Health and social care professionals have a critical role in influencing lifestyle behaviours, including helping people to increase their physical activity levels. Physical activity has been described as a ‘best buy’ in helping people live a healthier life.
Evidence shows that one in four people would be more active if advised by a GP or nurse, yet nearly three quarters of GPs don’t speak about the benefits of physical activity to their patients. Likewise, the social care workforce are essential and trusted messengers to those who they support and are important advocates for physical activity and the many benefits it can bring to people’s lives.
On this webpage you will find support to help you:
- Promote the benefits of physical activity and encourage participation to improve physical and mental wellbeing.
- Improve management and care of people with long-term conditions, to provide better patient outcomes.
- Improve prevention, as regular physical activity reduces the risk of many long-term conditions, supports independence and improves quality of life.
- Reduce service demand and costs (e.g. the ~£0.9bn annual cost to the NHS associated with insufficient physical activity).
We have provided this information to help increase knowledge and confidence in incorporating physical activity within routine care and to increase awareness of the local physical activity offer.
Guidance and Recommendations
Resources to support you
- Moving Medicine: The ultimate resource to help healthcare professionals integrate physical activity conversations into routine clinical care. The website includes consultation guides for specific health conditions.
- Physical Activity Hub (RCGP): A one stop shop to help you help your patients, staff and yourself get more active! Including information on the Active Practice Charter which inspires and celebrates GP practices that are taking steps to increase activity in their patients and staff.
- Get Yourself Active: Everything carers and social workers need to know about supporting disabled people to get active.
- Active Hospitals: Aims to change the physical activity culture within hospitals to encourage patients to move more! Includes a toolkit to help you to create your own Active Hospital.
- We Are Undefeatable: This campaign brings together health and social care charities who support people living with long-term health conditions.
Training to support you
- Physical Activity Clinical Champions Training: Free clinician to clinician training to professionals working in healthcare (online or in person).
- Physical Activity in the treatment of long-term conditions: This collection highlights the importance of physical activity and how it can produce health benefits. It covers 9 modules including cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis and low back pain, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease (COPD and asthma), depression, anxiety, sleep and dementia. Free access via BMJ learning.
- Physical Activity and Health Programme: This NHS England programme covers the prevention and management of long-term conditions by being active. This e-learning course prepares healthcare professionals to champion the benefits of physical activity with their patients and how to incorporate it into daily clinical care.
- Think Active: Explore the local Active Partnership’s latest training opportunities, including online and face-to-face courses suitable for GPs and all clinicians within primary care.
Local Physical Activity Provision
The Solihull on the Move website is dedicated to inspiring healthier, happier and more sustainable communities through moving more, more often. It provides ideas on being active in the community for you and the people you support, as well as home-based opportunities.
To help you find the right information and signpost the people you support into appropriate opportunities for their needs, abilities and preferences, we have described the structure and layout of the website below.
Get Moving (Universal Services)
This section of the website covers popular activity types including cycling, walking, swimming, running and table tennis – providing information on the local opportunities.
To help find activities, groups and clubs in specific locations, there is also a link to My Solihull Map (an interactive mapping service, helping people to find out what’s going on in their area).
The Moving More at Home webpage helps people that cannot access community opportunities and those who wish to do additional activity on top of their other activities.
Get Support to be Active (Targeted and Specialist)
This section of the website will give you ideas for specific groups of people such as children and families, older adults, disabled people and people with long term health conditions. It includes information on targeted and specialist services for people that need additional support to help them get active.
We have also designed a Solihull Adult Physical Activity & Health Pathway, to support the signposting of people into physical activity. This can be applied to adults on local waiting lists, those being discharged from specific services, and to support self-management.
Active Places
Provides information on Solihull leisure centres, parks and the ice rink, including locations, contact details and websites.
Clubs & Volunteers
Provides support for local clubs and volunteers.