People consuming information.

5 Tips On Curating A Healthy Information Diet

The advent of social media has increased our consumption of information over the years. According to Cybercrew on average people in the UK spend 7 months of their lifetime on Facebook. An average person in the UK spends 110 minutes per day on social media and 169 minutes on TV per day. This has been exacerbated by the advent of many social media platforms that share information constantly. Internet penetration has also played a role in ensuring that information is easily accessible to many of us. This has been good because we have become a generation of the enlightened. However, the new era has also come with its cons. According to The Telegraph, on a daily basis, one is bombarded with information equivalent to 174 newspapers. This by any standard is too much information per person and it sometimes makes it difficult to sift through the information and find what is relevant and what is spam. This has paused a problem for people who will then spend hours scrolling on the internet, looking for information that’s relevant to them. This has led to people spending hours and hours on the internet, for example, in America, people consume 34 GB of information per. day. Too much of anything is harmful to any system and in some cases, people have been forced to go on information diets.

By definition, an information diet is restricting the information you consume per given period in order to not fall prey to the dangers of consuming too much information. Just like eating clean to improve your physical wellbeing, one needs to ensure that the information they are consuming is not affecting their mental health. Bearing in mind, one needs an information diet because too much information could cause confusion, anxiety and affect one’s productiveness among other things.

In case, like the majority of us, you are wondering if you need to have an information diet, you need an information diet if you are experiencing any one of the following:

  • You often spend over 3 hours per day scrolling on the internet or browsing social media
  • You get anxious when you read or watch some things or certain content on the internet
  • You are addicted to a certain social media platform you cant spend 30 minutes without logging into it.
  • You spend most of your productive time on the internet not doing anything productive or income generating or educational.
  • Your use of the internet is affecting your productivity
  • You cant finish your daily tasks because of the internet.
  • The internet is limiting your physical social time with other people

5 Tips on How To Curate A Healthy Information Diet

In case, you have acknowledged you need a digital detox and thereafter a healthy information diet. These 5 tips will help organise the information you consume and set you up on a path to a healthy information diet.

  1. Find an application that times the time you spend on each app on your phone or PC, check the apps you spend the most time on, make a decision to cut that time in half at first until you reach a point where you only check that app 10% of the time you used to use the same app.
  2. Do a complete digital detox on regular intervals. Unplug yourself partially or completely from all electronic devices during that digital detox time
  3. Find other hobbies that do not include the use of tech gadgets like TVs and other electronic devices.
  4. Identify social media plaforms that are counter productive to you and practise staying away from them for a month till you can log into them once a week.
  5. Decide the media players that will inform you on the things you are passionate about, or things important to you subscribe to them and ignore the rest on many occassions unless its imperative that you check them and you will not be baited to keep scrolling once you open them.

Widwife attedning to an expactant mother

3 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Being A Midwife In The UK

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic prompted the UK government to recruit more medical professionals, a lot of interest in proficient medical professions in the UK has been generated. Many are wondering I’m sure how one can become a midwife in the UK, and some might be wondering what a midwife is. By definition, a midwife is a professional who provides care, support and in some instances advice to expecting mothers during their pregnancy and during labour and during the postnatal period and is responsible for the health of the baby and the mother during the baby’s infancy.

How does one become a midwife in the UK, you may be wondering, according to the UK government you need to have a midwife qualification obtained through studying part-time or full time at a credible university. One can go to University and study midwifery or practising nurses can take part-time courses and become qualified midwives. One needs to be registered with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) to practice as a midwife in the UK.

3 Things You Should Know About Being A Midwife In The UK

  1. All midwives in the UK have to renew their membership with the NMC every three years and in those three years, they should have 350 practice hours, 35 hours of continuing professional development (CPD), reflective discussion, practice-related feedback and professional indemnity arrangement.

2. Midwives can specialise and become clinical specialists in any of the following fields:

  • Home birthing
  • Antenatal screening
  • Public health and parenting education
  • labour ward supervision
  • breastfeeding advisory
  • Intensive care neonatal
  • Foetal and Ultrasound medicine

3. Practicing midwives can also become consultant midwives, they can divide their time between training and championing development in their practice and working with patients. Alternatively, midwives can go full time into training and or research with healthcare facilities and or universities.

Midwives from outside the UK who want to go and work in the UK must apply for the Health and Care Worker VISA if they meet the requirements stipulated by the UK government.

More: Prospects

Health And Care Worker VISA

FAQ – How To Obtain UK Health And Care Worker VISA

Over the last few months, you have probably heard about the UK Health And Care Worker VISA, you probably know someone that left an African country to go and work in the UK. How did they do it, most Zimbabweans have been asking, this article will answer the most frequently asked questions about how one can obtain a UK Health And Care Worker VISA.

What Is A Health And Care Worker VISA? It is a VISA that enables medical professionals to go and work in the UK for the National Health Services (NHS), or an NHS supplier or in adult social care if they are eligible.

Who Can Apply For The Health And Care Worker VISA? Qualified doctors, nurses, health professionals, adult social care professionals
who work in eligible health or social care jobs. These include, but not limited to:

  • Podiatrists,
  • Dental Practitioners,
  • Medical Practitioners,
  • Psychologists,
  • Pharmacists,
  • Biochemists,
  • Health Services and Public Health Managers and Directors,
  • Residential Care Managers and Proprietors,
  • Day and Domiciliary Care Managers and Proprietors
  • Nurses
  • Midwives
  • Laboratory Technicians
  • Paramedics
  • Opticians
  • Social Workers.
  • Occupational Therapists
  • Speech and Language Therapists
  • Pharmaceutical technicians
  • Nursing Assistants/Nurse Aides
  • Dental Nurses
  • Senior Care Workers
  • Medical and Dental Technicians

Do I Just Apply For A VISA If I am An Eligible Health And Care Work Professional? No, you first have to check if your occupation falls under eligible occupations according to the UK Government requirements. Then you will need to look for a job either at the NHS or an organisation providing medical services to the NHS or an organisation providing adult social care. When you receive a job offer then you can apply for the Health And Care Worker VISA.

How Do I Apply For Eligible Jobs In The UK When I’m In Zimbabwe or Any Other Commonwealth Country? Find An Agency That Specialises In medical professional placements in the UK and retain their services for them to look for a job on your behalf.

After I Have Found A Job And Have Obtained An Offer Letter What Do I Do Next? You then apply online for the Health And Care Work VISA

What Documents Does One Need To Apply For The Health And Care Work VISA?

  • A certificate of sponsorship reference number from your employer
  • English Proficiency proof
  • A valid passport
  • Your job title and annual salary given by the prospective employer
  • Your job’s occupation code
  • Name and sponsor license number of your employer and their sponsor licence number
  • Other documents like criminal record certificates, bank statements, marriage certificates and children’s birth certificates may be required depending on the circumstances of your application.

Do I Have To Write A Knowledge Of English Test? YES If you do not have a degree qualification that was taught in English, and NO If you can prove that your degree qualification was taught in English.

What English Proficiency or English Knowledge Test Do I Have To Take? You will need to take a Secure English Language Test (SELT) to test your writing, listening, speaking and reading abilities. The test is usually provided by an approved provider. These include:

  • LanguageCert
  • Pearson
  • PSI Services (UK) Ltd
  • IELTS SELT Consortium

How About My Partner And Children Can They Get VISAs too if I’m moving to the UK? Yes, if they are eligible they will be able to obtain VISAs to stay in the UK for the duration of your stay in the UK.

How Long Will I Be Able To Stay In The UK? Your Health And Care Worker VISA will be valid for 5 years, after that you can either extend it or apply for another VISA.

Source: UK Government