Useful addresses
We have included the following organisations because, on preliminary investigation, they may be of use to the reader. However, we do not have first-hand experience of each organisation and so cannot guarantee the organisation’s integrity. The reader must therefore exercise his or her own discretion and judgement when making further enquiries.
British Olympic Association
1 Wandsworth Plain
London SW18 1EH
Tel: 020 8871 2677
Website: www.olympics.org.uk
National Olympic Committee which is responsible for all Olympic matters in the UK.
British Olympic Medical Institute
Northwick Park Hospital
Watford Road
Harrow
Middlesex HA1 3UJ
Tel: 020 8423 7200
Provides medical facilities for Olympic athletes.
British Red Cross Society (England)
9 Grosvenor Crescent
London SW1X 7EJ
Tel: 020 7235 5454
Website: www.redcross.org.uk
Gives skilled and impartial care to people in need and crisis in their own homes, the community, at home and abroad, in peace and in war. Refers to local branches.
British Red Cross Society (Scotland)
2 Swan Street
Glasgow G4 0AX
Tel: 0141 332 1607
Website: www.redcross.org.uk
Gives skilled and impartial care to people in need and crisis in their own homes, the community, at home and abroad, in peace and in war. Refers to local branches.
Laerdal Medical Limited
Laerdal House
Goodmead Road
Orpington
Kent BR6 0HX
Tel: 01689 876634
Website: www.laerdal.co.uk
Manufactures life-saving and training equipment, including mannequins.
Faculty of Sports and Exercise Medicine
6 Hill Square
Edinburgh
EH8 9DR
Tel: +44 (0) 131 527 1600 ext 409
Website: www.fsem.ac.uk
Involved with other organisations and provides information, education and consultancy services for those engaged in exercise and sports.
Sport England
16 Upper Woburn Place
London WC1H 0QP
Tel: 020 7273 1500
Website: www.sportengland.org
Government agency promoting sport in England with a wide variety of activity programmes in order to foster a healthier lifestyle.
Sport Scotland
Caledonia House
1 Redheughs Rigg
South Gyle
Edinburgh EH12 9DQ UK
Tel: 0131 317 7200
Website: www.sportscotland.org.uk
Government agency in Scotland promoting sport with a wide range of activity programmes.
Sportscoach UK
114 Cardigan Road
Headingley
Leeds LS6 3BJ
Tel: 0113 274 4802
Website: www.sportscoachuk.org
Develops coaches and coaching as a profession, working with a number of partners to improve sport throughout the UK.
Sports Council for Northern Ireland
House of Sport
Upper Malone Road
Belfast BT9 5LA
Tel: 02890 381222
Website: www.sportni.com
Government agency promoting sport in Northern Ireland with a wide variety of activity programmes.
Sports Council for Wales
Sophia Gardens
Cardiff CF1 9SW
Tel: 02920 300500
Website: www.sports-council-wales.co.uk
Headquarters for national network of local clubs who arrange integrated projects to bring disabled and able-bodied people together. Promote sport in Wales and distribute lottery funding. Support Paralympic athletes.
St Andrew’s Ambulance Association
St Andrew’s House
Milton Street
Glasgow G4 0HR
Tel: 0141 332 4031
Website: www.firstaid.org.uk
Provides first aid training and cover for events in Scotland.
St John’s Ambulance
27 St John’s Lane
London EC1M 4BU
Tel: 08702 355 231
Helpline: 08700 104 950
Website: www.sja.org.uk
Provides first aid training and cover for events.
THE INTERNET AS A SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION
After reading this text, you may feel that you would like further information on the subject. The internet is of course an excellent place to look and there are many websites with useful information about medical disorders, related charities and support groups. For those who do not have a computer at home some bars and cafes offer facilities for accessing the internet. These are listed in the Yellow Pages under ‘Internet Bars and Cafes’ and ‘Internet Providers’. Your local library offers a similar facility and has staff to help you find the information that you need.
It should always be remembered, however, that the internet is unregulated and anyone is free to set up a website and add information to it. Many websites offer impartial advice and information that has been compiled and checked by qualified medical professionals. Some, on the other hand, are run by commercial organisations with the purpose of promoting their own products. Others still are run by pressure groups, some of which will provide carefully assessed and accurate information whereas others may be suggesting medications or treatments that are not supported by the medical and scientific community.
Unless you know the address of the website you want to visit – for example, www.familydoctor.co.uk – you may find the following guidelines useful when searching the internet for information.
SEARCH ENGINES AND OTHER SEARCHABLE SITES
Google (www.google.co.uk) is the most popular search engine used in the UK, followed by Yahoo! (http://uk.yahoo.com) and MSN (www.msn.co.uk). Also popular are the search engines provided by Internet Service Providers such as Tiscali and other sites such as the BBC site (www.bbc.co.uk).
In addition to the search engines that index the whole web, there are also medical sites with search facilities, which act almost like mini-search engines, but cover only medical topics or even a particular area of medicine. Again, it is wise to look at who is responsible for compiling the information offered to ensure that it is impartial and medically accurate. The NHS Direct site (www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk) is an example of a searchable medical site.
Links to many British medical charities can be found at the Association of Medical Research Charities’ website (www.amrc.org.uk) and at Charity Choice (www.charitychoice.co.uk).
SEARCH PHRASES
Be specific when entering a search phrase. Searching for information on ‘cancer’ will return results for many different types of cancer as well as on cancer in general. You may even find sites offering astrological information. More useful results will be returned by using search phrases such as ‘lung cancer’ and ‘treatments for lung cancer’. Both Google and Yahoo! offer an advanced search option that includes the ability to search for the exact phrase; enclosing the search phrase in quotes, that is, ‘treatments for lung cancer’, will have the same effect. Limiting a search to an exact phrase reduces the number of results returned but it is best to refine a search to an exact match only if you are not getting useful results with a normal search.
Adding ‘UK’ to your search term will bring up mainly British sites, so a good phrase might be ‘lung cancer’ UK (don’t include UK within the quotes).
WARNING
Always remember the internet is international and unregulated. It holds a wealth of valuable information but individual sites may be biased, out of date or just plain wrong. Family Doctor Publications accepts no responsibility for the content of links published in this series.
