Nottingham Council of Mosques also provides support and information to new and emerging communities that don’t have established mosques such as Kurdish, Syrian and Turkish communities.
Muslims form approximately one-third of the UK BAME population. Muslims make up approximately 12% of the Nottingham population. The Muslim population of Nottingham is diverse and belongs to various ethnicities (including Pakistani, Arab, Black African, Indian and Bangladeshi).
The health team of NCM has been doing a health awareness program since its inception in collaboration with national bodies like British Islamic Medical Association (BIMA), NHSBT, Anthony Nolan Charity and also local bodies like Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.
NCM typically conducts health awareness program in a mosque setting, however, we also do events in collaboration with community radio stations (Radio Dawn and Radio Faza), local Muslim organisations and societies (An Nisa Network, Nottingham University Islamic Society). Almost all of these events are conducted by our volunteers free of cost to the community.
Nottingham Council of Mosques is in the final stages of organising workshops on training for End of Life care and discussion around advanced planning in the local mosques, community centres, health centre and radio stations in Nottingham. We aim to do these events in the coming 3 months.
We aim to provide training on end of life care and advanced planning on the website and our social media accounts.
We have decided to concentrate more on in-person events and uploading information on our website. We plan to distribute leaflets with basic information about these events soon.
We did more Lifesaver events in September 2022 at 6 mosques in Nottingham.
NCM conducted multiple events in Nottingham and Derby from July to August 2022 in collaboration with Anthony Nolan Trust and BIMA intending to increase the number of registrations on the bone marrow/stem cell register.
People from BAME backgrounds have got less than a 40% chance of finding the appropriate stem cell donor UK. This is because there are not enough donors from this group on the stem cell register. Thousands of people in the age group 16-30 years registered on the stem cell register in these 2 months.
Following are the pictures of the various events held in this regard.
NCM conducted a health awareness event `Healthy Ramadan` in collaboration with British Islamic Medical Association in Masjid Umar, Nottingham in March 2022. Dr Latif discussed the potential implications of chronic diseases like Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease on the people who opt to fast.
Chronic illnesses can get worse if fasting is not planned appropriately by discussing medication changes and adjusting dietary The event also focused on developing healthy habits, cutting down on smoking, doing more exercise and reducing weight. The event was also streamed live on the social media platform.
Dr Latif also covered the same topic in much more detail on 2 radio shows on the local community radio station, Radio Dawn Nottingham before and during the month of Ramadan.
NCM in collaboration with British Islamic Medical Association conducted a free Basic Life Support course for the general public in 3 mosques in September. The general public was taught basic life-saving skills.
The event was a major success with over 100 people attending in person. The event was run by trained healthcare professionals.
A summary of stakeholder insights into factors affecting the impact of COVID-19 on BAME communities published in June 2020 and other evidence identifies the disproportionate harmful impact of COVID-19 on BAME communities.
Our experience has shown that engaging with the Muslim community on health-related issues through a Muslim healthcare professional, scholars and chaplains achieves a better outcome. It could be due to the trust and respect they hold in the community. It could also be because they are getting the message in a faith and culturally sensitive manner.
We actively engaged with the vaccine-hesitant individuals in the Muslim community by dispelling myths about the flu and covid vaccines and increasing confidence by sharing the latest and most accurate information. We did this through the following means.
NCM council decided to engage closely with mosques at the advent of the first wave of COVID-19 and was instrumental in conveying messages by conducting awareness events for its members and the general public.
In the fast-evolving situation and in the midst of constantly changing government guidelines NCM acted as a reliable channel of communication for the local Muslim community guiding them through various issues affecting the community.
Shared below are some examples of our work during the COVID-19 pandemic which was done in a volunteer capacity.
