The Health News Australia February 22 2018

• Police say a mental health patient who died after being tasered by officers in Sydney’s inner-west on Sunday afternoon violently resisted officers earlier in the day. A critical investigation is underway into the death of the 30-year-old man at Camperdown.
  Police have confirmed they arrested the man earlier that day after he was seen disorientated and running into traffic in Glebe. The police says that the man was approached, he resisted and tried to run away, and a violent confrontation between him and officers continued.
• A trial has shown remission from chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) is possible without additional treatment following therapy using a drug called nilotinib. Australian medical researchers have made a breakthrough in the treatment of a chronic form of leukaemia they hope will improve the quality of life for many people living with the disease.
• One in five school principals is overwhelmed by workplace stress, a survey has found, with an expert saying the results point to a “looming crisis”. Results from the Principal Health and Wellbeing Survey 2017 revealed almost half of respondents had faced threats of violence at work, and 1 in 3 had experienced actual violence. The figures were the highest since the national study began 7 years ago. Just recently the Victorian Government have announced it will roll out a program of free health checks for school principals.
  

News on Health Professional Radio. Today is the 22nd of February 2018. Read by Tabetha Moreto.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-19/man-killed-in-police-incident-resisted-arrest/9461422

Police say a mental health patient who died after being tasered by officers in Sydney’s inner-west on Sunday afternoon violently resisted officers earlier in the day. A critical investigation is underway into the death of the thirty-year-old man at Camperdown.

Police have confirmed they arrested the man earlier that day after he was seen disorientated and running into traffic in Glebe. The police says that the man was approached, he resisted and tried to run away, and a violent confrontation between him and officers continued. He was sedated and physically restrained and taken to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital under the Mental Health Act, but later escaped. Assistant Commissioner Mark Walton said police had to use capsicum spray and a taser, with up to six officers needed to arrest him the second time. Again, he was non-compliant and aggressive, Assistant Commissioner Walton said.
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Police said the man lost consciousness and stopped breathing shortly after being handcuffed, and attempts to revive him were unsuccessful.
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A spokesperson for the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital said in a statement the man was initially cooperative with medical staff, but became agitated before fleeing the hospital. The spokesperson said added:”Despite verbal de-escalation attempts by security, nursing and medical staff, they were unable to prevent him from leaving the hospital.”
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Police have not said how many times the man was tasered. Police were not wearing body cameras, but in New South Wales the tasers issued are equipped with cameras. A critical investigation team from the homicide squad will report on the circumstances surrounding the incident.

https://healthtimes.com.au/hub/oncology/4/news/aap/a-leukaemia-trial-offers-drugfree-remission/3190/

A trial has shown remission from chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) is possible without additional treatment following therapy using a drug called nilotinib. Australian medical researchers have made a breakthrough in the treatment of a chronic form of leukaemia they hope will improve the quality of life for many people living with the disease.

A Phase two clinical trial, published in journal Annals of Internal Medicine, has shown treatment-free remission was achievable in patients with CML who were treated with a “potent” new drug called nilotinib.

The trial’s lead investigator, Professor Tim Hughes of the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, says the results will have an impact on the way doctors treat the disease.

Professor Hughes says that drugs known as tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), which target the enzyme causing the leukaemia, have dramatically improved outcomes for patients with CML, however the majority (eighty percent) must remain on medication for life even when clinically in remission.  This causes many side-effects and impacts greatly on their health.
The most common side-effects include severe fatigue, severe muscle pain and cramps, and gastrointestinal problems such as diarrhoea and vomiting.
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For the trial, researchers studied one hundred sixty three patients who had achieved a sustained deep molecular response (DMR) after switching from drug imatinib to the newer, more potent TKI nilotinib. Deep molecular response is the the goal of therapy and often predicts if a patient can achieve treatment-free remission. According to the results, of the trial participants to achieve DMR, fifty two percent were able to maintain treatment-free remission at two years and thirty eight percent at five years.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-21/principals-overwhelmed-by-workplace-stress-acu-survey-finds/9468078

One in five school principals is overwhelmed by workplace stress, a survey has found, with an expert saying the results point to a “looming crisis”. Results from the Principal Health and Wellbeing Survey two thousand seventeen revealed almost half of respondents had faced threats of violence at work, and one in three had experienced actual violence. The figures were the highest since the national study began seven years ago.

Just under two thousand eight hundred principals, deputies and assistant principals from across the country took part in the latest survey, which was conducted by academics from the Australian Catholic University (ACU) and supported by school associations and teachers’ health unions. School heads from all sectors were represented. The survey found more than half of all principals worked more than fifty six hours a week, and twenty seven per cent worked up to sixty five hours every week.

Principals reported higher levels of burnout than the general population, twice as much difficulty sleeping as a result of stress and were at higher risk of depression. While job satisfaction was generally high, teachers across all sectors said they did not feel supported by their employers.
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Just recently the Victorian Government have announced it will roll out a program of free health checks for school principals.