Information for health care professionals
Changing Faces has worked with a wide range of health and social care professionals over the past 16 years encouraging the integration of psycho-social rehabilitation into hospital and clinic settings for people who have disfigurements and their families.
Every year, over 530,000 people in the UK are estimated to acquire a disfiguring condition to their face, hands or body – from birth, accident, cancer surgery, skin and eye conditions, from facial paralysis and from medical accidents such as mistakes in cosmetic procedures.
Most will come into contact with the NHS – at GP clinic, A&E or specialist hospital service level. Many medical specialties provide services for them including dermatology, plastic surgery, burns, cranio-facial surgery, maxillo-facial surgery, ophthalmology, neurology, general surgery and oncology.
Current NHS initiatives such as the Choice Agenda, Person Centred Care and the merging of NHS Trusts/Primary Care Trusts and Local Authority Social Services Departments are all intended to place the patient / user at the centre of the system and improve the quality of their care and speed recovery.
Changing Faces advocates the development of health care that comprehensively and routinely addresses patients' physical and psychosocial needs as part of the patient care pathway.
The charity actively seeks to influence and support the work of clinicians and professionals in the many specialties that care for people who have disfiguring conditions as well as those in primary care.
An increasing number of health and social care professionals are now seeking to embed psycho-social interventions into their care as a crucial part of best practice and as an essential component to successful rehabilitation.
Changing Faces provides health and social care professionals with the resources, strategies and training programmes to enable teams to place the psycho-social care needs of patients at the centre of their practice.
Your Comments
If you are struggling to cope and you would like to speak to someone in confidence, please call 0845 4500 275 or email info@changingfaces.org.uk. Please note, we are not able to contact anyone after they have left a message on this board.
Pauline Anne Badger BSc(Hons) MSc. Pg, , 62, Lake Windermere region
Tony, first of all I have this to illustrate. When getting my award for learning with the Learning and Skills Council due to spinal injuries and PTSD I felt even at my age a face of no identity. Of a scientist who did not wear the witches cloak, but an academic one won as you are and have like many others in trial and adversity. What Simon Weston OBE said to me as I gathered in the awards to camera flashes was this - 'turn to the cameras RAF girl they cannot see your scars but they can see mine'. I went on to Salford University in Malaria and infectious deseases and to pass a Masters in Medical Sciences and radiotherapy and to go on to complete the Masters in Behaviour sciences. No, Tony, they are not bad as you imagine. People take you for the person inside. Remember Ted Bunday the serial killer was very pretty as was many of the white collar and criminal psychopaths. What I am saying is killers or criminals are not facially impaired or not ones that have come to light. Therefore be proud of your difference. Be the person of intelligence and wisdom, of healing and of is not. You do not need dollars to be viewed perfect. What you need is to think of the none glamourous images of cosmetic idols. Concentrate on giving something back. I once met the man in RAF Halton that Ian Brady would have liked to meet, the German WW2 Pilot with no eyebrows. I had the honour to serve each morning the best plastic surgeon Air Vice Marshal Stamm of RAF HALTON in 1966-69 with exemplory conduct. I had the honour to sit in his Bentley as VIP staff and listen to the doctors then who did radical vital surgery on the IRA victims of implosions and explosions then. This is to all with a feature that is visible. Be sure of worth. Of the bright face that is not what it seems. Some of us have the glamour and some not. I leave you with the image of Simon Weston who having met him challenges bias. To meet him you see a person who has overcome the bias of the silicon babes mentality. You and he will never look like Elvis so just be who you are today inside. Radiate it. Love the image in the mirror. It reflects only the layer unpenatrated by sunlight.
Tony, 22, China
Something has been disturbing me for such a long time,and will continue influence me for hunting a job after my this-year graduation from my university!! Two years ago, on my face grew some keloidlike scar caused by whelk or acne,which really made me very self-inferior, confidence-lost, and afraid to appear in the crowd. Whenever my parents ask or my friends invite me to social events or gathering, I would surely find excuses to refuse, because I hate that lots of people behind me are pointing to,staring at and whispering anything about me,which is really awful and do make me upset!!! I tried to see a doctor, but the doctor told me that he couldn't assure me for the complete curability and the operation would need tens of thousands of Chinese dollars at least which is completely unbearable to my family. Actually, i know the incurability is sure to be because in China we haven't the advanced medical technolog for the surgery. What i need is a cosmetic surgery which is not available in China and not affordable in my family. I firmly believe that American can surely do that， but I, as an english major student and a peasant's son, really can't afford to do that. I Need Help!! Who can help me?? Maybe you don't know how bad things are!!
