Your comments: 16 May 2018

Applications for this year’s Churchill Fellowships are open to anyone who would like to apply for this unique chance to travel and bring back global insights to communities and professions in the UK. 

 

A Churchill Fellowship funds people to travel for four to eight weeks abroad, researching a topic of their choice – anything that can make a difference to their own profession or to their wider community when they come home. Fellows can visit several countries and continents during their time away, meeting key people connected to their chosen subject and gaining hands-on expertise. On return, they make change happen in their workplace or region, among practitioners or policy-makers, at local or national level. You can apply and find out more here.

 

The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust awards fellowships in these fields: Artists and Makers, Education, Emergency Services, Enterprise and Social Impact, Environment, Healthcare, Migration, Nursing, Rural living, Science, Suicide Prevention – and there is an Open category for everything else. Young people aged 18-25 are actively encouraged to apply. 

 

Everyone can apply, regardless of qualifications, age or background. All that’s necessary is to be a UK citizen aged 18 and over. 

 

What we look for is bright ideas from people who are keen to make change happen.

 

I have started a Physioga – I made up the name! – class for physiotherapy students at Cardiff University, where I am a physio student myself. I am also a qualified yoga instructor. We use one of the practical rooms and have had as many as 30 in the class. Each week we focus on a particular area of the body, or else an overall aim. I base the class on giving instructions and the justification for each pose. I am passionate about promoting the benefits of yoga in the hope they will take what they learn and use it with patients, on placement and when they qualify. 

 

I felt compelled to comment on Hip Hip Hooray in Frontline on 2 May. Fundamentally, we need to do better at capturing the needs and desires of the young, active employed person knocking at our door, and educate and support active lifestyles. 

 

In addition, we need to look to provide better resources, exercise advice and access especially to hydro, bike schemes, gyms, etc. And we need to structure the care pathway better.

 

I am a pelvic health physiotherapist working at South Warwickshire NHS trust. I was very interested in your article regarding the healthy bowel clinic (17 January). We see bowel patients in our clinics but I am also looking into setting up a dedicated bowel clinic. I am keen to be in touch with physiotherapists at the healthy bowel clinic at Aintree, and perhaps other similar facilities, to find out more about how they set up their service. I would be very grateful for their contact details if they are happy for me to get in touch.