NECA News March 2019

Better Health at Work Pg.2 Rockovery Pg.4 Travel Expenses Pg.5 Dry January Pg.6 HR Updates Pg.7

Dry January Events in Darlington A guide to coping with stress

In This Issue:

Points of Interest:

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 1

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of one of NECA’s long

serving Volunteer’s in South Shields, Derek (affectionately known as Deka)

Laurenson, on 1st February 2019.

Deka joined NECA in June 2015 and had been ill for some time. Deka will be

greatly missed by all his family and friends and by many people in NECA and

partner agencies.

He put many hours into the allotment at South Tyneside, where he loved the

woodwork, making the wheelbarrows, and at Christmas time enjoyed making the

Christmas wreaths. He supported many clients to develop new and existing skills.

Both Deka and his significant contribution will be greatly missed.

Derek Laurenson

September 1960 - February 2019

(Volunteer - South Shields Allotment)

Meeting the Duchess of Northumberland at the 2015 AGM

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 2

01-31 March

Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal Click here for further information

15 March

National No Smoking Day Click here for further information

20 March

World Oral Health Day Click here for further information

01-30 April

Stress Awareness Month Click here for further information

23-27 April

MS Awareness Week Click here for further information

08 April

Orchid Male Cancer Awareness Week

Click here for further information

BETTER HEALTH AT WORK

Oral diseases, such as tooth decay and gum disease, are widespread and preventable. Through proper self-care, regular dental check-ups and managing risk factors, good oral health and general health can be secured. Do you practice good oral care? See how many items in the checklist you can tick and use the tips provided to ACT ON MOUTH HEALTH.

Do you brush your teeth twice a day? Brush your teeth for two minutes twice daily with a fluoride toothpaste to help reduce your risk of tooth decay and gum disease.

Do you know how much toothpaste you should be using?

Apply toothpaste to the full length of your toothbrush head to keep your teeth and mouth healthy.

Do you know if you should rinse your mouth after brushing your teeth?

Don’t rinse your mouth with water straight after brushing, spit out any excess tooth-paste instead.

Do you clean between your teeth? Ask your dentist how to clean between your teeth using floss or other interdental cleaners. Regular cleaning between teeth helps to dislodge food and may also reduce gum disease and bad breath.

Do you eat a healthy diet with limited snacking of foods and drinks high in sugar?

Limit your intake of sugars to approximately 6 teaspoons daily.

Do you know that tobacco and alcohol are bad for your mouth?

Don’t use tobacco and limit your alcohol consumption. Tobacco and alcohol put you at increased risk for gum disease and oral cancer.

Do you know how to protect your teeth and mouth during contact sports?

Wear a professionally-made mouthguard when playing a sport with physical contact or regular falls and blows. It should fit exactly over teeth and gums to protect from frac-ture/loss.

Do you have a regular dental check-up? Visit your dentist or primary healthcare provider regularly for check-ups and cleanings. They can also advise on how regularly you need to book an appointment, depending on your specific needs.

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 3

Stress is not necessarily a ‘bad’ thing. Without this brilliant ability to experience stress, humankind wouldn’t have survived. Our cavemen ancestors, for example, used the onset of stress to alert them to a potential danger, such as a sabre-toothed tiger. Through the release of hormones such as adrenaline, cortisol and norepinephrine, the caveman gained a rush of energy, prepared him to either fight the tiger or run away. In the mod-ern world, the ‘fight or flight’ mode can still help us survive dangerous situations, for example, reacting swiftly to a person running in front of our car by slamming on the brakes. The challenge is when our body goes into a state of stress in inappropriate situations. When blood flow is going only to the most important muscles needed to fight or flee, brain function is minimised. This can lead to an inability to ‘think straight’; a state that is a great hindrance in both our work and home lives. If we are kept in a state of stress for long periods, it can be detrimental to our health. The results of having elevated cortisol levels can be an increase in sugar and blood pressure levels.

Get enough sleep Sleep is essential for the body to function properly. A routine can help you get to sleep. Think of how children are put to bed adults can adopt similarly helpful sleep-enhancing routines. For example:

Have a relaxing bath.

Avoid anything stimulating, such as TV or games. If you’re thinking of tasks, worries thoughts, write them down. This will help you set them aside and you can deal with them the next day.

Listen to music Music can be used to help reduce stress and create a calming atmosphere:

Use classical music; it is peaceful, harmonious and has no lyrics to distract.

Keep the volume low so it doesn’t distract.

Make a playlist to stop you from searching for songs, helping you to focus without distraction.

Use music to relax before sleep, soothing music with monotonous repetition, such as nature.

Learn to say ‘no’ Simple, but effective. Where a ‘no’ is the appropriate response, say it without guilt. ‘No’ also doesn’t have to be a decline, it can also be a ‘negotiation opportunity’, e.g. “ I can’t do that now, but I can fit it in next week”.

Breathe Taking a few deep breaths allows more oxygen to reach the brain, helping you become calm and restore concentration and focus:

Take a nice slow deep breath in through the nose and fill the belly up with air.

Hold at the top of the breath for 5 seconds and then slowly exhale through the mouth, pulling the navel to the spine.

Repeat 5 times.

Avoid nicotine, alcohol, caffeine and refined sugar products They are all stimulants, and prevent you from feeling calm. If you are stressed, steer clear of them. This can be difficult if you associate them with relaxation. But you can benefit from the sense of relaxation without relying on the stimulant.;

Instead of a cigarette try a fresh air break instead.

Instead of an alcoholic drink to talk about what has bothered you during the day. Try changing the setting and have a cup of tea instead.

Coffee or a chocolate bar - Try grabbing for fruit instead. A break without the negative effects.

Manage your time optimally Stress often results from difficulty in coping with day-to-day problems (work and at home) and conflicting responsibilities. A useful strategy for dealing with a sense of being overwhelmed by all the things that need attention is prioritising and diarising:

Make a list of all the things that you need to do; list them in order of genuine importance; note what you need to do yourself and what can be delegated to others; note what needs to be done immediately, in the next week or next month, etc.

Hobbies Activities outside of work and home can be a great way to break up the week and alleviate stress. If you don’t know where to start then think about what you enjoyed as a child, e.g. reading, playing football, painting, etc.

Work o ff stress with physical activity

Pressure or anger releases adrenaline in the body. Exercise helps to reduce it, and produces ‘good mood’ substances in the brain. This doesn’t mean we recommend running a mara-thon; just going for a brisk walk around the block when you feel tense can help.

Talk to someone We’ve all heard of the saying “a problem shared is a problem halved”. If you are troubled by something, don’t supress it. Instead:

Speak to a friend or family member

Visit your GP. They can signpost you to the relevant help Contact the Samaritans: Tel: 08457 90 90 90 Website: http://www.samaritans.org/ Source: http://www.stress.org.uk/

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 4

What could be more appropriate than Dry January 2019!

Dry January is a public health campaign urging people to abstain from alcohol for the month of January, particularly practised in the United Kingdom. Dry January focuses on raising awareness of alcohol-related issues and educating people about the health benefits of abstaining from alcohol. The Darlington Recovery and Wellbeing service attend Darlington College as part of a wellbeing day, to educate people on the aware-ness of the use of alcohol. Staff, clients and volunteers provided in-put on the day to help ensure the event was a success, with free healthy alternative to alcohol drinks and various formats of advice and support being made available. This included the opportunity to complete an alcohol awareness quiz with the students and some of the college based staff. A total of 114 alcohol quizzes were completed with the data to be collated. This will help to identify any gaps in awareness that could benefit from further investment in raising awareness of the associated risks when using alcohol.

The Darlington music group members played a brilliant 30 minute set of cover songs and the response from the assembled students was very positive and lively with cheers, clapping and whistles following every song played. Songs played varied in style and all of those involved in Rockovery feedback that they felt proud of their accomplishment.

Members of the band at Darlington College

A reminder that Staff and Volunteers should not be using their own vehicle to travel on any NECA Business (including travel to HQ to attend Training) without first providing the following mandatory documents (including renewals) to HR;

* IMPORTANT REMINDERS *

NECA reserve the right not to reimburse travel expense claims until all documentation has

been submitted.

Expenses will only be paid if documents and associated expenses are produced within the

same financial year.

Expenses must be submitted on a monthly basis, not saved and submitted in batches.

Expenses forms must be completed clearly and in full, otherwise they may be returned.

Travel passes will be reimbursed for daily proportion of any days travelled for NECA Business.

HR do not send reminders for documents, it is the employee’s responsibility to ensure all documents are submitted accurately and on time and that they have been received and

verified by HR.

* Failure to adhere to Policy & Procedures could result in disciplinary action *

For any queries/clarification please speak with your Manager or contact HR on 0191 414 6446 or human.resources@neca.co.uk

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 5

Travel on NECA Business

Vehicle Insurance:

Must be valid, and cover be for: “Class 1 Business Use”. You will not be in-sured if you do not have this cover. Updated copies must be sent to HR asap.

MOT Certificate:

Must be valid. For first time MOT or for all renewals you must send HR a copy of the MOT certificate. Your insurance will not be valid if you do not have an up to date MOT.

Driving Licence:

Must be valid and have current ad-dress listed. If your licence is renewed (incl. name or address changes) a new copy must be sent to HR.

V5c - Vehicle Registration:

The full document must be presented to HR. Anytime you change or use an additional vehicle, then the new copy must be sent to HR.

HR13 Appendix A:

To be completed as soon as you are aware you may need to use your vehicle for NECA Business. A new form must be completed if you change vehicle or use an additional vehicle.

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 6

NECA Darlington took part in the Dry January Event at the Cornmill Centre last month; Linda Cartman (Recovery Facilitator) and Maxine Dunn (Family, Carer and Peer Mentor Coordinator). Our stall attracted members of the public who stopped to sample the Mocktails we had on offer as an alternative to alcoholic beverages. Menus giving ingredients of the Mocktails were available to hand out to people so they could re-create the alcohol free drinks at home or use them to give ideas to create their own. The favourite of the day was Citrus Burst;

Mocktail Menu ~ Citrus Burst

Orange Juice 100ml (1/3 part)

Sprite 200ml (2/3 part)

2 teaspoons non-alcohol grenadine

Over the course of the day we facilitated alcohol questionnaires which looked at the understanding the general public had around the truths and misconceptions of alcohol consumption. We gave advice and guidance to a variety of people includ-ing an orthopaedic surgeon who didn’t think that, as a non-drinker, he needed to know about the effects of alcohol consumption. However, following a discussion around the impact of excessive alcohol intake, he realised that he may very well come across patients who had injured themselves because of drinking alcohol to excess. He now knows he can sign post to NECA. Many people passing the stall, as well as trying the Mocktails, also tried on the beer goggles which gave the effect of what it is like when you are drunk. We also had information on the calorific makeup of alcoholic drinks in comparison to certain food items. This surprised a number of people to know, for example, two 330ml’s of bottled beer was equivalent to one sirloin steak or a 250ml glass of red wine is equivalent to one ice cream. We also managed to network with the other agencies and companies present at the event including Healthwatch and Darlington College. Overall the day was a great success in improving awareness of excessive alcohol use and the negative impact alcohol has on physical and mental wellbeing. People were also made aware that alternatives to alcoholic beverages are possible and can be enjoyable.

NECA NEWS | MARCH 2019 Page 7

Human Resources/

Development Team

NECA Headquarters Derwent Point, Clasper Way Swalwell, Newcastle upon

Tyne, NE16 3BE Tel: 0191 414 6446 Fax: 0191 414 8124

NECA News Produced by Human Resources

email: human.resources@neca.co.uk

Leavers:

New Starters:

Linda Cartman started her new role as Recovery Facilitator/Community Coordi-

nator in Darlington on 11th February.

Chris Carr started his new role as Recovery Facilitator/Community Coordinator

in Darlington on 1st March.

Internal Transfers:

No new starters yet for 2019

David Nicholson left his role as Finance Apprentice on 11th January.

John Brodie leaves his role as Recovery Facilitator on 11th March.

Announcements:

Don’t forget to send Car Insurance and MOT renewal certificates asap.

If you change address or name please advise and ensure HMRC are advised too.

You can change the nominations on your Expression of wish forms anytime. Just

ask for a new form to complete then return.

If you have a second job or volunteer role, you can let us know by completing a

declaration of interest form.