Lisa Heald

We have funded a prescription software for physiotherapists at Barnet Hospital as part of our latest round of grants aimed at enhancing patient experience.🧵

Patients with a type of arthritis affecting people from their teens and 20s are being given a new lease of life thanks to an intense exercise class run at Barnet Hospital. The training sessions, which are run by physiotherapists, help people with axial spondyloarthritis, also known as axial SpA, which over time can cause bones to fuse together, resulting in severe pain – most often in the back. The sessions are run by Nahid Islam, a specialist physiotherapist, who said that because the patients are engaged and enthusiastic, they often see really positive results. He said: “One of the aims of the class is to empower patients to trust their body again through exercise and to learn how to exercise independently learning what works for them and what doesn’t work for them." Shanice Gidigbi, 29, from Edgware, said she started experiencing excruciating back pain when she was just 20 years old and at university. She said: “I knew the pain wasn’t normal, but I didn’t know what to do. I was away from home; my friends didn’t really understand and at the beginning I just tried to manage it with over-the-counter painkillers but the pain always came back. I did see a GP, but they referred me for physiotherapy and that had no effect. I didn’t push at the time, even though I was sure the stabbing pain wasn’t muscular. I was young and didn’t know how to advocate for myself.” An estimated 1 in 200 people are believed to have axial SpA but it often takes years for someone to receive a diagnosis, which means patients can spend a long time living with unnecessary debilitating pain. Sian Bamford, the advanced practice physiotherapist who initiated the classes, said: “Our new exercise group for patients with axial SpA is one of the ways we are working to improve the quality of care we give to our patients. We’re also working very hard with GPs and colleagues in our hospitals to improve the identification of patients with the condition as on average it takes eight-and-a-half years for patients to get a diagnosis and we want to speed that up.”

⭐️🚨We are recruiting!!!🚨⭐️ A fantastic opportunity for a full-time Band 6 Pelvic Health Physiotherapist to join our team! Please contact if you are interested in joining our well respected team! royalfree.nhs.uk/working-here/o…

Are you waiting for hospital care or treatment for your incontinence or prolapse symptoms? We want to hear from you to help us campaign to reduce the long waiting times for hospital gynaecology services: brnw.ch/21wIKEw

Such a fantastic opportunity!

Fantastic achievement @sianvbamford and a deserved reward for all your hard work for your patients 👏🏼🎉🥇

A fantastic opportunity to innovate and be instrumental in designing this new service to provide high quality advanced practice care to perinatal women @AcpBrunel @luciaberryphys1 @IgualadaPaula @ThePOGP @masic_uk

Great work Nikki 👏🏼

⭐️ Exciting Band 8a pelvic health physiotherapist post out to advert for the North Central London (NCL) Perinatal Pelvic Health Service ⭐️ A great chance to innovate and provide high quality advanced practice care to perinatal women across our service jobs.royalfree.nhs.uk/?fbclid=IwAR32…

@bcf_mskph @ThePOGP @masic_uk @AcpBrunel @luciaberryphys1 @pelvicroar

I defy anyone to read this extraordinarily candid, harrowing & heartbreaking account of the truth of a crippled NHS oncology system & not burn with rage for how this government has decimated the NHS & failed NHS patients. Please, please read & share 😔 lucygossage.com/my-reasons-for…

@shitscaredmum So very sad to read this and sending all my love to you and your family. Laura was a true inspiration and will continue to be. We all need to live life like Laura did. ❤️

I'm heartbroken to share the news that we lost our beautiful Laura in the early hours of this morning. She was fierce & tenacious to the end & it was truly the honour of my life to be her mum. We are devastated at the thought of life without our girl, she was a force of nature💔

@shitscaredmum I’ve followed your story since seeing you all on BBC breakfast after Laura graduated and you are all an inspiration on how to live life to the full and enjoy every day. Laura will continue to shine bright and hopefully the happy memories will grow to outshine the recent trauma 💕

It’s so hard to watch my lovely bright girl fade away completely. She still breathes but even the hand squeeze has gone now. Her life force is so strong but this is unbearable to watch. I’m scared that all my happy memories have been replaced by the trauma of the last few weeks

Presenting at the @NASSexercise: Aspiring to excellence celebration event today. Excellent day sharing our work on reducing time to diagnosis and access to treatment here @RoyalFreeNHS

@shitscaredmum ❤️

Thanks for all the kind messages of support, sadly I don’t have a second to reply with dressing, feeding, bathroom duties & managing journeys up & down stairs. It’s all pretty full on. This disease has stolen every aspect of my daughter & if I let myself cry, I’ll never stop.

@shitscaredmum @ourbrainbank @BrainTumourOrg @braintumourrsch So very sorry to read this and for Laura and you all to have to deal with this. Following your story has been and continues to be inspirational ❤️ Sending you all much love and best wishes ❤️

Every day is a little harder now. Laura’s basically non verbal & can no longer walk . A few months ago she applied to do a masters, now she can’t do anything for herself. It’s tough. This disease is a bastard. #Glioblastoma #GBM @ourbrainbank @BrainTumourOrg @braintumourrsch

Today’s Times. The crux of the matter. The NHS will not survive if it can’t retain its staff.

Fantastic work @sianvbamford 👏🏼🥳

Queen #Bees - HELP THEM OUT! Another important thread concerning #bumblebee queens at this time of year! Please #retweet/#share as every queen bee that survives gets to establish a nest that otherwise would not happen. This has knock on effects going forward. Let me explain. 1/11

NHS staff are not failing, they are being failed. Please RT if you understand the difference.