Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust – How you can help look after yourself

How you can help

look after yourself

We are Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS), the primary community healthcare provider in Lincolnshire, delivering community-based services to support people to manage their own health at home and reducing the need for people to go into hospital.

If you feel you need some advice to help you, local pharmacies provide clinical advice and over-thecounter medicines for a range of minor illnesses.

We care for thousands of patients every day and we aim to prevent health problems from getting worse, to reduce the need for people to go into hospital. LCHS works closely with other health and social care services to support a shift from care in acute hospitals, into more joined-up care in the community, close to home and to encourage people to help look after themselves. Self-care is about keeping fit and healthy, understanding when you can look after yourself, when a pharmacist can help, and when to get advice from your GP or another health professional. If you have a long-term condition, self-care is also about understanding your condition, and how to live with it and still get the most from life. Self-care is important to us all, as prevention of ill health is much better than having to find a cure. We all have things we want to do that are important to us, so why not look at what we can do to keep ourselves healthy? Eating healthy, keeping active and making time to spend with friends and family are three of the most important things you can do to look after yourself. Preventing ill health by choosing the right lifestyle options can improve your physical health, mental wellbeing and self-esteem. If you feel you need some advice to help you, local pharmacies provide clinical advice and over-thecounter medicines for a range of minor illnesses. A pharmacist can assess symptoms and consider any long-term conditions, and the medicines that you’re taking, before providing a recommendation. They will either: • support/advise you in your decision to self-care • sell you an over the counter medicine to help relieve symptoms • signpost you to other medical care if you need it, for example your GP This help and advice is available at over 11,000 local pharmacies, without an appointment being needed and often they are open in the evenings too. These are the common conditions that people can often manage for themselves:

Ask Your Pharmacist

Prompt, professional health care advice

The NHS111 service is staffed by a team of fully trained advisers.

• coughs and colds • headache • sinusitis • earache • constipation • sprains and strains. If you’re unsure which conditions you should be managing yourself, or how to manage them, see your pharmacist. For details of your nearest pharmacy and opening hours, go to the Find Pharmacy Services pages on the NHS Choices website. If you do ever need urgent medical help the NHS111 Service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. NHS111 is much more than a helpline – if you're worried about an urgent medical concern, call 111 or visit 111.nhs.uk. Depending on your situation, the NHS111 team can connect you to a nurse, emergency dentist or a GP and can arrange face-to-face appointments if you need one. NHS111 advisers can also assess if you need an ambulance and send one if necessary. The NHS111 service is staffed by a team of fully trained advisers. They will ask questions about your symptoms so you receive tailored advice. LCHS run a Clinical Assessment Service as part of the local NHS111 service which provides a highly responsive and effective network of services in Lincolnshire for people with urgent but non-life threatening needs. These services are in or as close to people’s homes as possible, minimising disruption and inconvenience for patients and their families, while relieving pressure on A&E services. If you have difficulties communicating or hearing, you can use the NHS111 service through a mobile phone by calling 18001 111. Just like the phone service, NHS111 online takes you through questions about your symptoms so you receive tailored advice on what to do next and where to go, and if necessary, can arrange for you to speak to a healthcare professional. NHS111 online is conveniently accessed via your smartphone, tablet or computer and is also available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.