Wellbeing MOTs: Partnerships in Practice for a Healthier Community   

What are the Wellbeing MOTs? 

Rise has worked in partnership with Newcastle University for some time, and our latest collaboration puts partnership into practice. Second-year medical students who had completed our Physical Activity Clinical Champions training and the following shadowing placements took part in our Wellbeing MOT.  
 
Held at Leisure United in Blakelaw, the MOTs gave students the chance to work directly with members of the public, taking a series of health measurements, and offering practical advice on how to become more active.  

What measures are involved? 

• Height and weight 

• Waist measurement 

• Blood pressure 

How did it go? 

Four students delivered MOTs to 16 participants, aged 21 to 56 (average age 33.8), with an even split of eight men and eight women. 

• 7 out of the 16 participants were signposted to their GP / pharmacy for a blood pressure review and / or offered weight-management resources. 

• 4 out of the 16 participants were offered weight-management resources only. 

• 5 out of the 16 participants required no intervention. 

Reflections: 

Running our Wellbeing MOT clinics highlighted the real value of bringing health promotion into community settings. Students were able to offer practical health checks, supportive conversations and appropriate signposting, while members of the public benefited from accessible, friendly health advice and provided very positive feedback about their experience. For our students, the clinics fostered a strong sense of achievement, as they were able to contribute to health promotion within their local community. It was especially encouraging to see their confidence grow as they translated their learning into practice.
Dr Emer Kennedy, Clinical Teaching Fellow at Newcastle University School of Medicine

Jack Liddle, HE / FE Partnership & Student Learning Manager at Rise, said, “We were delighted to work in partnership with Newcastle University and Leisure United to give students a new opportunity to gain valuable hands-on experience, delivering practical medical assessments and advice to members of the public. 

This offer, combined with students’ prior engagement with the Physical Activity Clinical Champions training and subsequent shadowing opportunities, demonstrates a strong collaborative approach to developing students as future citizen-clinicians, who take a more holistic approach to medicine through addressing broader cultural and socioeconomic factors that drive ill health within local populations. 

Feedback about the Wellbeing MOT’s from students, staff and members of the public who took part was very positive and we’d like to thank the students, Newcastle University and Leisure United for making this possible.”