Organised in partnership with South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw’s NHS Screening Team, Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber’s (RDaSH) Living Well Service and South Yorkshire Police, the purpose of the visit was to share information with the community, who unfortunately experience health inequalities due to sporadic contact with medical and clinical professionals. As a result of this, there can be a high prevalence of various cancers and diabetes within the community as well as other, potentially life-threatening conditions.
The health promotion workers and clinicians visited the site, bringing with them information on cancer and non-cancer screening programmes including diabetic eye and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). With an extremely receptive audience, conversations were had with the community around the signs and symptoms of these conditions, including demonstrations on how to self-examine breasts for lumps and bumps.
Lesser known amongst the general public, an AAA is a swelling of the main blood vessel in the body, the aorta, which can weaken and expand. There are no symptoms and if left untreated the swelling can lead to a rupture and a risk of death from internal bleeding. To help detect this condition, men over 65 are invited to undertake a quick, easy and painless five minute ultrasound scan, receiving their results on the same day.
Similarly, while knowledge exists around diabetes, this is less so for complications such as diabetic retinopathy, which is the result of high blood sugar levels damaging the back of the eye. This can lead to a loss of sight if not detected and treated early. Everyone aged 12 and above diagnosed with either type 1 or 2 diabetes, receives an annual invitation for screening. During the screening process, eye drops are administered and photographs are taken of the retina.
PC Sam Robinson, Gypsy Traveller Liaison Officer at South Yorkshire Police, said: “I want to thank everyone at the Millfield Caravan Site for welcoming us and making the most of the visit. Many of the people we spoke to had some experience with the conditions we came to speak and share information about and the feedback we have received has been very positive.”
Members of Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals’ (DBTH) Diabetic Eye Screening Team were also on-hand during the day to answer questions and share their expertise.
Ingrid Thomasson, Joint Diabetes Programme Manager said: “The visit was a fantastic experience and we were welcomed with open arms. We had a very attentive and interested audience and I want to thank everyone for taking the time to come and talk to us. Ensuring people know about what potential complications can arise from diabetes is very important and the visit was just one more way to spread the word and, hopefully, reduce any health inequalities experienced by the community.”
Throughout the rest of the summer the Screening Team will continue to work with South Yorkshire Police to visit more travelling communities.