The Men’s Health Forums throughout the Western Isles were set up to promote and campaign for positive changes in policy and practice towards men’s health and well being and in addition, to enhance the ability of men to take steps to improve their health.

In particular, the aims of the Men’s Health Forum are to increase awareness amongst men of the importance of regular health checks, improve knowledge regarding health issues, raise awareness ad promote the range of services available for men and to organise events relating to men’s health.

The Forum support events throughout the Western Isles ranging from football, golf, fishing, rugby competitions and arrange taster sessions for men to try out several sports. Quizes are held in Lewis and Uist where participants battle against each other to answer questions in a range of topics, a specific health topic is covered at each quiz.  Further information on this year’s Men’s Health Week can be found in our Health Inequalities section.  Pictured are the winners of the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ Quiz Night held in Stornoway, November 2011.

A total of 35 teams took part in the Battle of the Sexes quiz night at the Golf Club, with a team from Talk Talk (called the Sahara Kayaking Club) once again taking the crown.

The Annual Men’s Health ‘Battle of the Sexes’ quiz night was held in the Stornoway Golf Club on Friday, November 15 and 35 teams of either four men or four women took part in the event, answering questions on general knowledge, music, health, TV and sport & leisure. In second place was a team of friends called ‘I’m Spartacus’, and, for the second year running, a female team from NHS Western Isles came in third place.

The event was organised through the Men’s Health Forum, which chose to focus on prostate cancer this year, with health information on tables and displayed at the entrance. All teams scored very highly in the health round, which was encouraging.

A total of £350 was raised on the night and this will be donated to a local charity.

NHS Western Isles Healthy Working Lives Advisor, Norma Macleod, said: “It’s always an excellent opportunity for the Men’s Health Forum to raise awareness at this event. We manage to engage with a large number of people in a social venue, raise awareness of men’s health and raise money for a local charity.”

NHS Western Isles has now completed it’s countdown to ‘no smoking’ on its premises and grounds.  This means that all premises and grounds owned by NHS Western Isles have now  been smoke-free since November 30th 2013. 

Our Smoking Policy which was, approved by the Board’s Area Partnership Forum and the Board itself has been operational for almost a year. It  has provided information and support to both staff and patients during this time.  If anyone has any questions or require any information, we will be happy to forward to the Smoking Policy Group on your behalf.

Smoking is the biggest cause of premature death in the UK and is the biggest cause of ill health in Scotland. It is now estimated to claim over 13,000 lives each year and costs the NHS in Scotland an estimated £200 million per annum. For these reasons NHS Western Isles aims to discharge its public health duties responsibly and will always act to discourage and consequently prevent smoking.

The aim of the Board is to reduce premature mortality and to improve the health of the people of the Western Isles. Advocating non-smoking is recognised as being one of the most effective ways to achieving these aims. This policy also forms part of the Board’s overall concern for the health, safety and welfare of its staff..

If you are interested in getting help about stopping smoking, please contact Smokefree Hebrides, tel. 01851 701623.