GP practices working together to offer evening and Saturday appointments

Surgeries across East Sussex are offering evening and Saturday appointments to give people access to care at a time that best suits them.

It is now possible to get an appointment between 6-30pm and 8pm Monday to Friday and between 9am and 5pm on Saturdays.

The additional face-to-face, telephone or video call appointments will be provided by groups of practices working closely together to provide services and share resources.

This means when patients ask for an evening or Saturday appointment, it may not always be held at their usual practice but at another one nearby.

To request an appointment, contact the GP practice you are registered with or contact NHS 111.

Learn more about accessing the weekday and Saturday appointments.

Protect yourself during the festive period with COVID-19 and flu boosters

The NHS in Sussex is calling for anyone who is yet to get their COVID-19 Autumn Booster to come forward and ensure their health is better protected during the festive and New Year period.

The protection from vaccines reduces over time so the booster is being offered to those at greatest risk from COVID-19 to increase their protection during the winter months when viruses spread most easily.

Appointments are available at walk-in centres in Eastbourne and Hastings to make it as easy as possible for you to get the top-up jab, or you can book an appointment on the National Booking Service online, by calling 119 or by following an invitation from a local team.

To date, more than 565,000 people in the county have received their COVID-19 boosters.

People eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine include everyone aged 50 and over and those with conditions that put them at greater risk of the disease, such as people with weakened immune systems and pregnant women.

People in these groups are also eligible for a free flu vaccination.

If you have a question about the Sussex COVID-19 vaccination programme you can contact the Vaccine Enquiries Team at sxicb.vaccineenquiries@nhs.net or by calling the vaccine enquiry phone line 0800 433 4545 (open 9am to 4pm, Monday to Friday).

Project launched to cut waiting times for adult gender services in Sussex

NHS England has commissioned an adult gender service pilot in Sussex to reduce waiting times for people needing specialist gender identity assessment and treatments.

The service is available to adults that are registered with a GP in Sussex and already on one of NHS England’s seven National Gender Identity Clinics.

There are around 800 people in Sussex waiting for these services.

The plan is to open the new service in Spring 2023 after completing a six-month engagement, planning, recruitment and training period that is underway.

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SPFT) is keen to work with individuals and the local trans and non-binary community to make sure the pilot service meets needs and is shaped by lived experience.

The service will be led by SPFT in partnership with Nottingham Centre for Transgender Healthcare, which delivers the East of England Gender Service and is the link clinic for the Indigo Gender Service, both of which deliver gender service pilots across the country.

After two years, the service will be assessed and next steps agreed, which could include extending the pilot for an additional year. The evaluation will also be used to inform national policy.

White Ribbon Day campaign sets goal of tackling misogyny as World Cup begins

Held at the start of the football World Cup tournament — a time when domestic violence incidents spike — this year’s White Ribbon Day message highlighting the dangers women encounter was especially important.

Held on 25 November, #TheGoal of this year’s campaign was to highlight the challenges and dangers women and girls face in traditionally male-dominated contexts like the football pitch and public transportation.

The annual event raises awareness of violence against women and girls by addressing its root causes such as harmful attitudes and behaviours around masculinity.

White Ribbon Day coincides with the start of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, which ends on 10 December, an international campaign led by women’s groups.

Events to mark the whole 16 Days campaign in East Sussex and nationally include:

East Sussex County Council’s website has more information about domestic abuse and where to get help.

County Council celebrates ten years of East Sussex 1Space

In the same year that London hosted the Olympics and Curiosity Rover landed on Mars, East Sussex 1Space was launched by East Sussex County Council.

1Space is an online directory with a focus on care, support and wellbeing services for people who live in the county.

To mark the 10th anniversary, the County Council is running a survey until 28 February 2023 that will inform and guide improvements to the site. If you can spare a few minutes, please answer five quick questions telling us what you think of East Sussex 1Space.

Since its launch in November 2012, 1Space has grown from small beginnings of around 700 entries to now include more than 2,000 services.

On 1Space you’ll find information about organisations and groups offering services to East Sussex residents, including:

  • food banks
  • organisations who can help with money and housing issues
  • mental health
  • residential services
  • care in the community
  • activities for the less active
  • support groups, and much more

In November 2021, 1Space expanded to include East Sussex Local Offer services for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

County Council thanks Homes for Ukraine hosts with payment increase

Residents hosting guests through the Homes for Ukraine scheme are now eligible for an extra £150 a month to help them cope with cost-of-living concerns.

The thank you payment from East Sussex County Council is to help hosts cope with increased living costs this winter and show gratitude to those who have shown continued kindness and generosity.

From October 2022 to March 2023, monthly payments for existing and new hosts with fewer than five guests rise to £500 while those accommodating families of five this rises to £650.

In addition, residents who host for 12 consecutive months and are willing to extend their placements beyond the 12-month period will get a one-off incentive payment of £1,000.

In East Sussex, 529 households are hosting Ukrainian guests, and more host families are desperately needed. More information on hosting and the support available to Ukrainian guests is accessible via the County Council’s website.

 

Competition seeks ideas to improve planetary health in Rother

A challenge has been set to the people of Rother to come up with ideas that can both improve planetary health and bring together people of all ages.

The competition aims to inspire quality connections between different generations by encouraging the mutual sharing of wisdom, knowledge, experience and skills.

The closing date is 2 January 2023, with the best ideas due to be funded.

East Sussex County Council will be holding design workshops in December to give people the chance to work up an idea, meet with others they can work with, seek advice and refine ideas.

Examples of the ideas being sought include:

  • Community allotments where cultivation skills and produce are shared
  • A repair café where a sense of community is developed, and practical skills are handed down to younger people
  • A Tuk Tuk or a trishaw to take older people with restricted mobility around their village, for example to a doctor’s appointment or along the seafront
  • Intergenerational cooking classes using local produce

The competition is being jointly held by the County Council, HAIRE and Rother Voluntary Action.

If you have a great idea and want to see it implemented in Rother or have an idea and would like help in putting together an intergenerational working group, email sue.dunkley@eastsussex.gov.uk by 31 December 2022.

Your email should include: your contact details, the idea with approximate costings, which part of Rother your design is for, and details of your inter-generational group.

County Council makes accessing cost-of-living resources easier with dedicated webpage

Accessing benefits and resources linked with rises in the cost of living has been made simpler following the launch of East Sussex County Council’s dedicated website page.

The ‘Support with the cost of living’ home page brings together key resources in one place to take the confusion out of finding advice, information and support to deal with increasing expenses.

Advice includes how to maximise benefits, tackle concerns around housing, pay essential bills, and gain access to mental health services to ease the worry this winter

The County Council’s ‘Support with the cost-of-living’ page assists people in the following areas:

  • Money, including help with benefits
  • Your mental health
  • Transport
  • Employment and learning
  • Your home

Learning Disability England also has accessible advice about saving money, keeping warm, grants and campaigns on its website.

NHS campaign urges residents to ‘Help Us, Help You’ keep well this winter

Using the right services if you need help, getting your winter vaccinations, keeping active, and having a well-stocked medicine cabinet at home are some of the things that can help you stay well this winter.

Residents are also asked to keep in touch with older neighbours, relatives, and friends that may need a bit of extra help this winter.

To prepare for the expected increase in need for health and care services this winter, NHS Sussex will:

  • Help people get urgent and emergency care as quickly as possible when they need it
  • Increase the number of GP appointments available, and at more times of the day
  • Provide more support to frail people to help prevent them ending up in hospital for care
  • Provide more support to people considered at high-risk of becoming ill to prevent them from getting worse, particularly those with conditions that affect their breathing, heart and blood vessels
  • Prevent more people from ending up in hospital by providing more care at home, or their place of residence
  • Help more people leave hospital quicker when they are well enough to return to their place of residence or go to a more appropriate place to get care

Find out more about the ‘Help Us, Help You’ campaign, along with information and advice about how to keep well this winter.

Additional funding will continue to support the service providing respite breaks for unpaid carers

Unpaid carers across East Sussex will be able to continue benefitting from regular respite breaks after East Sussex County Council agreed to continue supporting the service with additional funding.

The service gives unpaid carers across East Sussex a free respite break from their role by providing a carefully selected and thoroughly vetted volunteer to spend time with the person they care for on a regular basis.

The regular, three-hour respite breaks —­ usually weekly or fortnightly — are delivered by the Association of Carers, which is commissioned by the County Council.

Due to the pandemic, the number of volunteers reduced, and there are a significant number of carers on the waiting list for this service.

As an interim measure, the County Council funded paid support worker time for 12 months to deliver some of these carers breaks while the service worked to rebuild its volunteer base.

The use of paid workers has been very successful in providing breaks to those on the waiting list for a volunteer, particularly in the High Weald, Lewes and Havens areas where volunteer recruitment is a particular challenge.

Additionally, the use of paid workers has enabled the service to support some more complex situations and where there has been reluctance to accept a volunteer, a paid worker has been accepted.

To be eligible for the service, the carer needs to be over 18 and providing substantial levels of care.