AS we brace ourselves for chillier days and look forward to more indoor gatherings and seasonal social events with friends and family, now is the ideal time to remind ourselves of behaviours that can reduce the spread of respiratory infections known to peak during the…

AFTER 70 years of supporting workplace health and wellbeing, Harlow Occupational Health Service (HOHS) is closing its doors. With great regret the Board of Trustees announced today that it will cease all operations on 22December 2025 due to a significant and sustained reduction in the…

THE local community are invited to celebrate the festive season with The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust (PAHT) at the annual Christmas carol service. The service will be held at St Paul’s Church, Harlow, on Tuesday 16 December, from 5:30pm to 6.30pm. It will include…

HUNDREDS of GPs across England have told the BBC they think mental health problems are being over-diagnosed reports the BBC. One commonly-held view by family doctors, our research suggests, is that society tends to over-medicalise normal life stresses. But they’re also concerned about how hard…

THE number of flu patients in hospital has hit a record high in England for this time of year with NHS leaders warning the county is facing an unprecedented flu season reports the BBC. NHS figures show there were an average of 1,700 patients in…

HEALTH Secretary Wes Streeting is to launch an independent review into rising demand for mental health, ADHD, and autism services in England reports the BBC. Streeting has previously suggested mental health conditions are being “overdiagnosed”, and the government has argued that increased pressure on the system…

THE Grieving Support Network Centre in Wych Elm was officially opened on Sunday afternoon with the ribbon cut by Bishop of Colchester Roger Morris and Chris Vince MP with an audience of councillors, friends of the centre, volunteers and service users. The centre provides a…

DID you know that 1 in 10 medicines given out aren’t needed or used? In Hertfordshire and west Essex, £7.5 million is wasted every year on unused medicines like inhalers, painkillers, and creams. That’s why the local NHS is encouraging everyone to check before they…

WORK to bring down waiting lists at Princess Alexandra Hospital has been described as “mission critical” by senior leadership reports the Local Democracy Reporter. The warnings come after Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow was rated 120th out of 134 Trusts in NHSE’s recently introduced ‘National…

A SCREENING programme for prostate cancer for all men in the UK is not justified, according to a hugely influential group of experts reports the BBC. Credit: Prostate Cancer UK Instead they say only men with specific genetic mutations that lead to more aggressive tumours…

THE festive season can amplify feelings of isolation for many elderly individuals, particularly those living alone. According to Age UK’s December 2024 report, 1 million older people feel more isolated at Christmas than at any other time of year. Loneliness is also linked with serious…

LAST weekend, we went up to Harlow Town Football Club to speak to Prostate cancer campaigner Paul Dennington. Kent resident Paul, who has a terminal diagnosis has been undertaking a major campaign to raise awareness (see below). He was bowled over by the generosity of…

ST Clare Hospice’s children and family therapist Amanda Orange has shared advice on how to support children who have been bereaved in a new CBeebies Parenting podcast that was aired during Children’s Grief Awareness Week (November 17-23). The episode, recorded at London’s Broadcasting House and…

THE Food for the Brain Foundation’s Cognitive Function Test will now be used to assess blood biomarkers being developed in the ‘READ OUT’ trial, a UK-based research project. The project, headed by Professor Vanessa Raymont at the University of Oxford, is investigating the use of…