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Policy@Manchester Articles: Health and Care
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The toll of ‘Deaths of Despair’ in England

By and Filed Under: British Politics, Cities and Environment, Health and Care, Health and Social Care, Levelling up, Urban Posted:

In 2015, a phenomenon coined as ‘Deaths of Despair’ (DoD) emerged in the US, highlighting an alarming increase in mortality due to drugs, alcohol, and suicides, particularly among white men without a college education. Here, Christine Camacho and Dr Luke Munford explore the spatial patterning of these deaths in England, where an estimated 46,200 lives […]

An older woman participates in an arts group activity, painting a picture of a lighthouse

Joining the dots: assessing the roll out of social prescribing link workers in primary care

Paul Wilson headshot By Filed Under: Health and Care, Health and Social Care Posted:

Social prescribing is the referral of patients to non-clinical treatments – often for mental health needs and long-term health conditions. In 2019, the NHS Long Term Plan embedded the role of link workers to coordinate and refer patients from Primary Care Networks. But are the right areas getting the support they need – and how […]

Unjamming the (bio)printer: how can regulatory reform unleash new and advanced biomaterials?

By Filed Under: Health and Care, Research and development, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology Posted:

3D bioprinting technologies hold huge potential to transform patient care and treatment, delivering the next generation of personalised medicine. But current legislative boundaries are poorly defined, and the pathways to approval are unclear, creating unnecessary delays and costs in getting these new technologies to patients. Here, Dr Marco Domingos from the Bioprinting Technology Platform argues […]

Article image fertility law reform

Reforming UK fertility legislation: the effects of online DNA testing

Caroline Redhead headshotLucy Frith headshot By and Filed Under: All posts, Health and Care, Science and Technology Posted:

Direct-to-consumer genetic testing (DTCGT) from companies such as Ancestry and 23andMe has significantly impacted the dialogue around gamete (sperm and egg) donor conception. In the UK where the anonymity of donors is theoretically protected until a donor-conceived person turns 18, the growing use of DTCGT has prompted the regulator of reproductive technologies, the Human Fertilisation […]

Article cover image

What’s your language? Variation, dialect, interpreters and public services

Leonie Gaieser author imageRebecca Tipton By and Filed Under: All posts, Ethnicity, Health and Care, Health and Social Care, primary care services Posted:

As our public services face increasing linguistic diversity, booking a spoken language interpreter is often more complex than service providers realise or are trained to handle. In this article, Dr Leonie Gaiser and Dr Rebecca Tipton draw on their cross-disciplinary expertise in Linguistics and Interpreting Studies, to explore challenges in arranging language provision and discuss […]

A place to #BeeWell: Neighbourhood effects on young people’s wellbeing

By Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Devo, Education, Health and Care Posted:

There is a public health crisis in young people’s wellbeing. Approximately one in six young people experience high levels of emotional difficulties that are likely to warrant significant additional support. A number of factors can impact wellbeing, and the neighbourhood in which a young person lives is one of them, with differences seen across Greater […]

Out of mind? What policymakers should learn from those who shielded from COVID-19

Charlotte Sharp headshot photo By and Filed Under: All posts, Health and Care, Health and Social Care Posted:

Between the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and September 2021, 4.1 million people in the UK were asked to ‘shield’, including those with autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Shielding recommendations included staying at home, avoiding all face-to-face contact with those outside shielders’ households, and limiting interactions within households. Here, Dr Charlotte Sharp and Lynn […]

Ill-health and deprivation: How we can address health inequalities in left behind neighbourhoods

By Filed Under: All posts, Devo, Growth and Inclusion, Health and Care, Health and Social Care Posted:

We have long known that the health of people living in deprived areas is worse than the national average. But this raises important questions, such as how big is the gap? Is it narrowing or growing over time? Are some deprived places worse off than others? And how do health inequalities affect economic performance? In […]

Medics analysing MRI scan - feature image for dementia article

Capacity for change: improving the governance of dementia research

James Fletcher headshot By Filed Under: All posts, Health and Care, Health and Social Care, primary care services, Research and development, Science and Technology Posted:

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) outlines legal decision-making procedures in England and Wales for people above the age of 16 who have an impairment of, or disturbance in, the functioning of the mind or brain. It specifies that research involving these people must be approved by a research ethics committee (REC) sanctioned by the […]

A person blowing their nose in a city centre park

Determining the impact of poor air quality in cities on daily life: the value of using ‘citizen sensors’ and agile platforms

By Filed Under: All posts, Cities and Environment, Environment, Health and Care, Urban Posted:

The air in cities can be bad for our health. People who live in cities are more likely to suffer from chronic diseases such as COPD and be admitted to hospital with asthma attacks and other serious respiratory conditions. Whilst it is important to monitor these, focusing only on life-threatening events can mask a lower-level […]

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Articles give the views of the author, and are not necessarily those of The University of Manchester.

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