One small step for NRAS, one giant leap for foot health!

Hi all

Well, it’s been a very busy year so far, and I can’t believe it’s May already! I’m getting married this September, so I’m starting to panic at how fast the year is whizzing past. Another reminder of how quickly my special day is approaching came last weekend, when I attended my friend Laura’s wedding. I know that some of you have called our helpline in the past, and some will no doubt have spoken to Laura, who worked on the helpline for a year before leaving us to become a foster parent last year, which she is finding to be a difficult but very rewarding experience. She will no doubt be enjoying her relaxing honeymoon now, but who needs Miami when we’re experiencing an early British Summer here?

You’re probably all aware that the helpline team takes phonecalls and emails from anyone with queries about RA that contacts our society, but you may not be as aware of some of the other work that our helpline team does. One of our major responsibilities is in the management of our publications. We have been working hard to ensure that all of our information gradually falls in-line with the information standard scheme that we joined last year, and we are also responsible for uploading all of the information in the ‘Rheumatoid Arthritis’ section of the website, and one of the most exciting information projects that I have been involved in this year is our new section on foot health.

We have been aware for some time now that there was a need for more information on feet, footwear and general foot health for people living with rheumatoid arthritis. As many of you will know, the smaller joints in the hands and feet are the most commonly affected by RA, so feet can be one of the biggest problem areas for people with this disease, and it is not always very easy to find shoes that support the feet without compromising on style. Nobody knows this better than our chief executive, Ailsa Bosworth, who has RA herself, so has experienced this problem first-hand. This is why she has been working hard alongside podiatrists at Salford University and other healthcare professionals to create this new section on our site.

Once they’d done all the hard work, it was my job to source some of the images, design the page layouts and upload the information to our site, with help from some of my wonderful reader-reviewers, whose feedback helped me to get the information to the highest standard before the pages went live. My small contribution has made me particularly proud of how the new section has turned out, and I hope you will all find it useful. If you haven’t seen it on our site yet, follow the link below:

www.nras.org.uk/about_rheum...

I hope that many of you have been to our website and have found the information useful and as always I look forward to speaking to some of you on the helpline in the future.

Hope the weather’s good where you are!

Victoria
(NRAS Helpline & Information Coordinator)

High mountains and a tough run

Hi all,

My evaluation of the helpline and NRAS groups is finally drawing to an end. For those who were kind enough to take part I want to say a big thank you as it has been a fantastic help to the charity. We collected some great data which showed us that NRAS services really do make a difference. It’s also helped to inform us how to develop our services in the future.

I had the privilege of presenting my findings to representatives from the Rank Foundation, a trust which helps to fund NRAS and other charities a couple of weeks ago in Blackpool. It was a great couple of days which gave me the opportunity to meet other interns and hear about what they’d been up to. I also got to take a couple of cheeky dips in the hotel pool courtesy of Rank which was an added bonus!

All the fun of Blackpool was quickly followed by a couple of weeks in sunny San Francisco. I managed to take in the island of Alcatraz, art galleries, festivals, Golden Gate Park and a little too much shopping. The highlight for me though was a three day stay in Yosemite national park. I maintain that nothing compares to waking up surrounded by the fabulous Yosemite Mountains – even if the thought of bears and mountain lions roaming nearby did make me a little nervy!

I returned to the office to be hit by the bombshell that it’s only seven weeks until I’m running the 10km NRAS run! At the last count 30 minutes left me red in the face and very, very tired. I’m now officially in training and trying to limit my consumption of biscuits for the next few weeks. It’s definitely going to be tough. Wish me luck, cross your fingers and think of me charging round the park most evenings as I try and make up for lost time...

Take care and enjoy yourselves,

Sarah
Data Analyst and Research Intern

May the fourth be with you!

Hello from the newest member of the NRAS team! I joined 7 weeks ago as the new Membership Supervisor and have received such a warm welcome from everyone at NRAS.

I had known of NRAS for a few years before I joined, mainly through a few of my family & friends who suffer with RA, and feel incredible privileged to be working for such an amazing charity.

Our members are incredibly important and we are ever closer to reaching 4,000 members! The more members we have, the bigger impact we can have in raising awareness about RA, enabling us to carry out the essential services we provide. If you are not already a member and you are interested in joining, please call either myself or Gail in the membership department on 0845 458 3969 or email membership@nras.org.uk – become a member and let your voice be heard!

As many of you cannot fail to avoid – it’s Olympic year! Hurrah I hear you say! When I’m not working at NRAS, I’m involved in the Dorney & Eton Ambassador programme who are recruiting and training local people to help out during the Olympic rowing events at Dorney Lake (in our ‘colourful’ pink and purple uniforms!). The Ambassador programme has now created over 11,000 volunteers around the country and I am now one of 500 trained volunteers who will be available to help their local community, before, during and after the Olympics. So perhaps the Olympics will leave a lasting legacy after all...

Just a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to spend a very sunny (and slightly surreal) day looking after Star Wars characters at Legoland Windsor and this weekend I will be stewarding at the Royal Windsor Horse show and Jubilee Pageant. Two very different roles, but both rewarding in their own way. It feels wonderful to be giving something back and to be using my skills for the benefit of others. Many of you already do amazing things for NRAS, whether it be helping our fundraising team, being part of our telephone support network, distributing information to surgeries/hospitals, coordinating our groups meetings or just simply helping us spreading the word! Helping NRAS, helps you! If you are not already involved and would like to volunteer, in however small a way, contact our volunteer network on 0845 458 3969 or visit our website for more information.

Make 2012 your ‘year to volunteer’!

Happy Friday to you all!

Emma
Membership Supervisor