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Health and care organisations are asking people across Lancashire and South Cumbria to make a real difference in our community and support health and care services this winter by helping to look out for your friends, neighbours, loved ones and those who are most vulnerable and at risk from flu and Covid-19. Let’s do it for Lancashire and South Cumbria.

The Rapid Diagnostic Service at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust has given a pancreatic cancer patient a new chance at life, after spotting the symptoms that had been left untreated for months due to a difficult diagnosis.

Since the start of the lockdown period in March, parking at the hospitals across Lancashire and South Cumbria has been free of charge for patients and visitors throughout the pandemic. We hope that it has made things slightly easier and safer for everyone still needing to come onto the hospital sites. With services re-opening and more people returning to the hospital, our car parks are becoming very busy and so we’ve taken the difficult decision to reinstate car parking charges for patients and visitors. 

Find out more about the signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer. Don't wait to contact your GP during this second national lockdown or during local restrictions. The NHS is still here for you if you have signs or symptoms of cancer. Anyone with concerns should continue to come forward for help and treatment.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made the need to practice self-care more evident than ever: the challenges for some of managing finances or debt, being restricted in our social movements, uncertainty around employment, and/or being at higher risk of contracting the virus due various factors all make looking after ourselves of utmost importance.

If you have a dental issue during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that you know how to access help when you need it.

Lancashire and South Cumbria Resilience Hub is a resource for all for all public sector workers and volunteers who are feeling the psychological effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and their families.

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. People in Lancashire and South Cumbria are being urged to contact their GP if they have any signs or symptoms of lung cancer.

We know that pregnancy and childbirth is one of the most important times in the lives of you and your family. We understand that our families in Lancashire and South Cumbria feel strongly about the current visiting restrictions in place at local maternity departments.

Health and care partners across Lancashire and South Cumbria recognise there is a need to act now to support those who are most vulnerable and most at risk in our communities during this winter period and as the pandemic remains a challenge to our daily lives. Andy Knox, GP and Director of Population Health in Morecambe Bay sets out six quick tips for about how to stay healthy and well this winter.

Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) are NHS organisations that plan and buy healthcare for their communities. The Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups (JCCCG) is a meeting of the CCGs in Lancashire and South Cumbria and will be responsible for making decisions about any future proposals referred to it by the CCGs.

We have an exciting opportunity to transform pathology services working in partnership with four NHS acute trusts to ensure that our pathology services remains at the forefront of diagnostics to the benefit of all staff, clinicians, GPs and patients.

Pregnant women who receive maternity care from one of the four hospital trusts in Lancashire and South Cumbria are set to benefit from a single maternity portal innovation, helping to make care safer for them and their babies.

We are increasingly concerned about the significant increases in Covid-19 admissions. NHS services in Lancashire and South Cumbria are under a huge amount of pressure, but they remain open. As Covid admissions in our hospitals rise, it is important that we continue to provide services for our patients for treatments such as cancer and routine appointments. Patient safety remains of the highest importance. Anyone with concerns should continue to come forward for help and treatment. It is important that unless you are contacted, you should continue to attend your appointment as planned.

Steve Fogg has been appointed as chair of the SEED alliance - a multi-sector collaborative set up to contribute to ‘health and wealth’ in Lancashire and South Cumbria. Dr Amanda Thornton joins him as deputy chair.