Funding for the next two years was provided by Guy’s & St Thomas Charity Foundation, associated with Guy’s and St. Thomas’ public hospitals which serve the Portuguese community residing in the south of the British capital, particularly in Lambeth.
The Lambeth Portuguese Community Wellbeing Society Partnership (LPCWSP) was formed following a project initiated by British GP, Vikesh Sharma after he launched an activity at a health centre near Stockwell, a neighbourhood known as ‘Little Portugal’.
More than 30,000 Portuguese live in the area, mostly immigrants who arrived in the 1970’s and 1980’s from mainland Portugal and the island of Madeira, many without qualifications and who have difficulty communicating in English.
These linguistic and cultural barriers can end up discouraging the use of British health services, and aggravating problems such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
In 2015 Vikesh Sharma, together with Portuguese national, Cristiano Figueiredo, started translating leaflets and getting closer to the Portuguese community and the project kept developing from there.
The aim is to inform the Portuguese community about the different British health services and how they work in a bid to aid problems such as alcoholism, mental health, isolation or domestic violence.
Last November, the LPCWSP hosted a special event in Stockwell where health professionals, cultural associations and representatives from both official and non-governmental organisations were present to promote good health practices.
Some 360 people took part in the event, which simultaneously celebrated São Martinho (Saint Martin’s Day). Among these were the organisations Respeito, Native Scientist, Luso Academy, the Portuguese consulate general in London, the Portuguese Sports and Cultural Canter and the Metropolitan Police.
Dr. Vikesh Sharma said the money made available by the Guy’s Foundation & St Thomas Charity will allow the “work and vision” developed over the last two years “to be deepened.”
“We believe that in order to truly empower individuals, to improve their well-being and to prevent them from getting sick, we have to create a new way of providing holistic care, which involves specialists from all walks of life - health, education, housing, voluntary organisations, etc”, he told Lusa News Agency.
The important thing, he added, is that the Portuguese community is involved, so the LPCWSP wants more partnerships with other Portuguese-speaking organisations.
“We hope to provide a new sustainable space to the community where people can find well-being”, said Sharma.
The Guy’s Foundation and St Thomas Charity, whose main goal is to improve the health of residents of the Lambeth and Southwark areas, says their backing falls under a recently launched strategy to better understand the causes of health problems such as obesity to identify possible solutions.
“We are focused on addressing some of the more complex health problems that affect people living in diverse, disadvantaged urban communities”, Programme Director Michael Wright, told Lusa.
He added that supporting LPCWSP can help them better understand the Portuguese community, their specific needs and understand the best ways to help them.
“Over time, we hope that by working in partnership with the community, we can begin to improve the health of people living with various chronic diseases and then share what we have learned with others”, he concluded.