Summer 2013 ÂŁ2 Free to Members
Here to help Affiliated to the British Heart Foundation and Arrhythmia Alliance - The Heart Rhythm Charity
POOLE HEART SUPPORT GROUP MAGAZINE Poole Community Health Centre Shaftesbury Road, Poole BH15 2NT Telephone: 01202 683363 ext. 133 Telephone manned Mondays and Thursdays: 1:30-3:30pm Web site address: www.poolehsg.org.uk PRESIDENT: Dr. ANDREW MCLEOD V.Ps. Dr CHRISTOPHER BOOS MBBS Dip IMC RCS (Ed) MD FRCP RAMC : Dr. DIANE BRUCE MB Bsc.Hons FRCP : ROBERT PAYNE RGN, RHV, BSc Hons, PG Dip PGCE MAGGIE RICHARDSON : JIM WAINE : GEOFFREY WALKER OBE JP RGN,
PHSG COMMITTEE KEITH MATTHEWS DAVID ANDERSON RITA HOLMES GEORGE LLEWELLYN JAN MESHER JOHN OFFER DEREK POPE ROBIN PRINGLE ROGER RIDOUT DOREEN TOBITT GEORGE WILKINSON PAM BAILEY
Chairman Secretary Treasurer Monthly Meets Office Member Database Exercise Coord Purbeck Member Member BHF Rep.
keith@poolehsg.org.uk david@poolehsg.org.uk rita@poolehsg.org.uk geoll@poolehsg.org.uk jan@poolehsg.org.uk derek@poolehsg.org.uk robin@poolehsg.org.uk roger@poolehsg.org.uk doreen@poolehsg.org.uk
01202 855001 01202 697376 01202 743960 01202 605455 01202 250108 01202 386674 01202 889070 01202 884250 01929 423079 01202 670137 01202 740374 01202 574944
If you know a member who is ill, please tell us by contacting Mavis Terry, Welfare Support, on 01202 874760
OTHER CONTACTS JOHN DEFTY CYRIL MARTIN DAVID ANDERSON JIM WAINE GERRY WRIGHT
Chat Stops Walking Group Website Founder and VP Special events
david@poolehsg.org.uk jim@poolehsg.org.uk gerry@poolehsg.org.uk
01202 760350 01202 733956 01202 697376 01202 871532 01929 421864
Please send magazine articles and photos to: Editor, 10 Hill View Road, Ferndown, Dorset BH22 9QY or by e-mail to; editor@poolehsg.org.uk Tel. 01202 855001 Magazines are published 1st March, 1st June, 1st September and 1st December. Last date for articles to Editor is 10th day of month before publication.
Chairman’s Letter Membership has remained absolutely stable with 591 paid up subscriptions and with 286 partners registered, not forgetting the 45 honorary members and the 12 committee. We are now up to member number 2110. Most of our members come from referrals after rehab at Poole Hospital but we are acutely aware that many people could miss the benefits that we offer if they take an alternative care route. Accordingly, we are trying to embark on a campaign to recruit from doctors surgeries, and we also seek to appoint someone to the committee to take on some publicity for us. All of the management functions of the PHSG continue to run smoothly. The office functions, the hospital liaison meetings, the website, our social events, and our Almoner’s contacts with our members presents us as an efficient organisation and we are grateful for the work of all the volunteers. The work of the PHSG continues with our popular programme of gentle physical exercise classes, and the walking and cycling groups which cater for physical activity with different sections of our membership. Cyril Martin reports that 2013 has started with good attendance on the walks and he would like to offer his thanks to all his helpers. We note that we have a literally healthy number of regular exercisers across our various venues. The “step down” class continues and this year we have been able to start a class at a new venue in Hamworthy Fire Station. Thanks too to Pam and helpers for their hard work in providing tea and coffees, and George and Margaret Wilkinson for the raffles and George & Sandra Llewellyn for organising the club branded clothing. The Magazine continues to be published in colour and the paper quality improved. We still really need a full time editor, or perhaps another chairman so that the present one can concentrate on the Magazine. However, the articles from several regular contributors does make the task easier and quite enjoyable and this is essential. 2013 was PHSG’s 21st anniversary but we did not make too much emphasis on this. The year rounded off in March with our annual dinner at Bentley’s attended by one of our Vice Presidents, Dr Christopher Boos who addressed us in entertaining fashion. Our hospital rehab team and our trainers were out in force. In all 105 people enjoyed an excellent meal. Many people work voluntarily for PHSG, they all deserve a big round of thanks.
Keith 3
PHSG Magazine
Medicine and Cardiology News from Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Dear Friends, How the time flies by and here I am writing to you all again about the work and issues we are undertaking in cardiology and medicine at Poole. Firstly I would like to say a big thank you for the lovely article and kind remarks regarding my award of, ‘Nurse of the Year 2013’. It was really kind and I have been touched also by the many personal congratulations that I have received. I was so thrilled to be even nominated but to receive the award was a great honour. I only knew three weeks before that I had been nominated and was in the final three and to go to the ceremony in March. The evening was run by the British Journal of Nursing and was a glittering occasion and the awards hosted by Esther Ranzen. I was called onto the stage with the finalists in front of over 300 guests and she read out the citations before the sponsor opened the golden envelope and announced the winner, it was like the Oscars! It was a very humbling and emotional moment and my colleague and friend Senior Sister Shelley Pasamar was able to come with me, and as she put it, “so we looked good on the red carpet!” It has been a very busy time. On the 9th May Dr Dan Poulter the undersecretary of State for Health visited the Medical Investigations Unit as an exemplar of innovative practice. I had invited him to visit when I was at a reception last October where he was presenting the awards. He kindly agreed and came. He met all the staff and some patients and heard about our public patient involvement group from Mrs Pat Smith, a member, which he was really interested to hear about. He was impressed with the nurse led service and as you know we do the cardioversion service there now and prepare all our pacemaker patients on the MIU and recover them there. So the day was a wonderful showcase for the ground breaking work we do at Poole. I always think that it is worth noting that we really lead the way in the care and services we provide and I never miss an opportunity to let people know that! I know that Dr Poulter enjoyed his visit and it really raised our profile. We now have a new position on CCU as a trial, and that is a specialist nurse for cardiology whose role is to see that cardiac patients are supported throughout the wards and if necessary transferred to CCU. As well as ensure swift referrals onward for angiography etc., it is proving really successful and I will ask her to do an article on the role for the next edition. So as you can see it’s a busy and exciting time and I look forward to continuing with the work we undertake here and keeping in touch with you all to tell you all about it. Please have a wonderful summer and speak again soon. Geoffrey Walker OBE JP RGN Matron Medicine, Cardiology and Specialist Services Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
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Golden Wedding for two Members Henry and Heather Bartlett, long standing and active members of the PHSG and the walking Group, recently celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary with parties for family and friends. We all offer them our congratulations and all best wishes for many more years of happiness and good health together.
We are affiliated to the Arrhythmia Alliance. Their website lists all their affiliated groups. Review what they do on: www.theheartrhythmcharity.org.uk
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PHSG Magazine
Dr Christopher Boos Palpitations I have been asked by several readers to talk about palpitations and its investigation. Palpitations refer to an abnormal awareness of the heartbeat. It may be felt as the heart beating too fast or too slow or even beating at a normal rate (60-100 per minute). It can be either regular or irregular and may indicate the presence of an underlying abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia). The importance of an arrhythmia depends on their type, frequency, duration and whether they occur at the same time you have symptoms. Attacks may last anything from seconds to hours. They do not necessarily mean there is anything wrong with the heart. In fact I would say from experience less than one third of all the cases I see relate to any serious or concerning underlying rhythm disturbance. A good clinical history is fundamental to establishing a diagnosis. The sensation of a missed or extra beat is generally less concerning than the sustained sensation of a very fast heart rate coming on ‘out of the blue’ particularly if it is associated with chest pain breathlessness or lightheadedness. It is useful to know if there any triggers e.g. alcohol or caffeine as this may help in establishing the cause and aiding with symptom alleviation. Because arrhythmias can occur very sporadically, it may be difficult to record an arrhythmia while you are in the doctor's office. Nevertheless a 12 lead electrocardiogram (ECG) is an essential initial investigation. This is a noninvasive test which provides a point-in-time assessment of the electrical activity of the heart. Ten electrodes are attached to the patient and the test takes less than 5 minutes, from which 12 snap shot electrical images (leads) are obtained. The ECG does not directly assess the contractility of the heart, as provided by echocardiography. However, it can provide information of the patient’s heart rhythm, rate and an indirect assessment of whether there has been any damage to the heart. Ambulatory Heart rate monitoring (ECG) records the electrical activity of your heart while you do your usual activities. Ambulatory monitors/ECGs are referred to by several names, including ambulatory ECG, Holter monitoring, 24-48 hour ECG, or cardiac event monitoring. These ambulatory monitors are used to record the heart’s rhythm over longer periods and usually only 3 electrodes are attached to the patient’s chest and are used when symptoms of an abnormal heart rhythm do not occur very often. These can range from 24-48 hours of a continuous recording to a more prolonged ambulatory monitor for up to 10 days where due to data
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storage issues only short snippets (loops) of abnormality are recorded for future review. Where symptoms are very intermittent but important then occasionally patients may have an implantable loop recorder inserted. This device is the size of a cigarette lighter and is inserted under local anaesthetic as a day case and has a batter life of up to two years. Conditions identified by these differing monitors include atrial fibrillation, frequent ectopics (extra beats), heart block and the need for a pacemaker where the heart is seen to go too slow or even stop. The patient’s diary is critical to assess the relationship of symptoms to any important findings. I hope this helps you understand this area just a little better.
PHSG Monthly Meetings - Diary Dates All Talks are held at Poole Hospital Postgraduate Centre at 7:30pm. All PHSG talks are free. June 20th Groucho Marx by scriptwriter Nick Thomas July 18th A talk and songs by Bonny Sartin of the Yetties Aug 22nd Treasure Hunt in Poole. More details later ADVERTISEMENT
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PHSG Magazine
Monthly Talks
Organised by George Llewellyn
February Talk - Atrial Fibrillation Another great presentation by our Rehab Nurses talk given by Fiona and ably assisted by Vikki. A subject that is obviously dear to her heart, if you’ll pardon the pun. A self assured and confident presentation. But this was Fiona just prior to the talk, struggling with the NHS computer! Don’t you hate computers? Well help was at hand, Vikki to the rescue. Anyway Fiona won the struggle and as I said another informative talk ensued. It is surprising the number of people that suffer from this condition. Fiona was a bit concerned that it may be a technical but I am sure it was explained at the right level for most of us. The graphics hit the spot and well supported the talk. Then a few words about the causes, risks, symptoms and treatment. A positive and re-assuring presentation followed by lots ● Atrial fibrillation is defined as chaotic electrical activity in the atria, the 2 upper chambers of the heart. ● The atria usually beat regularly and together. ● In AF, the usual pacemaker, the Sinus Node,is totally overtaken by the chaotic electrical activity and so the atria no longer beat in an organised way.
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of interesting questions. This is the second year running we have had the Rehab Nurses present, and I have promised to give them a year off unless I can persuade them for next February? Many, many thanks to all of our Rehab Nurses and Fiona and Vikki and well done!
George
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PHSG Magazine
Monthly Talks AGM report
by George Llewellyn
● 2012 my first complete year. ● I seem to be developing a theme; a mixture of medical, local history and fun. ● Rehab nurses for the second year, many thanks. ● Consultant speaking to us last year was Dr McLeod this year may be Dr Boos or Dr Bruce. ● Of course we always welcome Geoffrey Walker back. ● Coming up is Upton house and Groucho Marx. ● Last year we held a Treasure hunt in Upton House, it seemed to go down well despite the weather. This year it is planned for August and it will be in Poole. ● Something we did this year was to invite a member of PHSG to talk. Alistair Allcroft came along and regaled us with personal stories of his time in the RAF during the cold war. If you have a an interesting story I am only to pleased to get you on. ● The Quiz at Xmas was a bit difficult, work has already started on this years, it will be a bit different. ● The good thing about this job is you get to choose the subjects. I hope you have enjoyed my choices as much as I have. ● If you have any suggestions for the future, if they are physically possible I shall do my best.
George
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Puzzle - Solution
A PUZZLE FROM THE 30s: Every day at noon a ship leaves Southampton for New York and another ship leaves New York for Southampton. The trip lasts seven days and seven nights. How many New York to Southampton ships will the ship leaving Southampton today meet during its journey to New York? ANSWER: Most replies I had said that it must be 7 assuming that number of days at sea, or 9 if they counted the ship they would meet in each port. However if you realise that there are already 7 ships at sea before our ship sets off, you’ll realise that it meets 13 ships at sea plus one in each harbour, a total of 15 ships.
I am taking part in the Blenheim Palace Triathlon on June 8th. I will swim, bike & run my way round the scenic course and raise money for Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research in the process. If anyone can spare a small donation please visit my Justgiving page on the Internet. http://www.justgiving.com/Jennifer-Sweetlove Many many thanks, Your trainer, Jen ADVERTISEMENT
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PHSG Magazine
by Eric Bullen
The Walking Group
Well, we are off to another walking season and, so far, we have been extremely lucky with the weather - the sun seems to shine on Cyril. The first trip was over Ballard Down - saw the demise of my walking boots when the sole came adrift! The second walk at Cowgrove & Pamphill was a bit wet and muddy underfoot. I hope the young lady's camera still works after taking the group's photo! Hope to see the results in a future publication. We have had excellent results on the turnout of both the last two walks with nearly 30, especially the 5-mile bash over Hengistbury Head. Onto another nice day, I decided to have a look at Corfe Castle. Been past it many times, wish I had visited it sooner. Mind you my legs were "groaning" by the time I got to the top. Well worth the effort though for outstanding views of the local countryside, and "birds-eye" view of the Swanage steam trains (something else from the past). Walking again tomorrow, weather permitting with "Walk-for-Life" around Upton House grounds. Just turn up and walk, costs only a bit of energy. The next walk will put me in the spotlight as I could not find the carpark last year! Hopefully, I will have more luck this year!
Eric
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PHSG Magazine
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by Derek Pope
PHSG Skittles Evening
My wife and I have organised another skittle night at Cobhams near Merley for Monday, 24th June. We expect to offer the ‘Main Meals’ selection that the club does for Skittle Nights rather than the ‘Finger Buffet’. I will want captains to come forward with their team details and payments in advance of the date, so if you are interested in putting a team together please email me for information. Teams will be of six people (including the captain) and will need to have a nominated pin setter to help with setting up the skittle alley during the evening. The alley should cost £25 and we will add this charge to the meal costs at 75p a head. Any excess will be handed over to the PHSG treasurer, if there is a deficit, we will fund that ourselves. We had four teams of 6 last time round and the maximum is 36 people so we could just manage six teams of 6 if enough people are interested. So, put a note in your diary, sort out a captain and email me for details. If you would like to have skittle nights closer to where you live, please find a skittle alley and get it organised, I’m willing to help with forms and advice if you need it and they are always popular. My contact details are on the inside front cover of the magazine.
Derek
For those who are interested in the Walking Group, we walk every 10 days on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 2 to 5 miles. Some of us round off the day’s walk with a Pub lunch – Pleasure after pain! If you require more information or the Walking Book (£3) please contact me on 01202 733956. Cyril, Walks Coordinator.
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PHSG Magazine
Membership Matters
by Derek Pope
We presently have 601 full members and only 291 partners. Each member is entitled to have someone entered as their ‘partner’. If you are a member and would like your spouse, partner or a friend to be able to join you at exercise classes, walking or cycling group outings, talks or social events, then please send their details to me so that they can be entered as your ‘partner’ into the database. This month I did some analysis of the database, breaking up the membership into post code areas, just using the first part of the post code. This was done for every entry in the database so the numbers will not match the full and partner members above. We have single members from these postcodes:- AL3, BH2, BH3, BH4, BH6, BH7, BH31, BS40, CV37, DT4, SO16, TN6, W1H, WR14. These other ‘out of area’ postcodes each has a small numbers of members:BH8 has 3, BH10 has 3, DT11 has 8. The main BH area statistics are as follows, the approximate geographic coverage I have shown comes from the Wikipedia website:BH11 18 Kinson, Bear Cross, West Howe, Wallisdown BH12 58 Branksome, Alderney, Upper Parkstone, Newtown BH13 24 Canford Cliffs, Sandbanks, Branksome Park BH14 87 Lower Parkstone, Lilliput, Penn Hill BH15 109 Poole Town Centre, Hamworthy, Oakdale BH16 45 Upton, Turlin Moore, Lytchett Minster, Lytchett Matravers BH17 92 Canford Heath, Creekmoor BH18 96 Broadstone BH19 36 Swanage BH20 54 Wareham BH21 182 Wimborne, Merley BH22 84 Ferndown, West Moors BH23 5 Christchurch BH24 4 Ringwood If there is membership information you would like to know about, please drop me a line or give me a ring, my contact details are on the inside front cover of the magazine.
Derek
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A Romantic Gift
by Anon
A young man wished to purchase a gift for his new sweetheart’s birthday, and as they had not been dating very long, after careful consideration he decided a pair of gloves would strike the right note – romantic, but not too personal. Accompanied by his sweetheart’s younger sister, he bought a pair of white gloves, the younger sister purchased a pair of panties for herself. During the wrapping, the shop assistant mixed up the items and the sister got the gloves and the sweetheart got the panties. Without checking the contents first, he sealed his package and posted it to his sweetheart along with this note:
Darling, I chose these because I noticed that you are not in the habit of wearing any when we go out in the evening. If it had not been for your sister, I would have chosen the long ones with buttons, but she wears the short ones that are easy to remove. These are a delicate shade, but the lady I bought them from showed me the pair she had been wearing for the past three weeks and they were hardly soiled. I had her try yours on for me and she looked really smart. I wish I were there to put them on for you the first time, as no doubt other hands will come into contact with them before I have a chance to see you again. When you take them off, remember to blow in them before putting them away as they will naturally be a little damp from wearing. Just think how many times I will kiss them during the coming year. I hope you will wear them for me on Friday night. All my love, Hollingsworth P.S. The latest style is to wear them folded down with a little fur showing.
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PHSG Magazine
P.H.S.G. IN ACTION
George & Margaret sort Raffle Tickets Pam thinks about getting the Kettle on!
This is how your Magazine gets Distributed. Some of our Volunteers
Dr. Chis Boos Talks to the Annual Dinner
Your Committee at Work Except the Chairman Taking the Picture.
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Why Some Men Have Dogs And Not Wives: ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺
The later you are, the more excited your dogs are to see you. Dogs don't notice if you call them by another dog's name. Dogs like it if you leave a lot of things on the floor. A dog's parents never visit. Dogs agree you have to raise your voice to get your point across. You never have to wait for a dog; they're ready to go 24hrs a day. Dogs find you amusing when you're drunk. Dogs like to go hunting, fishing and don’t mind spending the whole day with you in front of the tv. A dog will not wake you up at night to ask, "If I died, would you get another dog?" If a dog has babies, you can place an advert and give them away. A dog will let you put a studded collar on it without calling you a pervert. If a dog smells another dog on you, they don't get mad. They just think it's interesting. Dogs like to ride in the back of a pickup truck and don’t care how much money you have.
To test this theory: Lock your wife and your dog in the garage for an hour. Then open it and see who's happiest to see you.
“The more intelligent a man is, the more originality he discovers in others.” Blaise Pascal “In ancient times, cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.” Terry Pratchett
See “Our Lesley” and some of our PHSG members in their new musical production of “ANYTHING GOES” at the Tivoli Theatre, Wimborne. 25th to 29th June 2013 www.tivoliwimborne.co.uk
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PHSG Magazine
Know your Trainers
By Roger Ridout
Clare Barratt has been with PHSG for 13 years, having been on the same course as Lesley in January 2000, following which she established the first Wareham classes at the Purbeck Sports Centre supported by Geoff Lane as the local exercise coordinator until I took over. We have expanded to four classes in Wareham and Swanage each week. Clare spent her early life in Harpenden, prior to joining the Metropolitan Police as a cadet in September 1979 and undertaking a training course at the Hendon Police College. As a qualified WPC she was based in Ealing, West London from where she saw duties in the public riots at Southall and Brixton, policed the antinuclear demonstrations at Greenham Common as well as being on duty at the Daily Mirror group marches in Fleet Street. In April 1991 she was involved in a serious road accident on her motorbike, when a car hit her in a road tunnel forcing her bike to swerve into another car, resulting in her crashing through the rear window. The injuries sustained required 60 facial stitches, a broken arm and leg causing a 4 month absence from work. Unfortunately when the plaster cast was removed from her leg the bone was found to be badly set, requiring re-breaking and a further period of absence from her duties. In 1992 she was forced to retire from the Police and was pensioned off. With her husband and two small daughters she moved to Dorset later that year, but during 1996 she was divorced which, as a single parent with custody of the girls, forced her return to work with Securicor. Being determined not to let her accident injuries dictate her future employment, in 1998 she joined Premier Fitness as an Instructor, from where Robin Pringle using his unique ability to obtain and keep the services of all our excellent instructors, persuaded her to join us. Her daughters; Maria is 22 and in her final year in London studying Fashion and Anna is 20 studying Business Management in Winchester. Both show the same independent spirit of their mother and are daughters of whom she can be very proud. Clare has an in depth knowledge of cardiac problems, formed whilst undertaking phase 3 rehabilitation for the Dorset County NHS Trust, Dorchester at Blandford Hospital over a 5 year period. A keen Leicester Tigers rugby fan, she thinks Valentino Rossi is the best motorcycle racer ever and enjoys vintage car racing, regularly visiting the Goodwood Revival Festival, Clare lives life to the full. Our members thank her for the support and understanding we receive during rewarding and enjoyable fitness sessions, which she controls despite the constant chattering. Roger
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PHSG Exercise Venues All sessions last 1 hour Ashdown School Sports
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Friday
12:00 09:30 09:30 09:30
Monday Tuesday Thursday Friday
09:00 09:00 09:00 09:00
Canford Stepdown Class
Friday
11:00
Ferndown Sports
Monday 10:30 Wednesday 10:30
Hamworthy Fire Station
Monday
09:30
Hearts on Seats,Broadstone
Thursday
14:00
Images, Lower Parkstone
Wednesday 11:00 Friday 11:00
Lytchett Minster Sports
Tuesday Thursday
18:00 18:30
19:00
Swanage, Burlington Sports
Tuesday
14:30
15:30
Wareham, Purbeck Sports
Monday
16:00
Canford School Sports
10:30 10:30 10:00 10:00 10:00 10:00
11:00
10:30
If you are not exercising with us and would like to start (or restart) then please call Robin Pringle or Roger Ridout. Contact details are on the inside cover 19
PHSG Magazine
Robin’s Notes
By Robin Pringle
This is my annual report as I gave it to the AGM. Recruitment. Almost all new members to PHSG are recruited from the Cardiac Rehab Dept at Poole Hospital. It is imperative therefore that we retain the goodwill and assistance of the Rehab Team. David Curtis and /or his deputy John Offer attend each Education Day to promote our Group. Then it is up to Tony Wilkinson and me to sell PHSG to prospective members as they progress through the Rehab program. If we have persuaded patients to join, then the application form is processed by Jan and her Team at our Office, thence to Rita our Treasurer and to Derek, keeper of our Database. The introduction of the new Yellow form has speeded up and simplified the process but there are occasions when the old Blue form is still necessary. EXERCISE VENUES AND SESSIONS Swanage and Wareham :- There are a total of 4 sessions a week at these two venues. Overall supervision is under the control of my friend Roger Ridout and the trainer for all sessions is Clare Barratt. This is a super little group who have raised monies to purchase their own Defibrillator. They have an independent Christmas Party and this year it was attended by 64 members and partners. Images, Lower Parkstone : Two sessions weekly run by Paula Trowbridge Lytchett Minster: There are 3 sessions each week the trainers being Jayne Frank and Livvy Inglis Ferndown: Two classes per week run by Jenni Sweetlove and Emma Thomas Ashdown: Six classes run by Jenni Sweetlove and Jayne Frank Canford School, Merley :- There are 9 classes plus a Step-Down Heart Failure Class run by Lesley Bradshaw and Emma Thomas. The Rehab Dept also has one “ Rehab in the Community” class in which Emma assists Fiona. Hearts on Seats, Broadstone:- One class each week is run by Jayne Frank. Hamworthy :- A very new venue has just commenced at Hamworthy Fire Station gymnasium and the 2 sessions are run by Emma Thomas. It is early days but we have been offered support from Dr Mowbray at the local surgery. We will have to see how it progresses. In addition to the above, Lesley works within the Rehab Dept covering four classes on a Wednesday at Poole Hospital. Jayne assists Nurse Fiona with the “Heart Failure Rehab in the Community” at QE School. Where possible the
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trainers assist each other during holidays and illnesses and, in particular, Jayne covers for Livvy at Blandford Hospital and the HSG classes in Blandford. Our trainers are all qualified for BACPR Phase 4 classes. The cost of a course is now 645 pounds plus expenses. We now have another reserve on the block who will eventually be sponsored for such a course. Her name is Norine Burke. We also have Michelle Evans and Karen Fisher who assist in emergencies. I would like to place on record my grateful thanks to the trainers, the nurses and those who assist by way of collecting fees and helping with kit. You may wonder about the finances of all the exercise venues. I believe that only the turnover at Canford goes through the books, with surplus or losses for the other venues going through as net figures. There are approximately 400 exercising each week, multiply that by £3 (£3.50 for Purbeck sessions) and then by say 48 weeks of the year we have a turnover of £57,600. The books show quite a surplus at present, but negotiations take place with each venue regularly regarding the amount they charge us for using their facilities. The trainers’ wages are also reviewed. If I get it wrong we could be in trouble !!! It is imperative that we retain the goodwill of the management of the various venues. It is also important we show our appreciation of the trainers. However I do believe that with the current surplus from exercise the present charge can be maintained for the next two years at least. The Future:- More of the same but we are embarking upon publicity to bolster numbers where class numbers have fallen.
Robin
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PHSG Magazine
Medical Clinical Care Group
Jim Waine
Practice Development Unit for Cardiology and Medicine - Quality Service Group Meeting PHSG has a voice on this group representing its members. This exciting group, under the very capable Chairmanship of Geoffrey Walker, OBE, Matron Cardiology and Medicine, really gets things done! Positive changes are made to hospital procedures, as a result of patient feedback given to PHSG patient representatives. All PHSG members can feed back information to Poole Hospital in complete confidence about their treatment. So if you want to say anything good or bad about your experience in Poole Cardiac Unit, or its related departments including the ambulance service, please forward your comments. You can contact me by e-mail (preferred), letter, or telephone. All information will be treated in strictest confidence. Looking forward to hearing from you. Jim Waine, Vice President PHSG jim.waine2@btinternet.com or 01202 871532
QSG Meeting on the 19th March 2013
Another Honour for Matron Geoffrey Walker
Geoffrey shows his Award
PHSG Magazine
Poole Hospital Matron, Geoffrey Walker, has recently been granted the award of Nurse of the Year in a prestigious national awards scheme, in recognition of the outstanding contribution he has made to patients in Poole over more than 25 years of nursing. A delighted Geoffrey received the award from television personality and campaigner Esther Rantzen at a glittering event held in Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre Complex. Geoffrey’s nomination cites the role he has played in establishing Poole Hospital’s cardiology and medicine Quality Service Group- now in its tenth year- and the creation and development of the medical investigations unit (MIU), both at Poole Hospital. In announcing the award, Julie Smith, from the British Journal of Nursing said, “Geoffrey’s dedication to nursing goes above
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and beyond all expectations, and his passion for excellence in nursing and developing and improving patient care is unmatched. It is nurses like Geoffrey who restore our faith in the profession and we are absolutely delighted to have awarded him BJN Nurse of the Year 2013” In responding to the award, Geoffrey said, “I feel so proud and humble to receive this award. Nursing is a profession I absolutely love, and the award is as much for my colleagues and Poole Hospital as it is for me”. Geoffrey’s passion for innovation knows no bounds and continues with the Medical Investigation Unit at Poole, recently becoming the first unit of its kind in the UK to offer blood prescribing to patients from specially trained nurses. The Award Ceremony In 2009, Geoffrey received an OBE in recognition of his services to nursing. He is Vice President of the British Red Cross in Dorset, a lecturer practitioner at the University of Bournemouth and honorary Vice President of the Florence Nightingale foundation, a charity which supports the development of nurses through scholarships. Geoffrey is pictured here receiving his award from Esther Rantzen.
2013 sees the 10th Anniversary of the Quality Service Group Matron Walker at the Group’s meeting held on 19th March reviewed some of the work and the achievements of the Group since its inception. The inaugural launch day of the Group in 2003, took place at the Springfield Court Hotel and since then the Group has gone from strength to strength. Some of the many achievements and topics discussed included Blood Taking, Ward Rounds, Right Ward for Right Patients, Waiting Times for Echocardiography, new work completed on infection control, phlebotomy appointments and in recent months, the launch and implementation of the highly successful Red Cross Discharge Scheme. The latter scheme, jointly developed between the British Red Cross and Poole Hospital NHS Trust, saw two teams, one led by John Towers of British Red Cross and the second, led by Geoffrey Walker from Poole Hospital respectively, develop and implement a highly successful programme. This enables elderly patients who have successfully completed their medical treatment in hospital, but who live alone, to be discharged and return to their own homes, accompanied by trained Red Cross staff
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who then give daily support for a period of four weeks. To date some 90 patients have benefited from the scheme and feedback from both patients and family members has been positive and appreciative.
Cake cutting by Pat Smith in celebration of our 10th Anniversary The scheme was nominated for an award by the Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Awards 2012/2013 and at a ceremony held at the Haven Hotel on 27th March, John Towers and the BRC team, won the Service Improvement Scheme Award for their achievements. Also Geoffrey Walker updated the group, informing them two new Cardiologists would be commencing in the Trust in June.
Jim
Poole NHS Awards 2013
By Geoffrey Walker
I am delighted to be able to inform you that the British Red Cross Assisted Discharge Service won the Service Improvement Team award at the Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Awards which were presented at a ceremony held at The Haven Hotel on 27 March 2013. The Quality Service Group should be particularly proud of this achievement as the group was instrumental in the commencement of this valued service which has proved to be a great success. I am sure you will join me in congratulating John Towers and his team. Geoffrey
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Meet our Members A Showcase on Members - This issue: Jean-Daniel Kursner reflects on stress Monday 3rd of October 2011, just three months into my retirement, I was hit by an unexpected heart attack. My life nearly ended that day, but thanks to the prompt and effective emergency actions of all the people involved: my GP, the paramedics, the ambulance and the Coronary Care Unit Team of the Bournemouth Hospital, this life threatening event ended happily and is now just an old souvenir. Why did it happen to me? At 65 I felt healthy and fit and I never suffered an illness in my life. I had been given a clear bill of health only 6 months earlier after a full private check-up. My easy, comfortable and conventional childhood in Switzerland led to a PhD and a good job with a well-known Swiss chemical company. Married at 21 with two sons, Stephane and David, things looked settled. Unfortunately, things started to go wrong and ended in a divorce in early 1978. Fate struck later that year, when I met and fell in love with Jill from Bournemouth. Like me, Jill was going through similar trauma, and we brought our lives together and married. This relationship was the beginning of an eventful life, we had a son Yvan in 1981. There were traumatic events at work and the stresses of never remaining still; 23 moves around the world in 35 years, the last one in 2009. For 19 years I enjoyed my work, now as a Risk Engineer, and accumulated more than one million air miles that I planned to spend during my retirement! There were significant emotional events now to follow; the death of my son Stephane, the death of my mother-in-law, my retirement, and the death of my best friend Tony. The first time I was made aware of stress was after my heart attack, when I talked with my GP and later with the nurses of the Poole Cardiac Rehabilitation. With the stress rehabilitation sessions, I discovered that not only physical stress had been a threat to my health, but also emotional ones. I was shocked that a risk engineer never considered stress as a major risk to life. I believe now that stress, physical or emotional, is the most underestimated and under-assessed risk to life. In particular emotional stress is certainly the most ignored because it deals with a status of mind that people are reluctant to talk about. They feel that exposing themselves to “strangers� could be the acceptance of a mental weakness. Now I am trying to re-organise my retirement life, changing all the plans that Jill and I made before my heart attack. One of them was retiring to a warm place in Cyprus!
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The Cutting Edge Advances in Medical Technology - Life giving Light
By Keith Matthews
The healing properties of light are wide ranging. We all feel better on a nice sunny day! Now scientists are working on PhotoDynamic Therapy (PDT) which uses targeted light at a particular colour working with specific photosensitive compounds, known as photosensitisers. These generate reactive oxygen that kills cells. In the treatment of cancer as an example, a photosensitiser binding to malignant cells can destroy them when activated by light. Microbial cells are another target for treatment with PDT, Take a deep breath . . . used in dentistry and dermatology A number of drugs have problems killing the bacteria causing acne for passing cells membranes or get instance. Trials at the Wellman Center trapped in endosomes and are for Photomedicine in Massachusetts eventually broken down before they University are ongoing for treating can work. Norwegian oncology various infections with PDT, and company, PCI Biotech, has particular interest centres around the treatment of drug-resistant bacteria such developed a photosensitier called Amphinex which is specifically as MRSA. The work involves designing designed to adhere to cell particular photosensitisers for different membranes. It gets taken up in microbial cells. endosomes along with the drug. PDT could potentially treat various When activated by red light at 652nm forms of drug-resistant strains of it breaks open the endosome bacteria, such as those for tuberculosis, releasing the drug into the cell. but this is challenging because it multiplies internally. Dr Hamblin of the Center says “With fibre optics it is conceivable to treat internal infections with PDT. You can thread fibres pretty much anywhere in the body, even to the heart. Bacterial endocarditis for example, an infection of the heart valves with a high mortality rate has been considered for PDT treatment.� What will come of this? Who knows. But remember, you read it here first in PHSG Magazine.
Keith
Original reporting courtesy of: greg.blackman@europascience.com
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ise is so much c r e Ex right ge easier in t he ar! PHSG Clothing
T-Shirts £7.00
Sweat Shirts £13.00
Polo Shirts £11.00
This exclusive range of clothes are available from the PHSG Sizes Small, Medium, Large & Extra Large
For the RETRO nostalgic we still have a small stock of the previous Sky Blue versions (Price on application).
Contact: Sandra Llewellyn at geoll@talktalk.net ,01202 605455 or ask your trainer.
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Red Cross First Aid
By John Offer & George Llewellyn
After a slow start to sign up PHSG members and their partners the number of attendees suddenly snowballed a couple of weeks before the first session, resulting in three classes finally having to be organised, two at Canford School and a third at the Purbeck Sports Centre. Bad weather meant that the Red Cross Instructor (Gavin Churchill) could not get to us on the 23rd. Jan and that course was rebooked for the 16th. Feb. The other two courses went ahead as planned on the 6th. Feb resulting in 32 members and partners in total receiving their “Saving a Life – General” certificates, a safety booklet and a single use mouth to mouth safety mask. Following the sessions all reports on the content and presentation were good and our thanks go to Gavin Churchill, and Hugh Honneywill who took the Purbeck course, for making the course content interesting - and boosting our confidence that we could carry out emergency resuscitation if we were ever in a position to help someone.
John
I never wanted to do First Aid Course. As a young engineer responsible to write the accident reports and later as a Safety Officer, I was often asked, “do want to do a first aid course”? My answer was always an unequivocal NO!! I made the excuse that I didn’t like the sight of blood. The sight of my blood does upset me, however the truth is I never liked the idea of mouth-tomouth resuscitation. Yuk, its no good I thought, if was trained and really needed to use it I couldn’t do it. I am now 67 and retired and this caught me up again. John Offer arranged a course for the PHSG. Was I interested? The truth was still the same, but I like people to attend my talks so I was obliged to support my fellow committee members. I bit the bullet and said I would attend. The session was run by the Red Cross and was very professional. At the beginning I still wasn’t sure that I would use it but it was fun and very informative, the demonstrations were managed in a way that help you understand the process. As for the yucky bit, we practised on dummies and they were cleaned every time they were used, so that overcame my first fear. But the presenter went out of his way to explain that in real life it may be a lot messier than that. Oh my god all my fears returned “if I needed to I would not do it”. The Red Cross had anticipated my fear. We were issued with a face veil with a one-way valve. The presenter told us that many other things could be used to protect us , shopping bags, crisp packets etc. Walking back to my car I was sure of two things . . . ● I would use the technique if called upon and . . . ● I would always, always always carry the face veil with the one-way valve with me wherever I went. Many thanks to John Offer, a good experience, well done.
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George
An Award for a Member PSHG have introduced a silver cup award for service to PHSG which is to be awarded annually in recognition of valued contribution to the group. Max Smith, who ran our website and our Computer Club for many years is the first recipient of the Trophy . He received the award at the Dinner in March.
Max Smith receives the trophy from chairman Keith Matthews
Volunteers wanted to help in our P.H.S.G. Head Office for only 2 hours per month Please Telephone 01202 683363 ext. 133 Manned 1.30 - 3.30pm Mon & Thurs
You can always call the Office ! You can always call the office We’re a happy little bunch. On a Monday or a Thursday, We’re there just after lunch. If you need some information, Exercise or walking club, (Cyril says they ramble and then end up at the pub!). We distribute magazines and sign in each new member. We are on the go all the time from January to December Jan Mesher PHSG Office Co-ordinator.
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Chat Stops The next Chat Stop will be on June 4th , shortly after you receive this Magazine. Then we take a break for the summer and will return in October, either the 1st or the 8th to be decided. At the June chat stop, our members Sonja Sparrow & her husband Bill have asked if they can talk about ‘Utility Warehouse’. So in addition to the normal book sales, tea, coffee and biscuits, and maybe a quiz, you can listen to reasons to consider changing your gas, electricity, phone or broadband supplier. There was a good turnout for the May chat stop and we would like to see even more visitors in June. Zurich Hot
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PHSG Cycling Group Rides Rides are about 15 to 20 miles long, the rides are open to all members of the PHSG as long as your doctor approves. For help, advice, weather check and bike maintenance call Keith Matthews on 01202 855001 ALL STARTS at 10:00am Sunday 23 June Meet Ringwood Underpass - Forest Folly Sunday 28 July Meet Winterbourne Kingston - Bulbarrow Grovel Sunday 25 Aug Meet Wimborne Square - Blandford Brevet Sunday 22 Sept Meet Broadstone Leisure - Lytchett Link In bad weather call before 9:00am to see if the ride is going ahead.
My First Ride
by Peter Eames
I have heard it said that the path to Hell is paved with good intentions. I’ve been intending to join a PHSG Cycle Group ride for several years and on Sunday 17th February I finally did it, so hopefully my path has now changed direction. I met Keith and Alan at the Broadstone Leisure Centre car park and it transpired it was going to be just the three of us (I guess the others had heard I was coming). It was a superbly sunny morning and the journey to Poole Quay was on varied cycle paths passing through Creekmoor and the east side of Upton Country Park to reach the Holes Bay tarmac path where there was a bit of a headwind (so I stayed at the back for a tow). We had a chat over a coffee at the Custom House on the quay before the return journey along the Broadstone relief road cycle way. To my relief the climb back to Broadstone was not at all steep, thanks to the railway engineers of old. I’d had a most enjoyable and invigorating Sunday morning and much healthier than Breakfast in bed watching old episodes of ‘Heartbeat’ on ITV3. On the ride I was wearing my ‘Polar’ cycling heart monitor that records heart rate, cycle speed and altitude. Here is a screen-shot of the results showing the steady pace in both directions and two peaks in heart rate of 123 bps when ‘attacking’ short inclines, one on the way to Poole where the Holes bay path rises over the railway (at 45 minutes) and the other on the way back part way up the relief road (see the step in altitude at 1 hour 40 minutes).
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Note that the ‘Altitude’ is really a reading of atmospheric pressure and I did not bother re-calibrating it before the ride. Atmospheric pressure was high and clearly I last reset it during a low as it recorded a start at about minus seventy feet descending to minus 200 feet. Assuming the lowest point my wrist reached was about ten feet above sea level this suggests Broadstone is about 140 feet AMSL! Thanks to Keith and Alan for welcoming me on my inaugural run, I am looking forward to the next one.
Peter ADVERTISEMENT
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Poole Heart Support Group operates under the umbrella of the British Heart Foundation who rely on voluntary help for fund-raising. If you’d like to help them, please contact: Pam Bailey BHF Rep. 4 Knighton Heath Close. BH11 9PP. 01202 574944 Poole Branch meet once a month at Poole Hospital to plan forthcoming events.
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WHAT TO DO IF YOU BECOME UNWELL Medical help and advice is available if you become unwell when your GP surgery is closed. You should: Dial 999 or go to A & E as soon as possible if you are worried about the sudden onset of new symptoms or have suffered a serious Injury or illness. A & E departments are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They are for a critical or life threatening situation, for example chest pain, suspected heart attack, severe breathing difficulties, severe loss of blood, loss of consciousness, deep wounds and suspected broken bones. They are not for minor injuries or health problems, nor an alternative to seeing your GP or for a ‘second opinion’ if you have already seen your GP. Call the Dorset Out of Hours Medical Service on 0845 600 10 13 if you are unwell but not facing a life-threatening emergency and you think you cannot wait until your GP surgery opens. Go to an NHS Walk-In Centre or Minor Injuries Unit with a minor injury or illness. Find your nearest one by calling NHS Direct on 0845 46 47. You can also call NHS Direct on 0845 46 47 if you are feeling unwell and are unsure what to do, or need information about finding a pharmacist, dentist or other service. REMEMBER IF YOU HAVE CHEST PAIN DIAL 999 WITHOUT DELAY
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