Craig Palmer
Craig Palmer, who works as a wheelchair therapy technician for Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust, established community interest company CraigSailing after friends at Lancing Sailing Club helped him recover from a depression – triggered by an H1N1 swine flu infection – which left him in a coma and almost claimed his life.
The 55-year-old, who lost his manufacturing business and had to learn to walk again following three months in Worthing Hospital, hopes sharing his love of sailing will now help others having problems with their mental health to rebuild their lives.
“My aim is to give them an opportunity to break out of their bubble,” said Craig, who discovered his talent for sailing as a 16-year-old schoolboy in his native Zimbabwe.
The latest Covid-19 vaccination facility opened at Westgate Leisure Centre yesterday. The service is by appointment only and is run by Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT). Residents who are eligible for a vaccination, and who live within a 60 mile radius of Westgate Leisure Centre, are being written to directly by the NHS and invited to book an appointment through the national booking system, either online or by calling 119. It is the fifth vaccination centre opened by the trust since the start of the year. The other services are at Crawley Hospital, the Brighton Centre, The Welcome Building in Eastbourne and Etchingham Village Hall, which is run in partnership with local GPs.
She said: It was confirmed on the phone I was eligible and I should keep my booking. But on Saturday morning at least 12 nursery workers I know were turned away by staff at the Brighton Centre and told the information which had led them all to make the booking was false. This is outrageous.
NHS staff queuing for the Covid vaccine outside Sussex House in Kemp Town last month These girls came with letters from their employers and their ID in hand, after being reassured they had been added to the list. There has been similar stories in other parts of the country.
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