Annual Report Jan 2017 to Dec 2017
Committee Members Group Organisers
Bev Lean (Chair) Ron Balmer Mr Athma
Peter Barton Roy Prentice Sheila Atkinson
Brian Porter (Treasurer) Mr Rahul Mistry Ann Wearing
Howard Huyton Stephen Riddaway Mary McNab
Margaret Lean Tony Hollister (Administrator)
Sheila Coughlan (Secretary
Committee members have been elected from the members and work purely on a voluntary basis.
Background
Prostate Cancer is the most common cancer in menand around 330,000 men are living with prostate
cancer in the UK. Between 1st April 2016 and 31st March 2017 there were 155 newly diagnosed
prostate cancer patients in Southport and West Lancashire.
The Southport & West Lancashire Prostate Cancer Support Group is a self-help support group
led by people affected by prostate cancer, with Health Care Professionals in attendance at all meetings
and planning meetings.
Meetings are held on the first Thursday of each month, usually at Hurlston Hall, 19.00hrs - 21.00hrs.
Committee members and group organisers attend planning meetings four times per year - the second
Friday in January, April, July and October to evaluate feedback from members and plan future meetings
and events.
Each month flyers about the next meeting are sent by email or post to the members. These are also
distributed electronically to the local Clinical Commissioning Groups (GPs), Healthwatch, Council for
Voluntary Sector organisations, Southport & West Lancs Macmillan Centres, Age Concern, carer's groups,
libraries and other appropriate local organisations.
Support Group Information leaflets are available in Southport, Ormskirk and Royal Preston Urology
departments and Renacres Hospital and the Cancer Services Dept circulated the leaflet to all GP surgeries.
Members also take these leaflets to their place of work etc.
Our Facebook page helps to promote the group and raise awareness about Prostate Cancer. The website,
which was launched in October 2016, is being used to update and inform members of what is happening
within the group. Additionally, it is a source of information and support for newly diagnosed prostate cancer
patients, without actually providing any clinical information.
Members of the support group have had a stall at the Macmillan Health & Wellbeing events, 16th March,
20th July and 9th November 2017to provide information about the group and also held a prostate cancer
awareness day at Morrisons om Monday 6th February, where £127.50 was collected for the group.
We work closely with Prostate cancer UK and were awarded the Affiliate 'Level of Engagement' in July 2014.
It was decide that an upgrade to partnership level would provide the group with no perceivable benefits.
Who are the group members?
This group is for men with prostate cancer, their wives, partners and other family members.
New members complete a form and these details are entered onto a database and this is used to send flyers,
either by email or post, prior to each monthly meeting.
We currently have 215+ members (including men, wives, partners and family members) on the database.
We have had 42 new members join between January and December 2017.
Members of the Urology Team attend each meeting.
Purpose of the group
"We aim to improve access to information, support and advice provided for those affected by
Prostate Cancer"
The purpose of the group is to provide information and peer support. Meetings provide an opportunity for
men diagnosed with prostate cancer, their families/friends to meet others in a similar situation to share their
experiences and support each other. The group aims to prevent members from feeling isolated and provide
a safe, confidential environment where they can talk about problems.
Medical advice about an individual's illness should always be obtained from a qualified medical practitioner.
Guest Speakers for 2017
We have guest speakers at most meetings delivering a variety of topics, some, but not all, are medical. However,
there are members of the Urology Team at each meeting to ensure appropriate information and support is made
available.
Tpoics covered from Jan 2017 to Dec 20417 have included:
The power of positive thinking when dealing with a diagnosis of prostate cancer - speaker Simon Ward.
Men's general health - speaker Mr Athma Nauaswami.
Radiotherapy and the late effects of treatment - speaker Tracey Ellis.
Prostate Cancer: the past, the present and the future - speaker Margaret Lyttle.
The introduction of Sue Boyes, Yvonne Trace's successor at Prostate Cancer UK, and an update on the
work done by them.
'Knowing Me, Knowing You' session which offers a chance for group members to share experiences and
get to know each other a little better.
Two quiz nights, talks on scuba diving and day to day experiences of a Border Patrol Officer and After Dinner
Speakers offered light entertainment.
A Midsummer Meal at Southport & Ainsdale Golf Club in July and a Christmas Meal at Hurlston Hall in January.
Feedback from members
Feedback is an ongoing process with members voicing their opinions to committee members and to the Urology
Team. In March 2017 we carried out a formal member satisfaction questionnaire and nearly everybody felt that
the location and content of our monthly meetings was good. Only 13 of the 27 members who responded had
viewed our website, but all of them were satisfied with its content and display.
Six members made suggestions for future speakers, topics and activities. These were as follows: 3 suggested
someone who could speak on the effect a cancer diagnosis has on the patient's family and partnet, one member
suggested an expert speaking on a non-cancer related medical subject, one person suggested an expert to speak
on MRI scanning and one person suggested organising a golf day.
Financial Summary See attached Financial Statement as of 10th January 2018
We would like to thank those members who have made donations during the past year. We have a Standing Order proforma, which can be downloaded from our website, should anyone wish to make regular donations. We received a £500 grant from Prostate Cancer UK towards the purchase of a new laptop for the group. This has now been purchased and, with the software etc, cost £606.99. A small raffle is organised at each meeting (except Christmas) to raise funds to help with the running costs. Prizes for the raffle are donated by the members.
Plans for next 12 months
We plan to continue to meet on the first Thursday of every month. In addition to providing support to members we will
continue to raise awareness about prostate cancer and our support group. We are constantlylooking at ideas suggested
by our members to raise awareness and to do some fund raising activities.
Thanks to
- All our members and Health Care Professionals who have been involved in setting up the 'Southport & West Lancashire
Prostate Cancer Support Group' and regularly attending meetings.
The group is also a member of Prostate Cancer Support North West and we are grateful to them for their support, including
the use of their Charity number, along with accerss to other resources. As a member of this network we will be submitting a
copy of both the Annual and Financial reports, as well as submitting a copy of both to Sue Boyes at Prostate Cancer UK.
Thursday 7th November 2024
The Richmond, 234 Scarisbrick New Road, Southport PR8 5HL
Guest Speaker: Michelle Cain
Subject: A workshop on Hormone Therapy
Join us on Facebook and keep up to date with group details and activities
Southport & West Lancs Prostate Cancer Support Group offers support and help to members and their families.
Medical advice about an individual's illness should always be obtained from a qualified medical practitioner.