Your Health
News and advice from Hull Teaching Primary Care Trust

Tips for reducing medicines waste in the future include: Don't order medication which is no longer needed Keep GPs informed if certain types of medication are no longer taken Don't stockpile medication Unwanted or out-of-date medicines should be returned to a local pharmacy

Spring clean your medicine cupboard

Hull residents are being encouraged to empty their cupboards of unused and out-of-date medicines as part of a waste awareness campaign.
Last year in the city, over five tons of unwanted medicine was returned, with a value of over a million pounds.
Pharmacist Ray Hall is backing the campaign and he says:
"As well as the amount of money wasted, there can also be serious consequences as a result of keeping old medicines in the home. More than 30,000 children are admitted to hospital each year due to poisoning, having taken medicines which were not meant for them. Many of these are as a result of old or out-of-date medicines not being disposed of properly.
"Unused medicines can potentially be very dangerous; for example, children could get hold of tablets thinking they are sweets and child resistant caps are not always child proof, many 4-5 year olds can undo these tops."
This campaign is running throughout February, although old or unused medicines can be handed in at any time. All medicines which are no longer needed or are out of date can be returned to your local pharmacy, where they will be disposed of safely.
For more information, please contact the Medicines Management Team on (01482) 344901.

Thousands invited to take part in Lifestyle Survey

Thousands of people across Hull are being invited to take part in a special Lifestyle Survey, in order to discover more about the state of people's health in Hull and what the Primary Care Trust can do to improve services for you. The survey, which will run between January and April, will cover a variety of areas including diet, exercise, mobility, self-care and everyday living.
Around 5,000 people will be chosen at random to participate and a locally-based research company, Social and Market Strategic Research (SMSR), will conduct the surveys. Interviewers will contact people in person and will carry identity cards at all times – participants are advised to request to see this ID if contacted. The survey will take about 20 minutes to complete.
Dr Wendy Richardson is the Director of Public Health for Hull and she would encourage anyone contacted to take part. She says:
"This is the second time we have carried out such a survey, and this year we will also be looking at how the population of Hull is changing, and how people of different backgrounds and cultures moving in and out of Hull affects the health services we need to provide. Only by finding out how people currently live their lives can we adapt to their needs, and offer advice and information which will help and enable people to live healthier lives in the future.
"We need to get a clear and accurate picture of health in Hull to be able to shape services and improve the health of local people, and this is a good way of getting that information."