click
HERE to
visit the Cardiac Surgery Unit at the Royal Childrens Hospital SUNDAY
22nd DECEMBER 2002
remember on Christmas Day there may be a family member at your place who is trying to deal with this
…will you have the right words ?
In
the last week year 12 students round the country received their results. The
papers were full of glowing results and beaming young people and families.
Schools jockeyed for position heaping praise on their successful graduates.
And yes, it is marvellous and I would like to take this opportunity to
congratulate all those young people who are happy with their year 12 results but
I would also like to congratulate all those who tried and maybe didn’t quite
receive the results they wanted or expected. You are not a failure.
I
can still remember the elation when I got my results albeit over 25 years ago.
Parents and relatives proudly relaying the message, and the buzz amongst friends
all phoning and congratulating each other. I recall not quite knowing how to
handle the friends who didn’t do so well ……do you ring them? But then what
do you say? I wish I had rung them.
These
days I cringe a little when I see the way year 12 results are reported in the
media. Again while I believe the successful young people deserve every praise, I
wish we could temper the publicity with some stories about careers that DON’T
require academic prowess, or people who have taken circuitous but successful
routes to eventually enter their chosen career.
Why
cant we praise people for simply doing their best, and encourage them to
understand that while the year 12 results may be a tertiary entrance requirement
for school leavers, it isn’t the only means to a life.
I
know of several families where the young people passed their exams but failed to
make the grade for their chosen tertiary course. I have heard tell of young
people where one or even both parents have looked at the results and then left
the room saying very little.
For
many families the dynamics of the household changes when there is a year 12
student in the house. The whole year is geared towards it and
the stress is felt by everyone. So it is not surprising that parents may
react with utter disappointment if the results are not up to expectation. But
what ever disappointment they may feel would pale into insignificance compared
with that of the young person. Indeed a reaction like that from a parent would
compound the young persons feelings of failure.
So
how do families and friends deal with year 12 results not up to expectation –
especially with most families getting together for Christmas celebrations this
week you’ll need to be geared up. What you do or say to that young person on
Christmas day could make an enormous difference in their life.
It’s a fine line to walk between reassuring then that there is a life beyond year 12 and seeming patronising …….so to help us know just the right things to say Dr Michael Carr Gregg , our adolescent expert will be joining me in the studio today with some words of wisdom
In
early November I interviewed Dr Christian Brizard the director of Cardiac
Surgery at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. He had just completed
marathon 7 hours operation on tiny Nathan Garcia who was not even 2 weeks old
.Nathan was born 5 weeks premature in Perth on November 3 this year with a heart
problem. The left side of his heart had not formed properly – a condition
called “hypoplastic left heart “. Without corrective surgery this condition
is not compatible with life.
The
West Australian government funded a mercy flight from Perth to Melbourne for
Nathan to have his lifesaving operation.
Dr
Brizard and Nathan’s parents will join us today on the program with an update
on Nathan’s progress
Cardiac
Surgical Unit at the Royal Children’s hospital in Melbourne is the largest
paediatric cardiac centre in Australia. They provide comprehensive cardiac
surgical services for patients from every state of Australia. They also receive
patients from Hong Kong, SE Asia, Mauritius, the Pacific Islands, and elsewhere.
They have a large experience with nearly every type of cardiac surgery including complex congenital abnormalities and transplantation for neonates, infants, children, and young adults. They currently perform 700 operations per annum.
click
HERE to
visit the Cardiac Surgery Unit at the Royal Childrens Hospital
Click HERE to visit a beautiful support group site for families of children who have Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
Yachtsman, Author and Yachting journalist
SYDNEY TO HOBART YACHT RACE PREVIEW
Last
week I interviewed David Key the Police air-wing officer who was one of those
involved in the rescue operation during the storm of the 1998 Sydney to Hobart
Yacht Race. David referred to the fabulous account of events recorded in the
book FATAL STORM by leading
Australian yachting journalist, Rob Mundle. Rob wrote Fatal Storm in 16 weeks! it’s a must read for any one with
salt in their veins.
Rob
has covered the Sydney Hobart yacht race for over 30 years and is TVs yachting
expert His work has been published worldwide in monthly magazines, daily
newspapers, and weekly newsletters, and he continues to be one of the leading
authorities on events and trends in sailing in Austral-Asia.
Rob
has just published another yachting book – Ocean Warriors - the story of
the 2001-2 Volvo Ocean Race Around The Globe. Sure to be another bestseller.
This Thursday, Boxing Day, the 2003 Sydney Hobart Yacht Race will commence in Sydney Harbour headed for Hobart. Rob Mundle will join us on the phone for a preview of this years Sydney Hobart yacht Race.
Click
HERE and HERE
to find out more about the Sydney to Hobart Yacht race
Click
HERE
to find out more about or buy Ocean
Warriors
Click
HERE
to find out more or buy about Fatal Storm
Click
HERE to read
more about Rob Mundle
click
HERE to visit the
Volvo 2001-2 Ocean Race site
Click
HERE to
visit Equipped.com - a website that has compiled a huge amount of info on the 1998
Sydney Hobart Race
On July 9 this year an article was published in a prestigious medical journal. The article told how a part of a large prospective research study looking into whether hormone replacement therapy might protect women against heart disease was being prematurely halted due to unexpected events. The unexpected events were almost opposite to what the study had hoped to show. The number of heart attacks being suffered by women in the treatment group was more than that in the placebo group. It would be unethical to continue the study knowing these figures. So this part of the study was aborted.
Other early results were indicating that there could also be an increase in the number of cases of breast cancer being diagnosed amongst the treatment group – the figure being for every 10,000 women there were an extra 8 cases.
On the other hand the study was indicating a decrease in the number of cases of bowel cancer and a decrease in the number of fractures ( often fractures in post menopausal women are due to osteoporosis) amongst the treatment group – the magnitude of the decrease was of a similar order to the opposite affect on breast cancer cases.
The world media had a feeding frenzy – with huge headlines that seemed to be directing women to throw away their hormones or die. Consequently millions of women followed what some say was knee jerk advice. Who’s advice was this anyway? Were there any provisos? Did it apply to all women on HRT?
So now nearly 6 months down the track what is happening? My understanding is as follows -
* HRT is not generally recommended for long term use and has no benefit in reducing heart disease ( the study referred to above would indicate that it actually could increase risk of heart attack)
* HRT can be beneficial to women in the short term for symptom relief (Jean Hailes Experts are advising up to 5 years on the medication is acceptable in most women without other risk factors).
If my practice is any example just this week on Thursday 3 women came in to see me independently of each other and all said the same thing.
That they went off their HRT in July and now cant cope with the symptoms that have returned. They each told me that they had tried natural options, some said they had some brief relief from those but this had not been sustained. They thought about the risks and weighed up their options and declared that they wanted to go back on the medication again.
Interestingly all three also said that they had realised something else – They had been bombarded with suggestions about the natural options – but it had dawned on them that “where were the safety studies on these medications” After all they may be natural but they are still chemical compounds that are affecting your body ………..
It’s a tough call about HRT and giving advice. But, I believe that every woman needs to think about her options and get as much information as possible. She needs to weigh the risks and benefits as they are known today (and many yet to be finalised ). She should not be pushed into making a decision that she is not comfortable with and moreover not made to feel guilty either way when she does decide.
Also , and may be most importantly the decision does not need to be permanent – she may wish to change her mind again.
The
hardest part is wading through the politically and medico-legally correct
rhetoric to get to the truth. Especially when the truth is time dependant and
seems to change ………..
I don’t know the definitive answer. But then I don’t think anyone else does either – So we can only go on the knowledge we have to date.
So today Dr Elizabeth Farrell well respected Gynaecologist and Menopause expert from Jean Hailes Foundation as well as Author of the best selling ( currently out of print ) The HRT HANDBOOK will join me for a discussion of where we are at with our knowledge of HRT.
Click
HERE to visit the Jean Hailes
Foundation
CAROLS
BY CANDLE LIGHT
Around the world Christmas spirit is everywhere and it wouldn’t be the same without traditional carols. Across the country local communities are getting together in parks and halls to celebrate a time that is all about peace and families. A message beyond any religious affiliations - that we all hope might get through to the worlds decision makers
This
Tuesday, Christmas Eve, wouldn’t seem complete without Ray
Martin and Carols by Candlelight on the tele.
Broadcast nationally from the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne on the
Nine Network “Carols” is an Australian tradition that showcases so many of
our wonderful Australian entertainers. Ray will join us for a preview of the
star studded cast as well as the
local choirs and groups who work so hard each year for this event., which is in
support of the Royal Victorian Institute for the Blind.
click HERE to visit the Carols by Candlelight Website
Haemochromatosis
is an inherited condition affecting about 1 in 300 Australians, where the body
cannot deal with iron properly. Too much iron is absorbed from foods, even when
diet is normal, and disposal of the excessive amounts of iron is hampered.
To
have the condition you would need to inherit two genes – one from each parent.
If you inherit one gene you wont get the condition but you could pass the
carrier state to your offspring. Or if your partner also carries the gene your
children could develop the condition.
The
symptoms of iron overload may start to be occur when the affected person is in
their 20’s. But sometimes people have no symptoms for a long time. A simple
series of blood tests can identify people at risk if they have a family history
of the condition.
Treatment
consists of regular removal of some blood (venesection). The procedure is just
like donating blood .
Not
everyone who has the condition is affected the same way – some only ever have
mild problems but others can have major organ damage if they remain undiagnosed
and untreated. This is because they accumulate too much iron in their tissues.
The iron tends to be taken up by some tissues more than others and its presence
in excessive amounts can damage and cause problems with the proper functioning
of those tissues and organs.
For
example -
The
Liver – untreated long standing
accumulation can damage the liver and may even result in cirrhosis or cancer
The
Joints – accumulation may result in pain and
damage to the joint surface
The
Pancreas – accumulation may
damage this organ and the result can
be diabetes
The
Skin - causing a bronze
discolouration of the skin
This
condition was also known as “bronze diabetes” because of the two major
organs involved. 
Professor Lawrie Powell retired as Director of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) in March 2000 after 10 years of service . He is a recognised international authority on liver diseases and has published over 230 medical articles. In 1997 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Canadian Liver Foundation "for outstanding lifetime contribution to Hepatology". On Australia Day 2000 he was one of 15 Queenslanders awarded the Premier's Millennium Awards for Excellence.
Professor Powell is a member
of the medical advisory board of the Haemochromatosis Society of Australia –
he will join us to explain more about the condition and his research
We
will also meet Margaret Rankin, the founder
and President of
Haemochromatosis Society of Australia
Click HERE to visit the Haemochromatosis Society of Australia web site - there is extremely good information about the condition on this website.
Click
HERE to
visit the Iron Metabolism Lab at the QIMR
PODIATRY
LIVING WITH DIFFICULT FEET
A couple of weeks ago we met
Rock Osler the podiatrist who with a couple of colleagues has opened a
specialised sports shoe shop where he assesses your running style and recommends
the best shoe.
What
about those of us who aren’t athlete’s BECAUSE we have difficult feet . Rick
will join me in the studio to take your calls about problem feet!
BEING ALONE DURING THE FESTIVE SEASON
I
have just noticed that everything I have said so far about Christmas and the
festive season is geared towards families. The trouble is that not all of us
have families and Christmas time can be a difficult season when there is no one
to share it with. Sure we might have friends – but they are all spending it
with THEIR families.
So
what can you do over the Christmas period when everything seems to close down if
you are on your own ? ( Don’t
forget we’ll still be here !
Talk back radio can be one option that might just help when there isn’t
anyone else for company)
Professor
Ian Hickie is the CEO Beyond Blue
and he’ll join us to discuss ways to deal with being on your own this holiday
season.
Click
HERE to visit the Beyond Blue
website
NATIONAL
ROAD TOLL CAMPAIGN
Every
year at this time there will be
families across the country that will lose a treasured member through road
trauma. Too many will suffer injuries and although we are responding to the
messages of safety we can never underscore the need for care on our roads
especially over a holiday period
Insp
Jim Carter will join us to explain how we might
all work together to reduce the National
Road Toll.
All of us at the program wish
you and those you love
a safe and healthy festive season
( see you next week for the recovery tips)