Part-Time Jobs / Volunteering Opportunities at Healthlink360
Wanted- Part-Time Voluntary Doctors Needed
HealthLink360 is a charity providing whole person health care to those who serve others through Christian mission, humanitarian work, or other voluntary activities. Based at Edinburgh International Health Centre, Carberry, we offer a range of services including psychological assessments, debrief/personal review, counselling, medical assessment and travel health services.
Doctors
Could you spare one day per week/fortnight or even per month – or perhaps the occasional session or two over the summer months or at other busy times?
A team of doctors is available to provide on-line medical advice to people while overseas. Our travel clinic is nurse-led and is open to the general public.
We seek doctors to work within our ethos of ‘whole person care’, with good broad-based clinical skills, and understanding of the stresses of cross-cultural living or of serving others in the UK. We are a dynamic and caring team aiming to respond to the changing face of overseas mission work and the challenges experienced by those serving others in the UK. We would very much value doctors who would contribute to this aim on a voluntary or sessional basis assisting with the clinical work-load.
Responsibilities include :
- Full medical review and assessment of fitness to work in location (adults and children)
- Advice on maintaining health in relation to occupation and/or chronic disease management
- Travel health advice, administration of vaccines, and supply of antimalarials.
- Liaison with counselling team, clients GP (if any), and employing agency
Remuneration is negotiable. HealthLink360 operates to a very tight budget, and seeks to provide a service which is affordable to those operating in the voluntary sector. We are therefore ideally looking for individuals prepared to accept the challenge of working on a voluntary basis, or for a small honorarium, or who are willing to seek their own financial support base.
If you would be interested in being involved in our work (or know anyone else who might be), please get in touch. An induction meeting with Dr Mike Jones will be arranged for all who are interested – date TBC.
Contact:
Judy Hughes BN RGN; General Manager/Travel Nurse Specialist
Email jhughes@healthlink360.org
or
Dr Mike E Jones MB, ChB, FRCP, FRCP(Edin), FFTM, RCPS(Glasg), dip PC;
Clinical Lead
Email Mike.E.Jones@luht.scot.nhs.uk
Also check out our website at www.healthlink360.org
Northern Ireland Connections
The prospect of delivering the full range of HL360 services in Northern Ireland has been on the horizon for some time now.
In June 2011 we were offered an opportunity to conduct a ‘live trial’ to test the logistics of providing HL360 services on location in Northern Ireland. This opportunity would involve delivering medicals and ‘debriefs’ to a family whose timescale did not allow them to travel to Scotland and also to a couple.
Many things had to occur to bring this opportunity to fruition including much networking, prayer and hard work.
Amazingly we have been able to source:
- a number of doctors keen to give of their time and skills and to work to HL360 standards and protocols delivering the medical elements of our services
- premises in which to offer psychological services
- a travel clinic willing to work with us in providing travel health care and vaccinations
- many volunteers willing to help and support us
Here is a brief history of what has happened this year
March 2011- Joy Gowdy(counsellor) represents HL360 at the Trauma and Spirituality International Conference in Belfast
May 2011- Presentation to the Mission Agency Partnership in Belfast
July 2011 – First debriefs delivered in Northern Ireland for a mission family and a couple
September 2011 – Dr Mike Jones provides an induction for interested medical personnel in Bangor, Northern Ireland
September 2011 – Judy Hughes (General Manager) visits our supporting travel clinic in Belfast and explores links with Belfast Bible College
September 2011 – First psychological assessment conducted in Northern Ireland
October 2011 – first medicals for HL360 delivered in Northern Ireland
November 2011 – Joy attends Stress in the Ministry seminar in Belfast
So what happens next?
We are still some way from having a permanent base in Northern Ireland and much has to be considered but it is our hope and vision from small beginnings to be able to expand to provide continuing services in Northern Ireland which will enhance the health and wellbeing of those engaged in mission, voluntary services and Faith Leadership
…….watch this space!
Recent Appointments
Congratulations go to Dr Mike Jones on his appointment as Dean Elect of the Faculty of Travel Medicine at the Royal College of Physiciens and Surgeons in Glasgow. Mike and his wife Elizabeth are the co-founders of Healthlink360 which they first established as Care For Mission over 25 years ago.
Mike will serve as Dean for a 3 year period. He has also been elected onto the Psychological Health of Travellers Interest Group.
Research News in the World of Travel Medicine
Malaria Vaccine progress
GSK has been developing a malaria vaccine for a long time based on circumsporozoite (CS) antigen. Sporazoites are the invasive stage of the malaria parasite injected in saliva by mosquitoes. Irradiated Sporazoites reliably produce immunity. CS antigen on its own does not produce immunity but works quite well when bolted onto the Hepatits B genetically engineered vaccine molecule. Trials are now into phase 3 and have just been reported. (1) Researchers report that efficacy is about 50% and slightly lower for the prevention of severe malaria. Three doses are given at one month intervals with a booster at 18 months. This would provide a significant reduction in the malaria burden in highly endemic parts of the world but will never be used in travellers at this level of efficacy. Anti-malaria prophylaxis (preventative tablets) achieves efficacy of at least 90% when taken properly.
Imported Rabies
An extensive review of 42 deaths over 20 years from 1990-2000 from imported rabies in Europe, USA and Japan has just appeared. 95% acquired their infection from a dog or puppy, 19 involving travel to Asia, 14 to Africa and 8 to the Americas. Of the 29 victims for whom information about post-exposure prophylaxis was recorded, 12 did not seek medical attention and 6 had ineffective care because of lack of supplies or knowledge.
Compared to road traffic accidents these are small numbers but all would have been prevented by pre-exposure vaccination and appropriate post-exposure care. Pre-travel vaccine removes the need for immunoglobulin treatment (which can be difficult or impossible to source, particularly in developing countries), reduces the number of post-exposure vaccine doses and reduces the risk of contracting rabies (2)
The RTS,S Clinical Trials Partnership, ‘First results of Phase 3 Trial of RTS,S/ASO1 malaria vaccine in African children’ New Eng J med 2011; 365: 1863-75
Malenczyk C, De Tora L, Gniel D ‘Imported rabies cases in Europe, the United States and Japan 1990-2000’ J Trav Med 2011; 18: 402-7
