In this section
Even though this can be a frustrating time, there are things you can do to improve your health and wellbeing while waiting. As part of our commitment to patient safety, we are signposting patients to trusted sources of information that can help you better understand your condition and manage symptoms during this waiting period.
Average Waiting Times
Please visit the My Planned Care website to find out the average waiting times for hospital appointments and treatment by selecting the service you have been referred to. If you are unsure which service you have been referred to, please check any letters you have received from the hospital.
Physical health and wellbeing support
Keeping fit is not only important to your wellbeing but it also helps speed up your recovery after surgery. Maintaining a healthy weight, getting active or quitting smoking can help your physical wellbeing.
The NHS website contains lots of helpful advice about healthy living, including eating a balanced diet, healthy weight, exercise, quitting smoking and drinking less alcohol. Click on the button below to find out more.
Check out the different local services that you can use to manage your physical health below.
Be Well
Be Well is a partnership is made up of different organisations that can even help you in different ways. It could be to get on top of work, housing, family and money worries, long term health conditions, stress, loneliness or if you’re feeling a bit low, or you’d like help with stopping smoking.
You can call them on 0161 470 7120 or just ask your GP to put you in touch.
When you come to Be Well, one of their trained coaches will talk to you about the help you need and the goals you want to achieve. Then they will work with you to come up with a plan to get you to where you want to be.
Visit the Be Well website to learn more.
Expert Patients Programme
The Expert Patients Programme is a free NHS course for anyone who has or cares for someone with, a long-term health condition. The programme is run by trained tutors who have experience of self-managing a long-term condition.
In the course you will learn to:
- Manage physical and emotional difficulties
- Develop a partnership with your healthcare professionals
- Plan ahead with support from the team
- Increase your motivation and feel more positive.
It takes place over six weekly sessions which are once a week for 2.5 hours at local venues throughout Manchester.
For information on course venues across Manchester or to find out more please contact the Expert Patients Programme Team on 0161 371 2105 or email mft.epp@nhs.net.
Greater Manchester Walking
Greater Manchester Walking is a hub of information to help you walk, stroll, amble, mooch and connect. It is great if you are looking for a walking route to explore the local area or somewhere new. This website is also a great resource if you wanted to help someone you know join a local walking group. For more information visit the Greater Manchester Walking website.
MCRactive
MCRactive is a not-for-profit organisation established and overseen by Manchester City Council. It is responsible for running the various world-class leisure and sports centre around Manchester.
Use the Activity Finder function on their website to find individual or team activities. Depending on your preference, they have lots of fun or serious options; you could even join a club or find social events. Go along on your own, with friends or family; become a volunteer or find a coach. There is something for everyone.
Better Health
Whether you want to lose weight, get active or quit smoking, Better Health has lots of free tools and support.
Visit the Better Health website to see what little changes you can make to get healthier.
Eat Well
We know that modern life can mean we are a lot busier, less active, and more reliant on convenience and fast food than we used to be. Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health and can help you feel your best.
Visit the NHS website to learn more about what makes a healthy diet.
Visit the Better Health website to learn how you can support your child eat healthier.
Quit Smoking
If you’re going into hospital for an operation, it’s strongly advised that you stop smoking as soon as possible. Quitting smoking before an operation will reduce your chances of complications and speed up your recovery after surgery. It will also make your stay at hospital more comfortable as smoking is not permitted on hospital grounds.
Try to quit smoking as soon as you can, as this will give your body as much time as possible to repair itself before surgery.
With help, you’re much more likely to quit smoking than if you use willpower alone. Visit the Make Smoking History website to get free access to the latest quitting aids, one-to-one advice and support in your local area.
You could also talk to a friendly stop smoking advisor over the phone. Call the Greater Manchester Stop Smoking Helpline free on 0300 123 1044 between 9am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 11am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday, including bank holidays.
You can also speak to your GP or local pharmacist for help to stop smoking.
Mental health support
If you are waiting for medical care or treatment, it can be a difficult for you and those around you. There are lots of organisations that offer mental health support, both locally and nationally. You might need different types of support at different times in your life. Sometimes it might just be about getting a bit of advice or sometimes problems are more serious or don’t get better with self-help.
Please see the organisations and the support they can offer below:
NHS 111 Mental Health
If you need urgent mental health support, for example if you feel mentally unsafe or severely distressed, you can quickly and easily access support by calling NHS 111 and selecting mental health option 2.
It’s available 24/7, free of charge and you can call for yourself or someone else.
Self Help
Self Help is a user-led mental health charity that offers a range of support and services across the North West of England. It helps people living with anxiety, depression, phobias and panic attacks. Visit the Self Help website to find out for more about the services and how to access them.
Rethink Manchester Mental Health Group
This support group is a part of the national charity Rethink Mental Illness. It is a volunteer run support group for anyone in Manchester who is affected by severe or enduring mental illness. It could be through lived experience or as a family member/friend. The aim of the group is to bring people together in a safe non-judgemental environment to share experiences.
They run a general support peer support meeting on Thursday evenings, for anyone experiencing difficulties with mental health regardless of whether they have a diagnosis or are involved with mental health services, as well as families and carers.
Find out more on the Rethink Mental Illness website.
42nd Street
42nd Street support young people with their emotional well-being and mental health by offering a choice of effective, creative, young person-centred and rights-based approaches.
It is an inclusive service that is free and confidential. If you are or care for a young person, please visit the 42nd Street website for more information about their services.
Kooth
Kooth is a platform emotional wellbeing and mental health support service available to children and young people aged between 11 to 25. It is a free digital service that can be accessed through mobile, tablet or desktop.
It provides immediate access to an online community of peers and a team of experienced, accredited counsellors. The service is anonymous and open for support 365 days a year. The timings are 12pm – 10pm on weekdays, and 6pm – 10pm on weekends and holidays.
You can find out more about the service and sign up on the kooth website.
Community support
Manchester has many organisations that can support you within the community. They can help you with your daily routine things as well as provide any specialist help.
Community Care Navigators
Care Navigators work with people over 18 to ensure they are connected with the right services available to them in their neighbourhood. They work closely with NHS services, mental health services, GP’s, social services (council), housing associations, charities, voluntary groups, social enterprise organisations and other community resources to identify any gaps in support and connect you with these services.
The service is available 7 days a week, Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm.
If you would like to talk to a Care Navigator or make a referral, please contact the Single Point of Access (SPA) team by phone or email:
- Tel: 0300 303 9650
- E-mail: mft.spa-uhsm@nhs.net
Find out more about Community Care Navigators on the Manchester Local Care Organisation website (MLCO).
Age UK Manchester
Age UK Manchester is an independent charity dedicated to helping people over 60, their families and carers. It offers information, advice and support on a wide range of issues.
Some of the things they can help you with includes, benefit claims, accessing social care services, identifying your housing options and dealing with debt or utility bills.
Visit the Age UK website to learn more.
National support helplines
Sometimes you might need to speak to someone about specific issues. Below are contact details for a range of charities.
British Heart Foundation Heart Helpline
The British Heart Foundation have cardiac nurses and heart health advisors on hand to help with any questions or concerns you have about heart health and heart conditions.
Call the Helpline – 0300 330 3311
The Helpline is open weekdays 9am to 5pm.
*costs are the same as calling a landline.
Email hearthelpline@bhf.org.uk and a cardiac nurse will get back to you as soon as possible.
You can also chat online with a cardiac nurse on the British Heart Foundation website.
Diabetes UK Care Line
Diabetes UK offers a support helpline for anyone with diabetes, their friends, family and carers.
Phone – 0345 123 2399. Available Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm
Email – helpline@diabetes.org.uk
Diabetes UK can help with queries about a range of topics. You find out more on the Diabetes UK website.
Parkinson’s UK Helpline
Parkinson’s UK offers a free and confidential service providing support to anyone affected by Parkinson’s.
Phone – 0808 800 0303
The Helpline is open, Monday to Friday: 9am to 6pm and Saturday: 10am to 2pm. It is closed on Sundays and bank holidays.
Support is also available for people in the UK whose first language is not English. You can call the helpline directly and request an interpreter.
Email – hello@parkinsons.org.uk
Post – Helpline, Parkinson’s UK, 215 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1V 1EJ
Stroke Association Helpline and Information Service
The Stroke Association offer support for anyone affected by stroke (stroke survivor, family or friend).
Phone – 0303 3033 100
Opening hours
Monday, Thursday and Friday – 9am – 5pm
Tuesday and Wednesday – 8am – 6pm
Saturday – 10am – 1pm
Sunday – Closed
Email – helpline@stroke.org.uk
Post – Stroke Helpline, Stroke Association, 1 Sterling Business Park, Salthouse Road, Brackmills, Northampton, NN4 7EX
Macmillan Cancer Support Helpline
Macmillan Cancer Support offers confidential support to people living with cancer and their loved ones.
Phone – 0808 808 0000
Open 7 days a week, 8am to 8pm. Opening times may vary for different specialist teams.
Email – To email them fill the enquiry form on the Macmillan Cancer Support website.
Chat online – Visit the Macmillan Cancer Support website to use the service.