“MANCHESTER USERS’ NETWORK” IMPORTANT MEETING!   Invite’s, Tracey Phillips of SERCO (Welfare to Work). Tuesday 1st June 2010, 10.30am is followed by a light buffet at 12.15. Held in, “Mainway” Park House Hospital. Patients’ views, suggestions needed! Common Concerns * Will we all be assessed for work next year? * Under qualified staff assessing people at Job Centres! * There is over 2.5million unemployed. It seems obvious they want to diminish our benef...

By: Paul Reed. Yesterday, Wednesday 09th December, 2009 at a meeting held at Mainway. Occupational Therapy, Park House Jessica Williams Project Director for the  Foundation Trust addressed members of Manchester Users Network. She invited patients to become members of the proposed new Foundation Trust, and spoke of the benefits of Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust achieving the status of becoming a foundation Trust. However, many patients did not feel assured that becoming a Found...

  The Right Hon Nick Clegg MP, Who Many See As Possibly A Future Prime Minister ,Supports Reissmann’s Experience As A Senior NHS Nurse     Nurse training cut by degrees by Karen Reissmann The tabloids have greeted the news that all nurses will soon go to university by declaring we will become “too posh to wash”. But such backward comments ignore the real problems with the plan. While it sounds good to give nurses more education, the reality is that this is the latest step in ...

 WASHINGTON: Scientists at Columbia University Medical Center have found yet another reason why eating fish can be beneficial. Dr. Richard J. Deckelbaum, Director of the Columbia Institute of Human Nutrition, has found that a diet rich in fish oils can prevent the accumulation of fat in the aorta, the main artery leaving the heart. The researcher says that the beneficial actions of fish oil, which block cholesterol build-up in arteries, are even found at high fat intakes. Fish are generally r...

By: Barbara Goulden IF you are a trade unionist working in the NHS then surely your responsibilities extend to speaking out in the interests of the wider public, not simply on the pay and conditions of union members. This is the core belief that kept sacked mental health nurse Karen Reissmann strong during her 17-month battle to win back her job. Last week (Jan 28) her claim to a Manchester industrial tribunal of unfair dismissal was suddenly stopped and settled out of court. This shocked some ...

There is a mental health liaison nurse service in the Accident & Emergency department at North Manchester General Hospital, Manchester Royal Infirmary and Wythenshawe Hospital, where people can present in crisis for assessment and signposting to other services. This is available from 9am-10pm.  Crisis Point in Levenshulme can provide  short term crisis intervention Tel : 225 9500   Samaritans Tel : 0845 790 9090.                                      �...

          “Watchdog criticises use of police cells for mentally ill”                             10/09/2008 04:34     LONDON (Reuters) - The number of people held in police cells rather than hospital for assessment under the Mental Health Act was “intolerable”, a police watchdog said in a report published on Wednesday. The Independent Police Complaints Commission found that twice as many people were held at police stations under section 1...

Largest ever review of acute inpatient mental health services highlights areas for action and shows all have room to improveThe Healthcare Commission today (Wednesday) said the quality of the services varied widely across the country as it published the most comprehensive assessment of NHS acute inpatient mental health services ever undertaken. The Commission assessed all 69 NHS trusts providing acute inpatient mental health services in England. This covered 554 wards providing almost 10,000 bed...

There have been several reports proposing radical changes to Day Services in Manchester, The Blue Tree Report, Bob Mercer’s Report (MHJCT) and perhaps other reports, which service users have not yet seen. Both of the above reports have been contrary to service users’ needs and wants. Manchester Users’ Network agreed that Alan Hartman compiles the Patients views and suggestions in a report to consider Mainway, the Horticultural Therapy, and Harpurhey Day Centre, Patients without a meaningfu...