Author: healthprofessionalradio

Overview:

• The city’s first and only stand-up paddleboard (SUP) yoga classes have wrapped up after the first season and instructor Jo Flynn says the possibility of taking a plunge just made it all the more rewarding for her students. SUP yoga is exactly as it sounds — yoga classes held atop paddleboards on a body of water.

• The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has denied a terminally ill mother help to keep communicating with her family. Dr Harley, who is on the NSW Motor Neurone Disease Association board, said her impression of what [the NDIS planner] was saying is that the disease is likely to progress rapidly and therefore it’s not worth spending the money. Dr Harley is expected to appeal against the decision.

• The Diabetes Research WA funded study found children diagnosed with T1D had an elevated risk of end-stage kidney disease and stroke compared to the general population. The research team, led by Telethon Kids Institute PhD student Matthew Cooper, analysed the health records of more than 1,300 West Australians diagnosed with T1D as children. Diabetes Research WA executive director Sherl Westlund said this type of research had the potential to improve the lives of those living with T1D.

Overview:

• The Government will provide funding for 26 new regional training hubs, to be coordinated by existing universities around the country. Assistant Health Minister David Gillespie said the move would help stem the flow of medical professionals headed to capital cities to finish their postgraduate training.

• Melbourne tech start-up Phoria is working with the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and Melbourne Zoo to design a VR experience for kids in hospital. The trial is tapping into the benefits of animal-assisted therapy by delivering a virtual excursion to the zoo for 80 patients at The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne.

• For the first time, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has investigated people under the age of 25 to find health problems linked to having a high Body Mass Index (BMI). AIHW spokesperson Lynelle Moon said children and teens were 35 per cent more likely to have asthma if they were obese or overweight.

Overview:

• The Australian Government recommends everyone from six months old be vaccinated. All brands of flu vaccine available in Australia are safe; researchers are continuing to monitor for any side-effects week-by-week using SMS feedback from people who have been recently vaccinated.

• The report by Sonia Allan found decades of recommendations to formally collate and store information about donors, donor-conceived people and recipient parents had been effectively ignored by state governments. Dr Allan said during her review she spoke with people in South Australia worried about medical histories or even forming relationships with people they may be related to.

• The initiative to wind back excess salt consumption in Fiji and Samoa is being funded by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Centre and was assessed at a four-day meeting by scientists from the George Institute and Deakin University as well as collaborators from local health organisations.