The Health News – 16 August 2016

Overview:
• This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan on August 18, 1966 — the day chosen to commemorate Vietnam Veterans Day. More than five decades on, the first study of its type in Australia is using group drumming by PhD candidate James Richmond to assist veterans to live with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

• The University of Queensland found cockroach and ant baits accounted for 39 per cent of the calls from parents with children under five after analysing calls made to the Queensland Poisons Information Centre in 2014. The research, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health on Monday, showed exposure to bug sprays via direct application, typically by the child or an older sibling, peaked in children aged two.

• One of the findings of a study conducted by James Cook University’s Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine in conjunction with the Bureau of Health and the Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity is that a quarter of chronically ill Australians are skipping treatment because of the cost.

News on Health Professional Radio. Today is the  16th of August 2016. Read by Rebecca Foster. Health News

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-15/drumming-program-helping-vietnam-veterans-with-ptsd/7718226

A groundbreaking study in suburban Melbourne is using simple drum beats to help Vietnam veterans heal the emotional scars of combat.

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan on August 18, 1966 — the day chosen to commemorate Vietnam Veterans Day.

More than 500 Australians were killed and more than 3,000 wounded in the ultimately unsuccessful battle to stop communist forces from capturing South Vietnam.

Many veterans turned to alcohol to cope with the psychological damage caused by one of Australia’s longest-running wars.

More than five decades on, the first study of its type in Australia is using group drumming to assist veterans to live with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

PhD candidate James Richmond started a drumming group at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital in Melbourne’s north-east late last year.

He said he had observed a “statistically significant improvement” in the participants’ psychological wellbeing.

Mr Richmond said part of the success of the program was down to the strong bonds formed between participants.

Two other drumming groups have since been formed and include emergency service workers.

The study’s final results will be used to lobby for ongoing funding for drumming programs.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-15/household-pesticides-pose-exposure-risk-for-small-children/7734754

Cockroach and ant baits pose the biggest poison exposure risk to small children, a new study has found.

The University of Queensland made the discovery after analysing calls made to the Queensland Poisons Information Centre in 2014.

The research found cockroach and ant baits accounted for 39 per cent of the calls from parents with children under five.

Bug sprays, … accounted for almost 26 per cent of calls.

The research, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health on Monday, showed exposure to bug sprays via direct application, typically by the child or an older sibling, peaked in children aged two.

It also found of the 743 insecticide-related calls received, 49 per cent were for children under five, with calls peaking for children aged one.

“They’re at that stage where they spend a lot of the time on the floor and put things in their mouth,” researcher Karin English said.

“We tried to calculate some comparative rates, so in children aged one, there were about 223 calls per 1,000 children.”

Ms English said the findings showed how prevalent insecticides were in homes.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-12/healthcares-high-cost-sees-ill-patients-skip-treatment/7727884

A quarter of chronically ill Australians are skipping treatment because of the cost.

That is one of the findings of a study conducted by James Cook University’s Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, in conjunction with the Bureau of Health and the Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity.

The study found the situation was particularly bad for those suffering mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, with 44 per cent of those patients skipping care.

Of those with asthma and emphysema, a third could not afford the treatment they needed, the study found.

Researcher Emily Callander said the concern was that many people missing treatments were seriously ill.

She said a lot of research has been done on the rising cost of healthcare but little has been done regarding the out-of-pocket costs for patients.

Dr Callander said this study was the first time comparisons had been made between people with and without certain health conditions across the whole of Australia.