Your comments: 2 November 2016

Here are your comments on topics covered by us. We look forward to hearing your views and opinions on all related articles. Please email us at frontline@csp.org.uk

Living well 

I was pleased to read about a physiotherapist, Julie Rees, working in a service dedicated to people with younger onset dementia (YOD) (page 28, 21 September). 
 
In the 1980s I was appointed to help develop a physiotherapy service for the elderly in a large psychiatric hospital. It was quite unusual at that time for physiotherapists to be working in mental health and it’s good to see how things have progressed. 
 
I agree with Julie’s comment that people with YOD are likely to be complex and challenging in their presentation. However, for many living with YOD their main problems are not concerning memory. As a person living with progressive non fluent aphasia (PNFA) my main challenges relate to difficulties around communication and executive function. Working with Jenny La Fontaine I’ve written an article, Living Well with PNFA. You can download the article as a PDF at: http://bit.ly/2ejje19
 
  • Jane Twigg

Praising the NHS

The amazing NHS saved my life last week. All the ward staff were friendly, caring and treated me as the young, normally fit person that I am. They came from all walks of life, all countries rand deserve appreciation. 
 
We need to appreciate this service and keep it for future generations so they don’t have to live in a society where money buys access to life-saving care and medication. I hope  I am a better physio from this experience.
 
  • Eleanor Clarke

A lot of neck

Your item titled ‘All players should do neck exercises’ (Physio Findings, page 19, 19 October) tells us that a small study showed that strengthening exercises strengthen muscles (!) but admits there is no proof this can prevent concussion. 
 
On the basis of this small study, we as professionals are being advised to start neck strengthening programmes as they might protect players from concussion and head trauma.
 
Why? We should be very careful what we publish, suggesting an alteration in practice without evidence. 
 
  • Darren Cornforth, managing director, Physis Physiotherapy, Edinburgh
 
Janet Wright, who compiles Physio Findings, replies:‘Thank you for raising these valid points. We’re sorry that the final two words of the headline “All players should do neck exercises, say researchers”, were accidentally dropped in the editing process. We did not mean to give the impression this was CSP advice. 
‘Physio Findings is written from research in peer-reviewed journals, but researchers’ conclusions are not necessarily endorsed by the CSP. Physio Findings seeks to help members stay up to date with new thinking as well as potentially useful new evidence.’ 
 
 
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