Burnham Health Centre

Older people

Medical conditions

Approaching 3 million people have more than 3 long- term conditions, many of them are older people. The good news is that better management of any condition can improve quality of life.

Support for emergencies and general information

Common medical conditions
An overview of medical conditions is found under Overview Adult Health. This includes

Long term Conditions
Under Common Long Term Conditions Adult you can find information on common long-term conditions. Under the practice section on long term conditions, we consider a broad approach which many find helpful.

Senior health
Under Senior Health some relevant common topics are covered.

Mental health

There is good support for mental health in older people both locally and nationally, a significant proportion of which can be accessed directly without needing to go through the practice.

Local and national support for emergencies

Common mental health conditions
Anxiety And Depression are the most common mental health conditions seen for which there is good local support. Improving sleep problems can significantly help mental health. There is excellent local and national support following Bereavement. Alcohol And Drugs beyond any physical harm, can have an important impact on mental health. The support locally can support change.

Dementia
Dementia is well supported locally. This includes

Please update your personal details on the practice system if you are a carer

Wellbeing approach
Sometimes symptoms of anxiety or depression are mild, or a person may want to first try some steps themselves.

 

A positive future

There are some simple steps which can make a real difference.

An attention to mental, social and physical wellbeing can make a real difference.

Wellbeing

These areas should not necessarily be seen as separate, so for example joining a walking club can provide exercise which can help with mental wellbeing and give you the opportunity to meet other people.

The value of considering healthy living goes beyond just feeling better. It can also prevent the development of many long-term conditions and many cancers as explained in Reduce your risk of series. Healthy living is considered here with local support you can access without needing a referral from your GP.

Adopting lifestyle changes
It is important to acknowledge that changing any habit is not easy for any of us. Individually understanding how we can achieve any change on a permanent basis is an important step forward. There is more on this under Lifestyle changes.

We know that what is going on in a patient’s whole life can have an important impact on their overall health. Here there are links to information on the social side of life including local support.

Social support some quick picks

Vaccinations (including flu)
The flu vaccine has a protective impact particularly in those people who are at higher risk through age or having some long-term conditions. There is information on the

There is also information on other vaccines which you can get in the practice

Screening
Many of the screening services take place outside the practice (e.g., bowel screening). You can access bowel, breast, and aortic aneuysm screening if you have been recommended any of these and missed your opportunity, see under Screening.

Reducing your risk of common medical conditions and cancer
Reduce your risk of many conditions including Cancer, Dementia, Strokes, heart attacks, Diabetes, and COPD is possible.

Reducing your risk of falls and accidents
Reducing the risk of Falls and Accidents is possible.

Staying safe is about knowing what to expect with any illness. Many conditions either get better on their own or improve with simple treatments. Occasionally symptoms may develop which can indicate the development of a serious condition. We consider some serious conditions and what symptoms, and signs might suggest urgent action.

Social care
There is a wide range of support both to help you stay at home, or if you prefer to stay in a care home or nursing home. This includes local support for carers.

Please update your personal details on the practice system if you are a carer

“Live longer better” was a phrase coined as part of a campaign to support older people in remaining, physically, cognitively and emotionally active.

The vision of better ageing held by many medical leaders is covered under Live Longer Better which includes reference to the successful blue zones across the world.

Direct help

There is some great local support you can access directly.

Self-referral involves accessing NHS health services and other support yourself without needing an appointment with your GP. This is explained further by patient info Self-referral | Patient.

Bucks Health Hub
Most of the local self-referral routes are covered under Bucks Health Hub.

Common self-referral pathways
Some of the more commonly used local self-referral pathways can be found under local self-referrals in Contact Details And Self-Referral.

Some local community self-referrals
There may be services in the local community close to the practice, which if available can be found under Local Community.

Support for common conditions
Many common conditions have a support group which can be found if you look under the various conditions on Bucks Health Hub.

Support for groups of people
There are also many support groups for important groups of people. Support for All including:

Support for your medication and many common conditions
Your local pharmacist can offer great support, see under Pharmacy.

The NHS can be a complex maze particularly when it comes to local services. You can use the information on this website to help you find local services. You can also use the support of

Transport
There is good support which can signpost you to local services or provide you with transport. This can be found under Transport.

Support for safeguarding of adults (stopping both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect) can be found under Safeguarding adults.

Planning for the future

An introduction

As Marie Curie suggest
“Whatever stage you’re at in your life, it can be useful to plan for the future. Planning ahead can help make sure that other people know what you want and may make it more likely that your wishes will be understood and followed in the future. It can also give you more control over your future treatment and care. And it can make things easier for your family and friends, as they’ll know what you want.”
“Getting started with planning ahead.” Marie Curie website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

NHS Choices pose some important questions
“Would your partner or family know:

  • about the type of care, you would like to receive or where you would like to die
  • if you would want to be admitted to hospital or resuscitated (helped to start breathing again, if you stop)
  • if you want to refuse any types of treatment

These might not be easy topics to think about but, by discussing your wishes with your family, you could be saving them from having to help doctors make difficult decisions later on without knowing what you would have wanted.”
“Why plan ahead?” NHS choices website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Local and national support to help you plan for the future

Under End of life there is support for planning for the future, including steps you might take decades before your death such as with

  •  A lasting power of attorney
  • An advanced statement or decision (living will)

Quality care check lists and local support

The planning for the future checklist can help you better understand the options you have with any future planning and some of the local services available to help you. Any plan you make can be revisited and may change over time. The checklist is not submitted to the practice.

The checklist can be found under:

Some other checklists
For a further explanation of checklists and some other checklists which may be helpful see under Update Your Clinical Record. This includes checklists for a number of long term conditions.

Videos and podcasts

Many people prefer to see a video or listen to a podcast as it offers a different way to understand health information. On the videos and podcasts page there are links to some relevant videos and podcasts covering various topics relating to older people.

Friends and family test

We welcome feedback on your experience, including good experiences and where we can improve. This can be done easily through the Friends and Family Test which we link to here with further explanation: Friends and Family Test.

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