Go to the theatre – at home
CURVE PRODUCTION OF COLOR PURPLE AVAILABLE TO STREAM
CURVE has released photos giving a behind-the-scenes glimpse of its production of The Color Purple, which is available to watch at home.
Set in racially divided southern America, Marsha Norman’s script is based on Alice Walker’s novel and features songs by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray.
T’Shan Williams stars as heroine Celie, with Danielle Fiamanya as Celie’s sister, Nettie. Carly Mercedes Dyer plays Shug Avery.
The story is staged by the team behind the original 2019 production: director Tinuke Craig, musical director Alex Parker and choreographer Mark Smith.
The play was recorded in Curve’s auditorium, supported by Leicesterbased music licensing company PPL PRS and De Montfort University.
Tickets cost £20 per household. A range of accessible performances will be offered throughout the run, including captioned and audio described.
Curve and Birmingham Hippodrome will offer 2,000 free tickets for NHS workers to enjoy the production at home, with tickets distributed through NHS providers.
The production is available watch at home until March 7. to
DIABETES is causing an increasing number of people in Leicestershire to have legs or feet amputated.
Having diabetes puts people at much higher risk of developing foot problems. If these get bad enough, it can lead to amputation.
At least one diabetes-related amputation occurs every hour in England, and Diabetes UK is concerned that since numbers rose year-on-year before the pandemic, the situation is unlikely to have improved during lockdown.
Between 2016/17 and 2018/19, there were 125 major amputations (ones that involved loss of all or part of the leg), and 295 minor amputations (involving loss of toes or feet) in Leicestershire.
That was a rise from 109 major amputations and 258 minor amputations between 2013/14 and 2015/16.
The number of amputations affecting people in Leicestershire has been rising since figures began in 2010/11 to 2012/13, with the number of major and minor amputations both at record levels.
Across Leicestershire, those living in West Leicestershire CCG were the most likely to have diabetic amputations, with 7.8 major amputations per 10,000 registered diabetes patients - below the England rate of 8.2 per 10,000.
Leicester City had the highest rate of minor amputations at 23.6 per 10,000, just above the England rate of 22.0 per 10,000.
For people with diabetes, raised blood sugar can damage the sensation in their feet and affect circulation. This may lead to lower blood supply to the feet, potentially causing problems with cuts and sores healing.
If these problems aren’t treated, they could lead to foot ulcers, infections and, at worst, amputations.
Foot problems related to diabetes led to people from Leicestershire being admitted to hospital 2,985 times between 2016/17 and 2018/19 - a seven-year high.
That was up from 2,020 between 2013/14 and 2015/16.
Across England, diabetes complications affecting legs and feet have risen to record levels.
There were 157,886 admissions for diabetic foot disease between 2016/17 and 2018/19, the highest number since 2010/11 to 2012/13.
This may be due to more people being diagnosed with diabetes however, the rate of hospital admissions has also risen to record levels.
There were 163.2 admissions per 10,000 diabetes patients, up from 138.2 in 2013/14 to 2015/16 and 122.7 in 2010/11 to 2012/13.
There were 7,809 major and 20,973 minor amputations in the most recent period, with both numbers rising.
While the rate of minor amputations has risen to record levels, the rate for major ones has been steady since 2014/15 to 2016/17.
Diabetes is the most common cause of lower limb amputations in the UK. Someone living with diabetes is 20 times more likely to experience an amputation than someone without the condition. Around half of all people who experience a major amputation die within two years.
The charity is urging people with diabetes not to delay in seeking medical help if they experience problems with their feet.
It has heard from clinicians across the UK, who are seeing greater-thanexpected numbers of people presenting for urgent care with unusually advanced and severe foot disease, while the UK has been under lockdown.
Dan Howarth, Head of Care at Diabetes UK, said: “It is perfectly understandable that people are afraid to seek medical attention, but the consequences of this cannot be underestimated, and clinicians are telling us that people with diabetes are not getting the help they need.
“It is crucial that people with diabetes know how important it is to seek medical attention if they spot any signs of foot problems. A matter of hours can make the difference between losing and keeping a foot, or worse. The NHS is and remains open, and the health service is still there for you.”
Seeking early treatment could potentially prevent the need for amputation, however due to the delays reported, Diabetes UK has learned of patients presenting at hospitals needing to go straight to major amputation.
Jodie Buckingham, Lead Podiatrist at Oxford University Hospitals, said: “Over the past few months, I have seen for myself the sudden surge of people with diabetes and advanced foot disease being admitted to hospital or requiring the input of acute foot services.
“This experience is echoed by many of my colleagues around the country. Unfortunately, some people are presenting to foot care services at a point that their foot condition is so severe that they require immediate admission under surgical teams.”
Nicholas O’Brien, 68, from Chipping Norton was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in February this year, but his GP suspects that he may have been living with the condition for up to 10 years.
In May, he developed a small verruca on his foot, which began to get worse, but Nicholas’ fear of going to hospital stopped him from getting it checked out.
By August, his foot had become so painful that he visited a GP, who advised him to go to hospital as soon as possible. Nicholas had a significant part of his foot cut out, but fortunately managed to avoid amputation.
He said: “I was hesitant to seek help, especially with everything that has been happening this year. But once I did, I received such a high standard of treatment – it was almost like there was no pandemic.
“I am not quite over my fears of hospitals, but I cannot speak more highly of the care and support I have received since my operation and wished I had sought help sooner.
Professor Gerry Rayman MBE, GIRFT Diabetes Co-lead and Diabetes UK inpatient clinical lead, said he wanted to reassure people that foot care services are running and stringent measures are in place to prevent COVID-19 transmission in these settings
He said: “We are here and we want to see those with a foot problem as early as possible. Please seek help if you are worried or notice any changes to your feet.”
THE fire service was well-prepared for the pandemic and has continued to provide its core functions, inspectors have found.
HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) inspected Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service between October 26 and November 6, focusing on the initial response to the pandemic.
Its report
Conclusions include that “the service was well prepared for the pandemic, because it had already put provisions in place for effective home working.”
Average response time to incidents improved, compared with 2019, because of “lower sickness levels, better fire engine availability and less road traffic”.
The service also undertook work outside of core duties, such as delivering prescriptions and food to vulnerable people, assisting East Midlands Ambulance Service by despatching firefighters to drive ambulances to more than 200 patients, assembling and delivering over 5,250 face shields, and helping has now been published.
businesses to become Covid compliant.
Callum Faint, Chief Fire and Rescue Officer, said: “The report is overwhelmingly positive. With pride, I would like to praise our staff and representative bodies for how they have responded and risen up to the challenge that Covid-19 has given us.”
Councillor Nicholas Rushton, chairman of the Combined Fire Authority, said: “I am proud of how the service has responded to the pandemic.
“The feedback from this HMICFRS visit shows just how much hard work has been undertaken across the service; carrying out extra roles beyond core duties – such as fit testing the face masks of more than 300 key workers to ensure effectiveness, delivering controlled drugs, delivering and storing PPE and assisting with ambulance transport.
“The service has also quickly implemented changes to operations to enable staff to work flexibly and efficiently and is looking at new ways of working, such as by conducting home fire safety checks by phone.
“The service maintained its response, prevention and protection statutory duties, while working proactively to provide additional support to partner agencies and the communities.
“This feedback shows the ongoing positive journey that Leicestershire Fire and Rescue is going through, and I look forward to seeing the future changes and improvements made by the service.”
HMICFRS is to follow inspection in the spring.
The report said: “It is now essential services use their experiences during Covid-19 as a platform for lasting reform and modernisation.” up its
ARMY personnel have been deployed to help in the war against winter pressures and Covid-19 at Nuneaton’s hospital.
It has been confirmed that army staff have, since last month, been helping out on the wards at the George Eliot Hospital.
It is part of what is the biggest homeland operation in peacetime as 5,000 personnel have been sent to everywhere from hospitals to schools across the UK.
The staff assigned to the ‘Eliot will continue to give support to staff until the start of next month.
They been helping with:
■■■ General portering duties assisting with patient moves from the Emergency Department and wards to X-ray to aid smooth transitions and speed up transfers
■■■ Waste management
■■■ A&E support
■■■ Supporting distribution of medicines across the hospital
■■■ Cleaning support – sterilising beds, assisting with rapid cleans and cleaning of wards, spaces and corridors helping to keep our patients safe
David Eltringham, managing director at the Eliot said: “The army personnel provide a fantastic level of support to ensure that, despite a combination of winter pressures and COVID-19, our trust is able to provide the highest level of care to our patients and the community.
“We really appreciate their desire and commitment to help our hospital to respond to COVID-19 and the demand for our services. “The team of army personnel, who are supporting us until Friday 5 March 2021, are and will always be a very much welcomed addition to our workforce.”
The team of army personnel, who are supporting us ... are and will always be a very much welcomed addition to our workforce