One man in five dies before the age of 65.
TOGETHER we can change that.

New 'Man Shop' in Wandsworth

23/09/15 . News

A free specialised Man Shop will be popping-up at Putney’s Ashburton Estate next week to get local men taking about their health.

The Man Shop will be open in Tildesley Road from noon to 7pm every day from September 23-29.

Men will be able to get a ‘Man MOT’ which includes checks on blood pressure, blood sugar and weight. This can help to catch health problems early and reduce the chance of heart disease, diabetes, strokes, and more.

The Man Shop will be staffed with nurses who will also be able to refer residents to a range of free services to help them stay well and healthy. No health topic is off limits and the team can answer questions on anything from lumps and bumps and stress to sexual health problems.

All men are encouraged to come along, especially those with niggling problems they have been unable or unwilling to take to their doctor. Women are asked to encourage to their friends, husbands, brothers, sons and fathers to come along.

The council’s health spokesman Cllr Jim Maddan said:

“I would urge as many men as possible to go along to the Man Shop. We know men are often reluctant to visit their doctor and suffer poor health as a result. By taking medical care to the heart of a local community, this is our way of persuading them to get themselves checked out and nip any potential problems in the blood.”

The shop has been provided free of charge by Wandsworth Council and run by the council’s public health department. Funding is also being provided by the Wandsworth Clinical Commissioning Group representing the borough’s GPs. The pop-up clinic is part of the council’s year-long focus on men’s health.

Dr Peter Ilves, clinical lead for Wandsworth Self-Management Service at NHS Wandsworth CCG said:

"We are really excited about the pop-up men's health shop which creates an opportunity to discuss health concerns in an open and relaxed setting. Its a great way for men to take the first steps to become more aware and informed. This leads them to help themselves take greater care in their lives whilst also being signposted to the range of services available throughout the borough." 

You can find out about Wandsworth Council's men's health programme at www.wandsworth.gov.uk/info/200523/mens_health.

If you are unable to go down to the shop, an online Man MOT service for Wandsworth men is available via the Men's Health Forum.

The Men’s Health Forum need your support

It’s tough for men to ask for help but if you don’t ask when you need it, things generally only get worse. So we’re asking.

In the UK, one man in five dies before the age of 65. If we had health policies and services that better reflected the needs of the whole population, it might not be like that. But it is. Policies and services and indeed men have been like this for a long time and they don’t change overnight just because we want them to.

It’s true that the UK’s men don’t have it bad compared to some other groups. We’re not asking you to ‘feel sorry’ for men or put them first. We’re talking here about something more complicated, something that falls outside the traditional charity fund-raising model of ‘doing something for those less fortunate than ourselves’. That model raises money but it seldom changes much. We’re talking about changing the way we look at the world. There is nothing inevitable about premature male death. Services accessible to all, a population better informed. These would benefit everyone - rich and poor, young and old, male and female - and that’s what we’re campaigning for.

We’re not asking you to look at images of pity, we’re just asking you to look around at the society you live in, at the men you know and at the families with sons, fathers and grandads missing.

Here’s our fund-raising page - please chip in if you can.

Registered with the Fundraising Regulator

Contact
Address
  • The Men's Health Forum
  • 82 Tanner Street
  • London, SE1 3GN

Charity registered in England and Wales (no. 1087375). Company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (no. 4142349).