Healthcare Science Week takes place from 14-20 November. This article looks at what's coming up in a week which acknowledges the important contribution made by healthcare scientists in patient care.

Snapshot survey heads up Healthcare Science Week

An exciting, informative ‘Snapshot Survey’ is getting underway, to be carried out by England's healthcare science community in collaboration with selected schools, as part of this year’s Healthcare Science Week, supported by the Department of Health.

Throughout the week of 14-20 November, respiratory physiologists and other scientists working in the NHS, will be undertaking the most extensive 'snapshot' survey of body mass index, peak flow rates, and resting and racing pulse rates, to assess general health amongst students aged 14-16.

Individual measurements will be uploaded simultaneously during the week by the students from around 60 secondary schools in England via specially designed webpages that will be live on our website, www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/brightfutures.

The project will help students understand how healthcare scientists use measurements, analysis and results to reach conclusions for diagnoses and treatment, as well as allowing them to meet and interact with real working healthcare scientists.

It will also create more understanding, through science, of the benefits of following a healthy lifestyle from a young age, to reduce health problems later in life, such as not smoking, eating sensibly and the benefits of exercise and sport.

As the outcomes are disseminated through the national and specialist media, the general public will also learn more about how the work of our healthcare scientists impacts on, and benefits, the health of the community as a whole.

This addresses a further objective of Healthcare Science Week – that of increasing awareness of science in health amongst society as a whole. It will also raise the profile of healthcare scientists as essential members of the healthcare delivery team whose work impacts on most episodes of patient care.

Science in Society

There are other exciting activities planned for this week, including a huge pan-London event in the Robens Suite at Guys Hospital in London on Tuesday 15th November, where around 180 invited guests from the world of science and health will gather to hear healthcare scientists outline their work, and see a variety of interactive displays from different fields in healthcare science. For further information abou this event, please email chris.houghton@selondon.nhs.uk.

In order to promote their own work to a wider public, as well as to their own work colleagues, further events are also being planned, including a variety of activitites aimed at school children being organised by biomedical scientists working in the National Blood Service, and other groups of healthcare scientists.

There will also be open department days in Trusts all over England where other NHS staff can come and meet their local healthcare scientists and find out more about how they work within the overall healthcare team. Details of all the events will be available via the NHS Careers website at
www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/brightfutures.

Women in Science
Healthcare Science Week is also an ideal opportunity to highlight the role of women in science, particularly as a large percentage of the NHS and other organisations’ scientific workforce are women.

A specific aim of activity during the week is to encourage more women in science to register with WiTEC to enable them to spread their expertise and knowledge amongst the wider community. WiTEC UK is based in Sheffield and is funded by European Union and National funding bodies to undertake projects which aim to redress the balance of women studying and working in science, engineering and technology.
Visit www.setwomenexpertsuk.org.uk to read eligibility criteria and to register.

World COPD Day

During this week also, World COPD day takes place (17 November), with a global focus on raising awarenss of this widespread lung problem, the research questions that still need to be answered and the needs of people who suffer from this chronic disease. The ‘Snapshot’ survey amongst school students will help them understand more about lung fuction and hopefully, also draw attention to the causes of, and solutions to, COPD. To find out more, go to www.lunguk.org.

Support for the 2005 activities has been received from:
The Department of Health; NHS Careers; The Specialist Schools Trust; The British Thoracic Society; The Federation for Healthcare Science; Association for Respiratory Technology and Physiology; The Healthcare Science Ambassador Network, WiTEC (European Association for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology), World COPD Day (UK participants), Patients UK

For further media information, contact the HCS Week Press Office:
bev.bailey@uk.com
0208 870 4301

For general enquiries, or to offer support for any of the Healthcare Science Week activities, email
scienceinhealth@carlson-europe.com

Healthcare Science Week, supported by the Department of Health, is intended to both acknowledge the important contribution made by all healthcare scientists in the NHS, and to educate young adults, the media and other NHS staff about the different roles played by healthcare scientists in healthcare today.

2005
FHCS: Celebrating Healthcare Science Week
NHS Careers campaign 2005
Events preview
NHS Careers Information pack
Events listing

2004
What happened in 2004
Resource pack