His presence was more than a gesture of support — it was a powerful acknowledgement of the challenges faced by women living with endometriosis and the urgent need for better education, understanding, and early diagnosis.

For too long, endometriosis has been a condition spoken about quietly, often misunderstood, and frequently dismissed. Our mission has always been clear: to empower women with knowledge, to ensure they feel heard, and to promote education that leads to earlier recognition and improved care. Andy Burnham’s attendance helped amplify that mission at a crucial moment.

During the session, he listened closely to the lived experiences of women who have battled years of pain, delayed diagnoses, and barriers within the healthcare system. His engagement demonstrated a genuine commitment to understanding the realities of endometriosis and the impact it has on women’s lives, careers, families, and wellbeing.

His support also helped shine a brighter light on the importance of community-led education. When leaders stand alongside us, they help break down stigma and encourage wider conversations — in homes, workplaces, schools, and healthcare settings. That is how change begins: with awareness, with understanding, and with the courage to speak openly about women’s health.

Andy Burnham’s attendance in 2022 remains a significant moment for our charity. It strengthened our resolve to continue empowering women with the knowledge they deserve and to keep pushing for a future where endometriosis is recognised early, treated effectively, and understood widely.

Andy Burnham’s engagement signalled a commitment to understanding these realities and to supporting efforts that promote earlier recognition and better outcomes.

For our organisation, his attendance remains a pivotal moment. It validated the need for sustained investment in community education, strengthened our relationships within the region, and underscored the importance of empowering women through knowledge. As we continue expanding our programmes, workshops, and outreach activities, this support forms part of the foundation on which we build future impact.

Eyes down for a full house to beat endometriosis

Shuffle yourself along to a game of Play Your Cards Right, a bout of Bingo, a raffle, and a quiz night as a local charity answers the call to help women in chronic pain.

Affecting one in ten females, endometriosis leads to severe bleeding, pelvic agony and a monthly woe of weariness so severe it leads sufferers to self-harm and dark thoughts.

All of which persuaded GP with Special Interest in Gynaecology Dr Anita Sharma to form charity Endometriosis Awareness North – whose main fundraiser will be held at the Rochdale Golf Club on September 18 (see close of release for details).

Monies raised will be used to support so-called “endo warriors” and their families, plus fund research into quicker diagnosis and even a cure.

“Despite being one of the most common health conditions in Britain, few people are aware of endo – and that includes doctors and nurses,” said Dr Sharma. “The lack of funding into early diagnosis and treatment means women have to wait up to ten years just to get a proper diagnosis, meaning a decade of missing out on an education and work, not being able to socialise with others, and crippling agony that nobody seems to understand.”

Dr Sharma got so exasperated of seeing patients who had had their symptoms dismissed, ignored and sent home with a dose of pain killers, she formed her charity and began spreading the message to junior doctors and now Prime Minister Andy Burnham – who promised action on the issue.

Andy Burnham attended and supported Endometriosis Awareness session on 1.7.2022 Free seminars on pain relief, hormonal treatment, self-harm, fertility and the launch of her book “Endometriosis in Primary Care” have all since taken place in Rochdale.  

Endometriosis Awareness North has also just run a social media campaign called #Unheard and produced a documentary featuring warriors. These include local nurse Lucy Bowker, who said: “Endometriosis meant that I couldn’t look after my newborn baby. I was solely reliant on pain relief and staying in bed with my hot water bottle. It wasn’t a life.” (See more by going to  https://endo-unheard-voices.lovable.app/#stories ).

Caused when cells that usually grow in the womb adhere to other organs in the body, endometriosis can lead to umpteen surgeries and costs the UK £8.2 billion per year in treatment and sick pay.

Continued Dr Sharma: “What our small band has managed to do is give women like Lucy a voice and link them with others sharing similar experiences. We have also increased awareness of the condition exponentially and this even led to a question in the House from one of our keenest supporters, Elsie Blundell MP.

All of this has involved the people of Rochdale, who can justifiably claim to be the UK’s most endo-friendly borough. But much more needs to be done, and that requires investment.”

The September fundraiser will offer quizzers and bingo goers some competitive fun. Attendees might also leave flushed after a game of cult favourite Bruce Forsyth challenge, “Play Your Cards Right!”

The event takes place at: Rochdale Golf Club, Edenfield Road, Bagslate, Rochdale, OL11 5YR

Tickets are priced at £20 and can be obtained by emailing endometriosisawarenessnorth@gmail.com

To donate to the Endometriosis Awareness North charity, go to https://endometriosisawarenessnorth.com/donate

The post Andy Burnham’s Attendance at Our 2022 Endometriosis Awareness North Session first appeared on Asian Leader.

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Around one in five adults in England, an estimated 9.4 million people are affected by a common mental health condition, millions are missing out on treatment that could help them.

An NHS campaign is encouraging people from South Asian communities to seek support for common anxiety‑related mental health conditions, as many continue to struggle in silence or delay seeking help due to stigma, cultural expectations or not recognising symptoms.

Mental health challenges can affect anyone yet in many South Asian families, people may minimise their symptoms, feel shame, or believe they should “just get on with it”. Conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Social Anxiety Disorder, Phobias, Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and Panic Disorder are treatable, and support is available through NHS Talking Therapies, with the option to self‑refer online.

NHS Talking Therapies are free, confidential and effective, and can be delivered in person, over the phone or online. Support is available in multiple South Asian languages through multilingual therapists or confidential interpreters, ensuring people can speak comfortably in the language that feels most natural.

As part of the campaign, Dr Nighat Arif and Harmeet Kaur recently joined the hosts of Two Chickpeas in a Pod podcast, a South Asian‑led show known for opening up honest, culturally grounded conversations around identity, stigma and lived experience. In their episode, they explored the realities of anxiety conditions, the cultural pressures that often keep people silent, and the difference NHS Talking Therapies can make. They shared the following reflections:

Dr Nighat Arif, said “Most people with mental health conditions just want to be believed and rightly so. These struggles often build over years, hidden by fear, shame, or the feeling of being ‘broken’. That’s why it’s so important to seek help early, and why NHS Talking Therapies exist so people can self‑refer online and be supported by trained professionals without long delays, regardless of background or circumstance.”

Harmeet Kaur said “I still experience anxiety every day, but Talking Therapies, including CBT through the NHS, has helped me learn how to cope with it. It’s allowed me to recognise my thought patterns and understand where they come from, instead of feeling stuck in them. Talking Therapies helped me move from just surviving to actually thriving.”

Anyone who feels their mental health is affecting their daily life whether through anxiety in social situations, panic attacks, flashbacks, compulsions, phobias or distressing thoughts is encouraged to seek support.

Find out more or self‑refer at nhs.uk/talk

The post NHS encourages South Asian communities to seek support through NHS Talking Therapies first appeared on Asian Leader.

Up to a third of UK children are thought to consume these types of drinks every week, despite most supermarkets having already introduced a voluntary ban.

Some popular drinks contain more caffeine than two cups of coffee. Excessive consumption is linked to headaches and sleep problems.

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the government had “been called upon” to act by parents, teachers and children.

Too much caffeine can cause a rapid heart rate, abnormal heart rhythms and seizures.

Although rare, there have been some deaths linked to excess caffeine.

The sugary versions of the drinks can also cause damage to teeth and contribute to obesity, according to The Association of UK Dieticians.

A consultation will now run for 12 weeks to gather evidence from health and education experts as well as the public and retailers and manufacturers who already ban the drinks.

While no official date has been set for the ban, Streeting said it will come in “a lot sooner” than the end of this parliament – the deadline Labour had previously promised.

Lower-caffeine soft drinks, such Diet Coke,are not affected by the ban, and neither are tea and coffee.

Under current labelling rules, any drink, other than tea or coffee, with over 150mg of caffeine per litre requires a warning label saying: “High caffeine content. Not recommended for children or pregnant or breast-feeding women.”

Young people have smaller bodies and their brains are still developing, which can make them more sensitive to caffeine, say experts.

For most adults, up to 400mg of caffeine a day, or about four cups of instant coffee or five cups of tea, is safe.

Prof Steve Turner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said a ban was the “next logical step” in making children’s diets more healthy.

And Prof Amelia Lake from Teesside University, who has studied the drinks’ impact on young people’s lives, said they had “no place” in the diets of children.

“Our research has shown the significant mental and physical health consequences of children drinking energy drinks.

“We know these drinks are part of youth culture and associated with sports, gaming, music and more, but there is a lack of clear signalling about their health consequences.”

The post Energy drinks to be banned for under-16s in England first appeared on Asian Leader.

When left untreated, high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can significantly increase the risk of heart attacks and stroke.

In the North West the levels of high blood pressure recorded by GPs is higher than the England average at nearly 19%, but it is thought that even more people have undiagnosed cases of hypertension in the region, with often no signs or symptoms.

Dr Cowan said: “The early detection of high blood pressure gives people a better chance of preventing a stroke or heart attack or developing long term health problems. Knowing your numbers could help manage risks and potentially save lives.”

“The only way to find out if blood pressure is high is to have a BP check and it is so easy to do. Checks are available at local pharmacies or GP practices or as part of an NHS Health Check. Alternatively, if you have a blood pressure machine at home, you can do it yourself. Just take readings morning and evening for a week, work out the average, and send it to your GP practice for checking.”

Last year local community pharmacies delivered over 140,000 blood pressure checks that resulted in almost 11,000 people being diagnosed with high blood pressure and of those people, almost 8,000 were referred on to their GP for further care. 

Stephen Riley, Deputy Regional Chief Pharmacist for NHS England in the North West said “A blood pressure check is simple and quick to do with results available there and then from our community pharmacists, who are highly trained health professionals.

“Knowing your numbers could help save your life. Don’t wait until it is too late, pop in and speak to your community pharmacist.”

Lifestyle changes, such as stopping smoking, reducing the amount of salt eaten, having a healthy diet, cutting back on alcohol, and losing weight can help to reduce high blood pressure, and keep hearts healthy.

GPs and community pharmacists across the North West are leading the fight against common conditions that cause heart disease and stroke, by encouraging self-awareness and lifestyle changes.

It is recommended that healthy adults 40 to 74 years of age have their blood pressure tested at least every five years. People who are near the threshold for high blood pressure may be asked to monitor it more often.

You can check your blood pressure regularly at home and keep an eye on your numbers by purchasing a simple good quality blood pressure monitor. For advice and guidance on monitors go to NHS England Home Blood Pressure Monitoring.

The post Are you one of the missing millions? Get your blood pressure checked this Know Your Numbers week first appeared on Asian Leader.

Between September 2024 and June 2025, there were 4,906 calls made to Martha’s Rule helplines to escalate concerns about care – leading to 241 potentially life-saving interventions being triggered.

The positive results from the first year have led the NHS to expand its use to an additional 67 sites – meaning all 210 acute inpatient sites in England now offer the service.

Martha Mills died in 2021 aged 13 after developing sepsis in hospital, where she had been admitted with a pancreatic injury after falling off her bike. Martha’s family’s concerns about her deteriorating condition were not responded to, and in 2023 a coroner ruled that Martha would probably have survived had she been moved to intensive care earlier.

In May 2024, NHS England announced the rollout of Martha’s Rule across 143 pilot sites following the campaigning of Martha Mills’ parents, Merope and Paul.

Of those 143 sites, 19 were in the North West, including:

Countess of Chester Hospital, Wirral University Teaching Hospital, Royal Liverpool University, Southport District General Hospital, Blackpool Victoria Hospital, Royal Blackburn Hospital,

Burnley General Hospital, Royal Bolton Hospital, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital

Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, The Walton Centre, Leighton Hospital, Warrington Hospital

Preston and Chorley Hospitals, Tameside General Hospital, The Christie, Royal Oldham Hospital

And Royal Albert Edward Infirmary, Wigan

The new data published by the NHS shows almost three quarters (71.9%) of calls have been from families seeking help, with 720 calls leading to changes in care. This could include patients receiving a new medication such as an antibiotic.

Almost 800 (794) calls led to clinical concerns such as medication or investigation delays being addressed. A further 1,030 calls helped to resolve communication and discharge planning issues.
Martha’s Rule is a major patient safety initiative in hospitals encouraging patients, families and carers to speak to the care team if they notice changes in someone’s condition.

It also provides them with a way to seek an urgent review if their or their loved one’s condition deteriorates – and are concerned this is not being responded to.  Staff can themselves ask for a review from a different team if they are concerned the appropriate action is not being taken.

Dr Redmond Tully, Consultant in Intensive Care at the Royal Oldham Hospital, said colleagues had been proud to be part of the pilot.

He said: “When it comes to keeping patients safe, we can’t offer enough routes for patients, relatives and colleagues to speak up if they’re worried.

“Thanks to Martha’s Rule, we’ve been able to intervene earlier in some cases – admitting patients to intensive care who might otherwise have deteriorated on the ward they were on. It’s also helped us adjust treatment plans for patients on general wards.

“As we’ve introduced Martha’s Rule across the hospital, we’ve listened closely to feedback from patients and families who’ve used it. So far, the response has been positive, indicating that it helps patients to feel more satisfied with their care.”

The NHS has rolled out consistent branding and materials, including posters around hospitals, to ensure the programme is easy to understand for patients and their families.

Full evaluation of the programme is ongoing and will help inform proposals to expand to other settings.

Merope Mills and Paul Laity, Martha’s parents, said: “It would be Martha’s 18th birthday today, another milestone she has missed as a result of the poor care and hospital errors that led to her unnecessary death.

“We feel her absence every day, but at least Martha’s Rule is already preventing many families from experiencing something similar.

“The figures prove that lives are saved when patients and families are given power to act on their suspicions when they feel doctors might have got it wrong and their voice isn’t being heard.

“We are pleased to know more hospitals are taking up Martha’s Rule and look forward to a time when every patient in the UK knows about the initiative and has easy access to it.”

Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “No family should ever have to go through what Merope and Paul Mills endured when they lost Martha, but her parents’ tireless campaigning has created a lasting legacy that is already having a potentially lifesaving impact across England.

“Martha’s Rule puts patients and families at the heart of their care. By rolling this out to every acute hospital in England, we’re delivering on our promise through our Plan for Change to rebuild trust in the NHS and put patient safety first.

“With hundreds of potentially life-saving interventions and changes in care triggered so far, Martha’s Rule is about ensuring that patients and their families have their voices heard when it is needed most.

“This is exactly the kind of reform our health service needs – listening to patients, learning from tragedy, and taking action to prevent it happening again. Martha’s memory will live on through every life this rule helps to save.”

Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS national medical director, said: “There is no shadow of a doubt that Martha’s Rule is having a transformative impact on the way hospitals are able to work with patients and families to address deterioration or concerns about care.

“There have now been almost 5,000 calls made to the hotlines, with hundreds of potentially life-saving interventions triggered, which is why we are now expanding Martha’s Rule to all acute hospitals in England.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank Merope and Paul who have campaigned tirelessly on this issue and continue to work with us to ensure Martha’s Rule is at the centre of our efforts to boost patient safety and quality of care.

“I also want to thank clinical staff up and down the country who have swiftly implemented this potentially lifesaving intervention and ensured it’s success.”

Blackpool Teaching Hospital NHS FT, Associate Director of Nursing, Lisa Horkin said: “We were really happy to have been one of the first Trusts to have been chosen to pilot Martha’s Rule. We’ve always had a way for people with concerns to raise them directly with their medical team, but we’ve felt there are ways the process could be improved, and this was a great opportunity to both review things and to get our patients involved in helping design what came next.

“We put patients’ voices at the heart of this roll-out, alongside our own colleagues. Everyone came together to help develop the system which is enabling patients, their loved ones and our own teams to prevent deterioration and spot the signs early.

“Martha’s Rule has never been about just promoting a phone number that people – whether patients themselves or their families or friends – could call if they had a worry, although that is very important. It’s also about stopping issues from getting worse at a much earlier stage.

“One of the key elements of Martha’s rule is the introduction of a wellness questionnaire that every patient now receives at least once daily. We’ve also worked hard to help educate our colleagues, as well as providing more information to patients themselves on how to spot signs earlier and make sure that the right steps are taken.”

The post Martha’s Rule Rolled Out to Acute Hospitals in the North West first appeared on Asian Leader.

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The data shows, for those aged 18 to 64, waiting lists for gynaecology are the biggest.
And women make up a higher proportion of those waiting (57%), compared to men, in all cases where sex is recorded.
NHS England officials say the figures should help hospitals address “unfair waits” for planned care among the communities who wait the longest.
NHS trusts are being asked to use the data to understand and reduce inequalities faced by patients.
Patients in the poorest communities and those from Asian or Asian British backgrounds are more likely to wait longer than 18 weeks than any other group, the report says.
Some 3.1% of patients living in the most deprived areas were waiting more than 12 months to begin treatment at the end of June compared to 2.7% in the least deprived.
• 56% of the overall waiting list is made up of people aged 19 to 64
• a third of those waiting are aged 65 and over
• among over 65s, ophthalmology has the greatest backlog
• women are more likely to be waiting over 18 weeks for treatment than men
• women are also more likely than men to wait for more than 52 weeks
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “Sunlight is the best disinfectant. Only by being upfront and shining a light on inequalities can we begin to tackle the problem.”
He added that the recently announced 10 year health plan would tackle health inequalities by diverting billions of pounds to working class communities, and provide targeted care to all patients where they live, via a neighbourhood health service.
These centres will be rolled out first in places where healthy life expectancy is lowest, including deindustrialised cities and coastal towns.
Gynaecology has had one of the worst waiting lists across the UK for a number of years.
Prof Ranee Thakar, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said: “At the moment, women in the most deprived areas face some of the longest waits, threatening to entrench existing health inequalities.
“Delays can lead to a need for more complex treatment and significantly impact women’s health, wellbeing, and daily lives.”
She added that it has been encouraging to see wait lists begin to fall in recent months, with NHS staff “working tirelessly” to deliver more appointments.

The post `Unfair’ NHS wait lists revealed in official report first appeared on Asian Leader.