HEALTH AND LONELINESS ROADSHOW HITS DUMFRIES

Health and Loneliness Roadshow Hits Dumfries

The profound impact that loneliness can have on people’s health will be highlighted in a roadshow organised by Befriending Networks this month.

The Health and Loneliness Roadshows will bring together health and social care professionals in all 14 Health Board areas of Scotland throughout 2015 in a discussion of the impacts of loneliness on health and, by consequence, on health and social care services.

These two-hour lunchtime workshops* will also allow participants to explore the measures which, working in partnership with the voluntary sector, they can adopt to address it within their professional spheres of influence. Representatives of local befriending services will showcase their own work on health and loneliness and participants are invited stay for a “networking half hour” at the end of the workshop to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee, get to know more about these services and the potential offered by befriending for enhancing the quality of support available to vulnerable and isolated people within their health board area.

*Lunch is not provided, but participants are encouraged to bring their own. The Roadshows are free of charge to all participants.

Commenting on the road show Dumfries and Galloway MSP said Joan McAlpine  stated

“It was great to meet the Chief Executive of Befriending Networks, Liz Watson, at a recent event in Parliament where I found out that the Health and Loneliness Roadshow would be making its way to Dumfries.

“Loneliness is proven to have detrimental effects on health. Events like this act as an important preventative measure by sharing ideas about how the health of lonely individuals can be maintained and how lonely individuals can get the best access to health and social care, which is why I would encourage interested members of the public and in particular, local health professionals to attend”.

Liz Watson, CEO of Befriending Networks said,

“From our point of view, we have been arguing for many years that loneliness has both a direct and indirect negative impact on health and that tackling loneliness would not only be a powerful preventative step in terms of individual health outcomes, it would also have a tangible impact on the use of health and social care services.

“Recent research into the links between health and loneliness, and the growing awareness of loneliness as a widespread (and increasing) issue in our communities, has allowed us to secure funding to take this learning on the road and out to health and social care professionals in every health board area of Scotland”.
Representatives of local befriending services will showcase their own work on health and loneliness. There will be a networking half hour at the end of the workshop to enjoy a cup of tea of coffee, get to know more about these services and the potential offered by befriending for enhancing the quality of support available to vulnerable and isolated people within the health board area.

If you are interested in attending register your free place here:
https://www.befriending.co.uk/health-loneliness-roadshows.php