Health checks for the rural community in Kendal and Lancaster have restarted

Private and confidential health checks for farmers and their families have restarted at Junction 36 Rural Auction Centre at Crooklands and North West Auctions Ltd in Lancaster. More than 50 people have attended the face-to-face sessions so far which include a full NHS health check, signposting to mental health assessment and support, blood pressure checks and atrial fibrillation (pulse) checks.

The health checks at Junction 36 are led by Kendal Integrated Care Community (ICC) with support from Cumbria Agricultural Chaplaincy and the next session will take place on Thursday 16 September between 10am and 2pm.

The health checks at North West Auctions Ltd in Lancaster take place on the last Friday of every month with the next session taking place on Friday 24 September from 9am to 1pm. Lancaster Integrated Care Community (ICC) leads the sessions with Galloway’s Society for the Blind and Citizen’s Advice attending the September and October sessions.

The face-to-face health checks were paused over the past year due to COVID restrictions.

Cara Stride, Development Lead for Kendal ICC, said: “It was fantastic to be able to set up our clinic again in the Auction Mart. The team met with lots of new people some with very complex health needs that they have been coping with over these last few months. A counsellor from the Northern Guild joined our nurse to listen to concerns and help find ways to deal with emotional issues. We're really looking forward to visiting again in September."

Sarah Baines, Development Lead for Lancaster ICC, said: “We restarted our sessions in July and we were welcomed back with open arms. We had our busiest session ever picking up lots of potentially undiagnosed and untreated health issues which shows why these sessions are so important to the rural community.”

Farmers gave the following feedback in previous face-to-face sessions:

•  “I’ve changed my diet to lose weight.” 
•  “I gave up smoking the next morning, thank you.” 
• “I’m now monitoring my blood pressure three times a week and my GP is keeping an eye on me.” 
•  “I went straight to my GP and now I’m on medication and having an ECG next week.” 

During the pandemic, the ICCs continued to support people in the rural community via telephone consultations and offered advice and guidance on how to manage physical health, overall wellbeing and social issues. Each ICC in Morecambe Bay has links to GP practices and can refer patients to a GP and other services and support groups if a person needs further treatment or more specialised care and support.

The sessions at Junction 36 will be held at the Rural Auction Centre, Crooklands, Milnthorpe, LA7 7NU. There will be complimentary tea and coffee available. The sessions in Lancaster will be held at North West Auctions Ltd, Wyresdale Road, Lancaster, LA1 3JQ.

Our Integrated Care Communities (ICCs) are integrated teams of health and care workers, voluntary organisations and wider community assets who work together to aim to improve physical and mental health outcomes, promote wellbeing and reduce health inequalities across an entire population. You can find out more about our ICCs at https://hlsc.franktesting.co.uk/morecambe-bay/our-work/integrated-care-communities