Free courses for carers

2:14pm Tuesday 6th May 2008

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ADULTS who care for someone living with a long term condition, disability or illness are being invited to attend a free course for carers in Worcester.

Looking After Me is an Expert Patients' Programme course and aims to help carers make time for themselves, look after their own health needs, take more control of their situation and make a positive difference to their lives.

The course, arranged through the Worcestershire Primary Care Trust (PCT), consists of a two-and-a-half-hour session for one day each week for six weeks, and will be run by volunteers who are themselves carers.

Research has shown that whatever illness the person being cared for has, the things carers have to deal with on a day to day basis are similar - tense muscles, pain, stress/anxiety, depression, fatigue and dealing with difficult emotions.

The course is targeted therefore at people who themselves have a health problem yet are caring for others, or any adult who is a carer and whose health is affected by this.

The programme aims to give carers the self-help skills and confidence they need to take more control of their lives, and the opportunity to share experiences within a small, friendly group.

People who have attended similar courses in the past have reported that it has helped them to manage their situation, be realistic about the impact of caring on themselves and their family, and has assisted them to develop more effective relationships with health and care professionals.

The Looking After Me course takes place at the Turnpike House Medical Centre, Newtown Road, Worcester on Fridays from 10.30am - 1pm, and beginning on Friday, May 23 and finishing on Friday, June 27.

For more information or to book a place contact Annette Jaep on 01527 507 055.