The Health Improvement Board of The Council of European Jamaats in collaboration with the Alzheimer's Society had organised a talk on Dementia during the main programme on Saturday 4th September 2010, in Birmingham.

Topic: Dementia- What is it?  Where to get help? What help and support is available?

[English and Urdu]

Dementia: a growing concern

Our health, although at times taken for granted, is one of our key assets, without which our life has the potential to fall apart.

The HIB (Health Improvement Board) of COEJ is a body which seeks to raise awareness about health in several communities. The main aim of the board is to work towards improving the health and well being of our community. For more information visit: www.coej.org/hib. HIB are organising a summer trip to East Africa where individuals are able to participate and volunteer within various charitable centres and organisations.

This is a life-changing opportunity for individuals to gain experience by helping those who need it most. This invaluable experience will provide you with skills and experience that may be required not only for future careers, but also in life! East Africa has been specifically chosen as it will allow us to work with and assist our own communities.  Not only will this be a life-changing opportunity for yourself but also for those that you may meet during your trip.

In December last year I came across a poster advertising a volunteering trip, organised by the Health Improvement Board (HIB), part of COEJ, to take place in summer 2009. The idea appealed to me – I had never been to East Africa, but I was aware, or so I thought, of the situation. I knew that poverty was widespread and that education and healthcare, those things we in the UK see as a right, not a privilege, were available readily to the rich but rarely to the poor. I wanted to visit a part of the world that was new to me, and so much the better if I were able to make a difference to someone else’s life.

In March this year a seminar was scheduled by the HIB team in order to introduce the volunteers to each other and provide general information about the trip. We were given some background about the work we could expect to do (primarily teaching at the Kibaha schools) and the organisations that we were likely to visit. In addition, the topic of fundraising was broached – whilst the focus of the trip was to volunteer, it was suggested by the HIB coordinator that fundraising would benefit the organisations in the longer term. What followed was a lot of hard work on the part of volunteers and, with it, generous donations of clothing, toys and money. As a result of this generosity we were able to donate to each institution we worked at or visited.

First Aid Training/AED for European Jamaats.
Palliative and Bereavement Care.

For many years the Health Improvement Board (HIB) has organised meningitis and flu vaccinations for Hujjaj travelling with the European Hajj Mission (EHM).  It has always proved to be very successful and convenient to have vaccines done at the Hajj seminar; saving the time and inconvenience of visiting your local GP and also saving on cost. In 1429 this service was extended to all Hajj groups across the United Kingdom.  A new team was formed, receiving guidance from the volunteers of EHM and

We aim to provide an insight into the various special needs that exist within our Jamaats. This project aims to change not just perceptions of the concept of disability, but to acknowledge and accommodate people with special needs in all the areas of service that our jamaat provide. Various categories of special needs existent in our community have been identified.  The overwhelming response from the community and our experience indicates the common empathy towards this cause within our

One of the aims of the Health Improvement Board is to enhance people’s access to healthcare. Alhamdulillah we live in a country where we do not have to worry about providing a medical service to our community, as our brothers and sisters in Asia and Africa do. Amongst our community, there are a number of members who wish to supplement their healthcare with private medical insurance (PMI). There are others who would like to but cannot afford to do so.

In order to help increase the access to PMI for our members, we have started on a project to try to arrange cheaper premiums for our community. In the process of doing this, we are supporting our community members by working with Independent Financial Advisers from our own community. We are in the early days in this project but if you have any queries or think that you could get involved in making this happen, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Sadik Merali .

We are striving to keep this website updated regular and provide accurate and up to date information on various health related topics. We also strive to keep up and publish various healthcare drives which are taking place in the community at present. If you have the skills in writing and publishing or have any ideas of what the website should include, please contact Dr. Rizwan Alidina.

We aim to bring health information to you via your local Jamaat. We will give you access to articles and information on current health issues through your local events at mosque as well as through the website. We also hope to cover issues that may be important to you in your daily lives and affect members of your family of friends.  Inshallah, we will guide you on how to cope with different illnesses, how to make changes to your lifestyle if necessary, who to contact for further support and personal advice, as well as give you information on particular conditions and illnesses so you are better informed. Leaflets will be available to download from the site as well as limited availability from your Jamaat desk.  Look out for your current topic on the Jamaat notice board in the very near future. Please feel free to make suggestions of topics you would like covered by contacting Sister Farhana Jagani. We are also looking for new members to join our team. Please contact us if you would like to support us in our cause.

HIB are organising a summer trip to East Africa where individuals are able to participate and volunteer within various charitable centres and organisations. This is a life-changing opportunity for individuals to gain experience by helping those who need it most. This invaluable experience will provide you with skills that may be required for future careers but also in life! East Africa has been specifically chosen as it will allow us to work with and assist our own communities.  Not only will this be a life-

Screening Programmes - The health screening team offers to provide health screening days every four months to jamaats in the UK and Europe. This is a voluntary service aiming to promote health awareness in our community. Our team of motivated healthcare professionals are dedicated to travelling that extra mile to make a difference. We have found that having personalised testing of essential health parameters in a variety of languages and communicative methods in a familiar environment has a positive impact on the understanding of health in the community. We have uncovered a variety of previously undiagnosed conditions and had the opportunity of explaining these to individuals and encouraging them to seek further attention. The service we provide has been welcomed by all and we aim to constantly improve and serve our community in the most effective way possible. We are keen to adopt new ideas and include new faces in our team. If you are interested in assisting us, please contact Dr. Safiya Virji-Jawad. For more details about the screening programme, please follow the link to the screening homepage.