Start Page / Page3

THE BIG QUESTION

Last month, we asked:

Would lowering speed limits on rural roads make them safer?

70% said no!

This month,
we’re asking:

Could interactive computer games hold the key to lowering childhood obesity?

In his recent annual report, Sir Liam Donaldson, the Chief Medical Officer, highlighted sedentary video games as a contributory factor to spiraling rates of childhood obesity, but admitted that trying to stop children from playing them altogether wasn’t the solution.

THE BIG QUESTION

Instead, he pointed to a pilot project in the East Midlands which is using more dynamic, interactive games like Nintendo Wii to help promote active game play. Gaming consoles have been provided to a support group for overweight and obese children, allowing them take part in ‘fun activities’ in their home environment and encouraging a more physical lifestyle.

So what do you think? Please click one of the links below to register your opinion:

july 09 other stories...

july 09 other stories...

inside ice
meet the team
feature
hot news

ICE PICKS a round up of Project News

We help GPs say ‘You Can’ to patients in East Lancashire

ICE’s social marketers, together with our creative and PR teams, have been working on an innovative new campaign to help patients in East Lancashire get the most out of the health services offered by their GPs.

The campaign’s been directly informed by a recent NHS Patient Survey; it highlighted that overall patient satisfaction was high, but many people weren’t fully aware of all the different ways they could access their GP services, or were unclear about issues such as how long they might expect to wait for an appointment.

Using this research, ICE worked in close consultation with NHS East Lancashire, and local leading GPs, Practice Managers and patients to gain insight and develop a clear intervention including the brand identity ‘You Can’. ICE used existing patient and public forums run by the PCT to test out the insight and visual brand and concepts. Our aim was to encapsulate the key pledges to patients in an easily-digestible format and to support diverse local communities in new ways of accessing “the right treatment, at the right place, and at the right time” – thus, moving behaviour on all sides; patient and service.

The ICE team wrote, designed and produced a full ‘support pack’ for 55 General Practices including patient information leaflets, A3 posters, newsletters for GPs and health professionals, and a ‘frequently asked questions’ sheet. This culminated in a recent press launch we co-ordinated to maximise media coverage and reinforce key messages locally.

You can...

Our social marketers help transform young people’s lives in Grimsby

An innovative new service helping vulnerable teenagers has just been launched in Grimsby, with support from ICE’s social marketers.

ICE has been working alongside North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus (CTP) to address the high levels of 16-19 year olds repeatedly ending up

Our social marketers help transform young people’s lives in Grimsby

in A&E – often due to excessive drugs and alcohol - and not being followed up by health services.

This included extensive insight work to better understand what type of behaviour was leading to hospital admissions and the best ways of stopping young people from ‘falling between the gaps’ in existing services.

As a result of the research, North East Lincolnshire CTP has just launched a new organisation called Asgard and recruited three health intervention workers, who’re working with patients discharged from hospital in their home settings and ensuring they get tailored care and support. Asgard’s initial three month trial has been so successful in reaching its target group that the service is already going mobile and taking on an additional member of staff!

In parallel, ICE is working with Asgard on initiatives aimed at raising aspirations within local communities and equipping young people with the knowledge and confidence for healthier and more productive lives.