Coughs and sneezes spread diseases

Winter is almost upon us and it seems a good opportunity to see what the Gateway has to offer for anyone wanting to know how to keep healthy - and where to go if they can’t.

First port of call on the Westminster Libraries Gateway is the Health section.
Probably the most important site is NHS Choices, given as a Key Link. Put in a postcode to find your nearest doctors, dentists, hospitals etc. The other services listed include opticians and NHS walk-in centres. Handily it tells you which practices are accepting new NHS patients and whether the doctors are male or female, which foreign languages are spoken at the practice and what hours they are open. Other features of the site include articles giving the medical background to recent news stories (for example the story of the implant which improved the sight of three blind patients) and Carers Direct which is a mine of helpful information, including legal and financial advice. Have a look as well at the Health A-Z which gives advice on how to cope with 100s of medical conditions and diseases from abdominal aortic aneurysms to yellow fever (you’ll have to look elsewhere for advice on Zollinger-Ellison syndrome though).

If you really are concerned you have Zollinger-Ellison syndrome, (it’s fairly unlikely so don’t panic), you might want to look at the Merck Manual in the Conditions and treatment section. This is the online version of the standard medical textbook, first published in 1899. If it’s possible to catch it, Merck will have it – it’s even got syndromes that begin with X (xanthomatosis being one of them).

Having been to the doctor for a diagnosis and then read up on your illness, perhaps you want to check up on your prescription. The British National Formulary will come in handy here, though you do need to register (it’s free and not terribly arduous). Once you’ve registered, you’ll have access to comprehensive information about the full range of prescription drugs with details of their possible side-effects. Let’s hope you haven’t got Zollinger-Ellison syndrome as Pantoprazole, which you’ll be taking by intravenous injection can lead to alopecia and dizziness among other nasties.

If your illness gets worse and visit to hospital is required, you may want to check out Dr Foster’s consumer guide to the health service. Each NHS hospital has been provided with a ‘Patient Safety Score' (University College Hospital comes top) and you can find out about hospital mortality rates along with top tips for what makes a safe hospital. There’s a detailed guide to each hospital with information about their specialties (St Mary’s, Paddington are pioneers in robotic surgery) and waiting times, plus information about consultants.

If it’s not actually an illness you’re researching, but simple old age, you might want to look at Saga Health, brought to you by the company that produce Saga magazine. Packed with useful information about fitness, health, diet, help for carers, it’s well worth a look. As is the Care Homes Guide which lists more than 20,000 care homes in the UK, allowing you to search by area or by particular need (such as epilepsy or dementia), it’s a very useful source of information for anyone faced to choosing a home for themselves or a loved one.