Jersey Evening Post article 05 February 2020

Some years ago, when I last went to see my doctor, I remarked how stressed and tired he looked; that, he said, was because the practice was short of GPs. I gather the situation has not changed.

At the same time, we hear that the new Jersey Care Model will include more care in the community.

The sentiment is laudable, but we only have to look to the UK see how similar systems have failed through lack of staff and funding.

We know the States are testing the proposed model and can only hope the testing is robust and that simple questions such as, ‘Will we get enough care staff and how?’, ‘Who will pay what?’ and ‘What will the new hospital deliver and when?’ will be properly addressed.

Change is needed in so many health areas, hospital parking and food being just two of them.

Hospital parking

Staff and patients alike find it difficult and stressful to park; it’s worse for those who are already weak or injured.

Hospital food

It doesn’t matter how you look at it… sandwiches, jelly and ice cream served up as an early evening ‘meal’ are not healthy and not conducive to recovery, as they keep insulin levels elevated and cause inflammation.

But that is better than in A&E, where even sandwiches aren’t made available to patients or staff, unless the latter raid the wards for their leftovers.

Sugar

I look forward to seeing the healthy rabbits being pulled out of various Health hats. In the meantime, whether you live in Jersey or elsewhere, here’s one simple, but very important, tip for remaining healthy for longer: realise that table sugar*, a manufactured chemical, has no healthy function; and ease out from your diet any foods and drinks that contain added sugar.

Sugar has hormonal and addictive biochemical effects, which can be overcome in a few weeks. If you find you still can’t go without sugar, then dig deeper: what emotions are you trying to buffer with sugar (and maybe alcohol)?

Ditching the sugar habit

Once these are identified, voiced and acted upon, it’s easier to ease right back on the white poison and enjoy better mental health. If you’re still stuck, then talking therapies, hypnotherapy/RTT and counselling can help you both find the problem(s) and fix them.

*Sugar comes under many names; you can find the list here.

You can read about the Jersey Care Model on gov.je