Health Minister, Robin Swann, recently launched a new bereavement support website for Northern Ireland.  Bereaved NI can be accessed at https://bereaved.hscni.net  It provides a range of accessible resources for people who are experiencing bereavement, to ensure that they have the required information and support for each stage of their bereavement journey.  The website includes: information relating to palliative care, pregnancy and baby loss; resources for children and young people; information for people who have been bereaved by suicide and those who have suffered a sudden or traumatic loss; and practical support including financial and legal advice.

The benefits of regular physical activity, at moderate to vigorous levels, for our overall health are immense.  It improves our heart health, reduces the risk of developing cancer and chronic diseases such a type-2 diabetes, as well as improves our mood and sleep.  The Health Service Executive and Department of Health in the Republic of Ireland have recently launched their new Every Move Counts - National Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines.  Find out more at: https://tinyurl.com/mr29p8cs

In the latest HSE 'Talking Health and Wellbeing' Podcast, Seán Cooke - from the Men's Development Network - discusses the organisation's initiatives to improve men's health and wellbeing.  Listen in at: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-f22aw-15e1103

Men’s mental health problems are clear.  Globally, the rate of suicide in men is more than twice as high as in women.  Men consume nearly four times more pure alcohol per capita than women.  Many men attach stigma to mental health issues and often do not seek help.  Men may also ‘externalise’ their distress through behaviour that is anti-social or aggressive.  Yet, at the same time, common mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, often remain under-diagnosed and under-treated in men.  Global Action on Men’s Health has just released a report titled 'Absent Minded' which examines the treatment of men in mental health policy worldwide.  See the report and the launch video at: https://gamh.org/absent-minded

New research, ‘Use of Pornography by Young Adults in Ireland’, published in March 2024 by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), has found that online pornography use in Ireland is highly gendered - with 64% of young men and 13% of young women reporting use.  Read the report at: https://tinyurl.com/mw2hezdy

Peninsula Healthy Living Partnership, in collaboration with Rural Support and with some funding from Ards and North Down Borough Council, have been working with a group of retired farmers (the 'Plough On' group) to help grow and then supply fresh fruit and vegetables from their polytunnels and raised beds to those in need in the local community via a new community fridge initiative.  This project has been an incredible success, and has followed the 'Take 5' mantra to help those involved to Connect, Learn, Give, Take Notice and Be Active.  Contact Peninsula Healthy Living via their website at: www.peninsulahealthyliving.org

Co. Down Rural Community Network recently partnered with the Irish Men's Sheds Association to deliver a Shared Island project.  It involved over 100 men, from 29 different Men's Sheds, in cross-border visits - where they met other Shedders and exchanged information, new ideas and knowledge.  The project culminated in a conference-style networking event.  Find out more on this video: https://youtu.be/uKntWL5AE3k

While there have been calls over the last 15 years for the inclusion of training in gender-based medicine in medical school curricula, and to sustain such improvements through a more gender responsive health system, little progress has been made.  The aim of this study was to obtain Australian medical student perspectives on the extent to which men’s health and gender-based medicine education is delivered in their curricula, their preparedness for engaging with men in clinical practice, and the men’s health content they would have found useful during their training.  Find out more at: https://tinyurl.com/mrxwh9tn