Is hospital F.A.S.T enough?
It's National Stroke Week and our national charity, the Stroke Foundation, is doing a great job to beat and treat this serious medical emergency, that will strike one in six of us.
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Learn the F.A.S.T. test for the easy way to tell if your mother, father or friend is having a stroke:
F. FACE, is their mouth drooping? A. ARMS, can they lift both arms? S. SPEECH, is it slurred? T. TIME, act fast, call 000 – for the best chance of recovery, they must be treated within four and a half hours.
Canberra is too far away to meet that emergency medical deadline.
So it would be nice for our community to know from the powers-that-be in our Southern NSW Local Health District in Queanbeyan, when their promise of a fully functional thrombolytic stroke will be up and running at our brand new Bega hospital.
With our large retired population and many more over-65s than the national average, we need this vital health service, so the dedicated efforts of our local emergency paramedics and local doctors are not diminished.
Meanwhile, you can get your blood pressure checked by many local pharmacies. If it's above normal, see your GP. Studies show 38 per cent of men and 26 per cent of women have high blood pressure.
Jon Gaul, Tura Beach
BMX track
As a Jinjera Parade property owner and having a close interest in the well being of all of the youth of our south coast but in particular those of Pambula Beach I wish to thank Mike for raising this issue so publicly and Melanie for recording it.
These boys are our future leaders and through their actions have truly demonstrated team work and many other strengths that we can all be proud of, and I appreciate that being now on the record.
What saddens me is that residents have gone behind the backs of these boys and also behind the back of these boys' parents and have escalated their concerns way beyond what is necessary.
The further facts detailed in the article only compound this escalation.
The consequences of these actions may well have far more longer term implications than that of the boys well intended endeavours to build themselves a bike track, as best as they knew how on land that is in close proximity to their houses - what’s the problem with that?
Yes some guidance could have been given, but escalating to this level is counter productive and now involving council and threats as contained in the article shows a true lack of balanced view by the opponents and journalist.
Peter Haar, Pambula Beach
Crown management
The NSW Government wants to hear from Crown Land managers, tenure holders and the wider community on the draft Crown Land Management Regulation 2017.
The draft regulations follow the Crown Land Management Act, passed last year, which marked the start of reforms to ensure the Crown Estate continues to meet the needs of the community.
The draft regulations protect Crown Land for now and the future, and gives land managers clear guidelines for managing that land. Comment on the draft regulations is open until Sunday, September 24.
For more information visit www.crownland.nsw.gov.au or phone the Department of Industry on 1300 886 235.
Paul Toole, Minister for Lands and Forestry
Ignored by Centrelink
Hilary and I had changed financial circumstances in April. In spite of many attempts, and more recently almost daily visits to the Bega Centrelink office, nothing changed.
Then I was told that no-one had assessed our affairs since April, not even to look at them. We were disgusted by their callousness and inefficiency. So much for privatisation.
So we requested help through our local member, Mike Kelly, and on the same day, within hours, we were called by Centrelink and the whole matter has been resolved!
Thank God for a democracy and a caring member of Parliament. Thanks, Mike!
John and Hilary James, Brogo
- Letters to the editor on any topic are welcome. Submissions of no more than 300 words can be emailed to ben.smyth@fairfaxmedia.com.au with your name and home town for publication, and daytime phone number for verification.