The Good Practice PPG (Patient Participation Group)

Guest Speaker - Wednesday 5 May 11:00 am: Stuart Adams

Join us as we welcome our PPG and The Good Practice Member, Stuart Adams. Stuart will speak about the myths and misconceptions about mental illness and he'll share with us his own mental health journey. We appreciate Stuart being so open and willing to talk to us.

Guest Speaker - Wednesday 28 April 11:00 am: Mary Chater - Shakespeare in Italy Co-Founder

Join us on 28 April as we welcome Mary Chater from Shakespeare in Italy. Shakespeare in Italy is a charity dedicated to advancing the arts, specifically drama, for the benefit of all. Our aim is to enliven the experience of Shakespeare’s Italian plays with an exciting mix of British realism and Italian intensity to celebrate our similarities and differences, bringing people together in production, community settings and the classroom. They want to find new audiences for his work especially among those for whom English is their second or third language. The new company will explore this through performance and workshops in the UK, Italy and beyond. Two former Royal Shakespeare Company actors, Julian Curry and Mary Chater in association with the Italian theatre manager, Sandro Pascucci, founded the company which is managed by a board of Trustees. Our patrons are Ralph Fiennes, Ian McKellen and Judi Dench. Mary will talk about the adventure of living in central Italy with Julian, how the company came into being and where things are now. You can learn more about Shakespeare in Italy by visiting https://www.shakespeareinitaly.org.uk

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/7068604877?pwd=SG40cXFydDU3bmp4NkdnSTczd3F0Zz09

Meeting ID: 706 860 4877
Passcode: coffee

Hope to see you there!

The Good Practice PPG

Guest Speakers - Wednesday 14 April 2021 11:00 am: Tasio Cabello and Keely Tickner - Age UK Kensington and Chelsea

Join us on 14 April as we welcome Tasio Cabello, Head of Community Engagement and Keely Tickner, Head of Health and Social Prescribing from Age UK Kensington and Chelsea. Age UK Kensington & Chelsea is an independent, local charity working at the heart of the community to make sure that older people’s voices are heard, their needs are met and their independence is supported. They provide a wide range of services including befriending, practical help, information and advice and a variety of social and leisure activities.

At Age UK Kensington & Chelsea, they promote the wellbeing of older people through:

Providing services which support independence
Learning from this experience to inform our understanding of older people's needs
Ensuring the voice of older people in Kensington & Chelsea is heard
Working in close collaboration with other organisations to achieve these aims

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/7068604877?pwd=SG40cXFydDU3bmp4NkdnSTczd3F0Zz09

Meeting ID: 706 860 4877
Passcode: coffee

Hope to see you there!

The Good Practice PPG

Guest Speaker - Wednesday 31 March 2021 11:00 am: Anne Edwards - Chelsea Physic Garden

Join us on 31st of March as we welcome Anne Edwards from the Chelsea Physic Garden. She will be on hand to "walk" us through the Garden and discuss the grounds and what we can expect during a visit and especially now that lockdown restrictions are easing. Of her time there, Anne says, "After retiring from a life-long career in the NHS, I finally had time to devote to my other passions - gardens and gardening. I rapidly discovered the Chelsea Physic Garden, and was hooked. I became a volunteer guide, and am now the garden’s Head of Volunteers. My talk is a swift trip through the garden’s fascinating nearly 350 year history, highlighting just a few of the many useful, edible and pharmaceutical plants found there." Tucked away beside the Thames, Chelsea Physic Garden is the oldest botanic garden in London and houses around 5,000 different medicinal, herbal, edible and useful plants. You can learn more by visiting https://www.chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/7068604877?pwd=SG40cXFydDU3bmp4NkdnSTczd3F0Zz09

Meeting ID: 706 860 4877
Passcode: coffee

Hope to see you there!

The Good Practice PPG

Guest Speaker - Wednesday 17 March 2021 11:00 am: Kaja Szescilo Bsc Human Nutrition - University of Westminster London

Join us on 17 of March as we welcome Kaja Szescilo to discuss human nutirition. You may know Kaja from The Good Practice as she answers calls on Mondays and Fridays. Kaja says: "I feel extremely passionate about helping people achieve their goals in a healthy and sustainable way, whether it is aesthetics, eating well, fixing their relationship with food or sports performance, as I experienced first-hand how confusing nutritional advise especially weight loss advice can be. Is vegan or Keto the best diet? Are potatoes making me fat? Should I start fasting? Do I need to drink protein shakes or apple cider vinegar to lose weight? These are only a few questions I have been asked in the past. What if I told you that you can eat pizza and lose weight?

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/7068604877?pwd=SG40cXFydDU3bmp4NkdnSTczd3F0Zz09

Meeting ID: 706 860 4877
Passcode: coffee

Hope to see you there!

The Good Practice PPG

Guest Speakers - Wednesday 10 March 2021 11:00 am: Graham Tigg and Pamela Speak from u3a

Join us on 10 March as we welcome Graham Tigg and Pamela Speak from u3a (University of the Third Age). They'll be with us to discuss their programs and mission for those that are no longer working full time. u3a gives members local and national opportunities to learn a wide range of things at low cost. You can share your skills with others, take up something new and develop your interests in a friendly atmosphere. Over 400,000 u3a interest groups meet in the UK every week, face to face and more recently online. They'll talk about what we can expect when lockdowns ease and what they have to offer - . You can learn more about u3a here - https://www.u3a.org.uk.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/7068604877?pwd=SG40cXFydDU3bmp4NkdnSTczd3F0Zz09

Meeting ID: 706 860 4877
Passcode: coffee

Hope to see you there!

The Good Practice PPG

Spring Has Sprung! Days are Getting Longer and Flowers are Blooming - PPG Member Rosemary Baker Gives Us Some Tips for Walks as We Head into Spring

While we all have been told to stay at home during the pandemic, we are allowed to take some exercise, preferrably locally. With gyms closed and for those of of us not keen on jogging, the best choice is walking. One of the pleasures of walking is being able to notice little things and now as the days slowly start to lengthen you can cheer yourself up by finding little signs of spring.

Sadly Ranelagh Gardens, with their great swathes of snowdrops, are closed this year but the Physic Garden is open for snowdrop viewing, though there is an admission charge to go in. There are snowdrops and polyanthus in the little garden of Chelsea Old Church and more snowdrops in Westfield Park and lots of them in West Brompton Cemetery, thought not everyone likes cemetery walks.

Spring is even more advanced in Paultons Square. The square is private but anyone can look through the railing and admire the camellias beginning to blossum there and ther mimosa tree is just coming into flower and has a lovely scent. There are a few daffodils coming up too, as in all there are quite a few signs of spring locally to cheer us up - Rosemary Baker

We'll soon announce a guest speaker from the Chelsea Physic Garden in the coming weeks and as lockdown restrictions are lifted, we'll look forward to a group walk with The Good Practice!

Age UK Offers Free Transport to Vaccine Appointments

Age UK in North West London are offering free transport for anyone over 50 in the boroughs of Kensington and Chelsea, Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Hounslow, Westminster, Hillingdon, Harrow & Brent. To book, simply call Amy Shallon at 07497 188 221 or email AShallon@aukc.org.uk. To learn more about the program, feel free to visit https://www.ageuk.org.uk/hillingdonharrowandbrent/about-us/news/articles/2021/free-vaccination-transport-for-older-people/#

Guest Speaker - Wednesday 3 March 2021 11:00 am: Dr. Ann Hutchinson Guest, Founder of the Language of Dance Centre

We are so delighted to have as guest speaker, Dr. Ann Hutchinson Guest from the Language of Dance Centre. 102 years young, she is a world reknowned expert in dance notation, a highly acclaimed author and researcher on dance and is the founder of the Language of Dance Centre. She will join us to speak about the joy of dance and the health benefits for all ages and abilities. The LODC does much work with children with special needs in many schools in Greater London. You can learn more about the LODC by visiting https://www.lodc.org.