LDUK community member Mandy, who is living with long term Lyme disease symptoms, alongside her husband, and potentially has other family members affected, has not let that stop her from trying to build health awareness of the condition and try to generate publicity, whilst maintaining her anonymity.
Mandy is in contact with her local Public Health Department in Worcester, liaising with one of the Consultants about measures that could be introduced in the immediate county. Progress is being made, but Covid-19 is currently taking precedence, as most attention is currently required to help address the pandemic.
However, there are potential plans to:
- Engage the CCG to promote an awareness campaign with GPs across the county, using resources such as the PHE and RCGP toolkits
- Discuss with the CCG and the Acute Trust what can be done to raise awareness of Lyme disease with hospital-based consultants in Infectious Diseases
- Engage with district councils and suggest signage in prominent areas where ticks could be present
- Continue to promote Lyme disease and tick awareness through social media
Mandy has also approached local councillors to seek support to educate the public, with one local councillor currently looking into the possibility of funding the erection of signs about Lyme disease in and around a local nature reserve within the city, which would be a great start. Though it is useful to note that infected ticks can just as easily be found in urban domestic gardens, so there is always a risk, and why education about ticks is so very important.
LDUK has also been engaging more with local government representatives since attending a conference held by the Association of Directors of Public Health at the end of last year and we are so grateful to Mandy for her efforts to raise the profile of the disease in her area.
We welcome any ideas for continuing to raise awareness of Lyme disease and applaud the initiatives undertaken by members of our Online Community!