documents with timed targets. We therefore hope the PCT will agree with our strategy for a local integrated osteoporosis service, to include:
- A specialist osteoporosis nurse
- A lead clinician
- A DEXA scanner.
Read our Presentation to the PCT Board
We gave our presentation to the Board on Wednesday 19 May 2004 at Burnham Market. We hope we shall have more to report in the next issue of our newsletter.
Anyone wishing to read the presentation in full may download it here in PDF format (requiring the Adobe Acrobat Reader to open/read it).
NOS Membership
There are currently 3 million people in the UK with osteoporosis, yet National Osteoporosis Society membership stands at just 27,700. We need the membership to grow to more than 100,000 and this will be a major challenge over the next five years.
If you would like to become a member — if, of course, you are not already — please take the time to visit the NOS Membership page, which helps explain the benefits of membership.
Diary Dates
(the full list of diary dates)
Reminder: Our Meetings
Our meetings are always held on the fourth Thursday of the month, not the last Thursday!
