Healthcare messages for men
Men. Can’t live with them, can’t get into the jam jar without them. Well, that’s not strictly true, but it’s time to start thinking about the boys a little more. It’s coming up to Movember, a time to raise awareness and money for male cancers by growing a fuzzy upper lip. It’s a great cause and highly worth getting involved with. We’ve also recently experienced Blue September – another awareness month for male cancers. However, there are many other illnesses, syndromes and conditions that commonly afflict the male of our species. Ones that maybe don’t get a couple of months each year to be trumpeted from the rooftops. Nonetheless, they are highlighted on the Patient Information Initiative’s healthcare information screens at NHS hospitals around the country. Let’s take a look at our top 3 important messages for men:
1. Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening
This is a great message for men from Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. An abdominal aortic aneurysm is an enlargement of the main blood vessel in the abdomen, and if left untreated it can be fatal. It’s easy to tell if you’re affected with a simple scan. Men aged 65 and over are most at risk and are invited to take part in NHS screening. An important message that needs publicity.
2. Coronary Heart Disease
While there are around 900,000 women with Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) in the UK, there are 1.4million men. In fact, 1 in 6 men die from CHD each year making it the UK’s biggest killer. This is a hugely important message letting patients know of the risk factors, and what they can do prevent the disease and avoid becoming another statistic. This message is from St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust, but we’ve made similar messages for all of our partner Trusts, as CHD is so prolific.
3. Mental Health Awareness
Though there is a higher rate of anxiety and depression in women than in men, many studies suggest that depression is equally common in both sexes but women are more often diagnosed and treated. Indeed, men are still to this day more vulnerable to death by suicide, accounting for 75% of all suicides in the UK. It is important that men know that help is available when they are having mental difficulties, and where to get it. The more we can talk about this issue in a public forum the more people will step forward and ask for help when needed without feeling ashamed.
These are our top 3, but please let us know in the comments your top healthcare messages for men, and what you feel needs to be highlighted in the coming months.