Wellnowsummer 2014 Canterbury
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Keeping our Community Healthy WellNowSUMMER 2014 Canterbury Special centre page feature: Redevelopment of Burwood Health Campus and Christchurch Hospital Take a breather this summer What do you think of when you think about our health system? Hospitals and car parks? General practice teams and pharmacists? Maybe X-rays and blood tests? The Canterbury Health System is a together with a friend, taking a walk to take time for complex beast made up of thousands in the park and breathing some fresh yourself. Take a of hard working professionals Canterbury air, or noticing a beautiful breather every committed to improving the health of sunset. These may seem unimportant now and then Cantabrians. While our health system but they’re not … they’re actually what and make some David Meates, CEO, plays a hugely important role in keeping makes life worth living. time for you. Canterbury DHB us well, having a healthy population To remind and encourage Cantabrians And remember goes far beyond the realms of the to look after themselves All Right? is it‘s the little things you do that can health system. about to launch the latest phase in their make the biggest difference to those Health starts where we live, learn, campaign – ‘Take a Breather’. It will be around you. work and play. Personal lifestyles and all about encouraging Cantabrians to If you are feeling overwhelmed our physical environment have a huge take short breaks away from the daily remember it’s all right to ask for help. impact on our health and wellbeing. grind of the recovery to do the things You are not alone. If you need support It is safe to say that the health of that are good for their wellbeing. you can ring the Canterbury Support Cantabrians has been well and truly put Summer is a really busy time, and Line on 0800 777 846. to the test post quakes. It’s been over Christmas and holidays away can add David Meates four years since our first big shake and to our stress levels. With all the rushing CEO, Canterbury DHB many of us are still struggling. round at this time of year don’t forget According to the All Right? campaign’s latest research, over two thirds of us are still grieving for what’s been lost, half of us aren’t regularly sleeping well, and, Tips for a good night’s sleep not surprisingly, two thirds of us are Do: Don’t: feeling tired. 1. Go to bed at the same time 1. Exercise just before going to bed. You don’t have to look far to find a tired each day. 2. Have drinks containing caffeine and stressed Cantabrian – many of us 2. Get up at the same time each in the evening. know first-hand how tiring our recovery day. 3. Go to bed too hungry or too full. can be. 3. Take regular exercise each day. 4. Stay in bed if you are awake. All of us are at different places on 4. Try to spend some time 5. Share your bed with children our recovery journey. Some people, outdoors or in natural light. or pets. particularly those under forty, are 5. Make the bedroom as restful flourishing. Many of these people have 6. Smoke. as possible. no property to worry about and are excited about the future of our city. Others, many of whom are older, are If you have concerns over sleep or bogged down with insurance issues other stress-related conditions talk and worry that Christchurch will never with your family doctor. be the same. For some families it’s one financial aftershock after another. All of us are over the never ending road works and road closures, and the loss of community facilities other cities take for granted. Now more than ever, we need to continue to look after ourselves and each other. Little things like getting 2 | Summer 2014 Caitlin Cowan (right) and the team. From cradle to … cradle Caitlin was born at 26 weeks, or 14 Caitlin says she’s always felt a calling Twenty-two-years ago a tiny Caitlin weeks premature, on April 24, 1992 to work as a nurse in the place where Cowan was just starting out life in Wellington Hospital’s neonatal unit, she spent the first few months of her life at home after spending the first weighing about 1100 grams. She is and feels extremely lucky to have got three months of it in Christchurch what some would say ‘a miracle baby’. a place on the NetP programme in the Women’s Hospital Neonatal Her mother had been transferred to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Wellington for an emergency caesarean Back in September Caitlin began a new “I’m really excited to go back. To get a section because there was no room in chapter in her life - and incredibly it’s place, finally, is amazing. It was my goal Christchurch’s Neonatal Intensive Care almost exactly back where she started. all the way through and I’ve made it to Unit at the time. where I always wanted to be.” Caitlin gained a position as a graduate “When I was born I wasn’t breathing nurse in Canterbury DHB’s Nursing Caitlin says NetP is a fantastic option and did not have a satisfactory entry to Practice (NetP) programme for graduate nurses. heartbeat for the first eight minutes working in the Neonatal Intensive Care of my life - I should have had a lot of “NetP provides us with additional Unit, after completing a Bachelor of permanent health issues from that - so support and guidance throughout our Nursing at CPIT. it is really quite amazing I haven’t,” first year of practice as newly qualified “It’s sort of surreal at the moment; going Caitlin says. registered nurses, rather than being back as a Registered Nurse to where I thrown in the deep end straight away.” After a month in Wellington Caitlin started life,” Caitlin says. was transferred to Christchurch’s Caitlin is looking forward to developing “It’s an amazing feeling to think I will be Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, where her skills and also hopes many of the the person who gives neonatal babies she stayed for another three months families she meets in the Neonatal and their families the same wonderful until she was strong enough to go Intensive Care Unit will gain a sense of care I received and to work alongside home on oxygen support. hope when they hear her story. some of the nurses who may have cared for me.” WellNow Canterbury | 3 Tiny Adventures is going nationwide! A new tool developed in the aftermath of the earthquakes will help parents around New Zealand spend more quality time with their children. Tiny Adventures is a new app for available for the rest of New Zealand,” smartphones that has been developed she says. in partnership between SKIP (Strategies Sue Turner says Cantabrians are grateful with Kids, Information for Parents) and for all the support we’ve received from the All Right? campaign. our friends around the country. All Right? manager Sue Turner says “This is a small way of saying thanks for the Tiny Adventures concept was that,” Sue says. developed in response to All Right? Anna says playing with your kids builds research that showed parents are under Anna Mowat, SKIP Community strong relationships and healthy brains. pressure in Canterbury. Coordinator says SKIP has funded the “Even if you’ve only got a minute, you development of the app to enable all “Our research found that parents have time for a Tiny Adventure!” are among those hit hardest by New Zealand parents to have access to the stressors associated with the Tiny Adventures, for free. The Tiny Adventures App can be downloaded for free from the App earthquakes. Not only do they have Its release is also a step forward for the Store for Apple devices and Google children to look after, but may also campaign, Anna says. have property issues to deal with (from Play for Android. “Until now, everything All Right? has finding somewhere to live to managing The App was launched at Niu Preschool done has been solely for Cantabrians. repairs and insurance issues) and can in Linwood, Christchurch. Photos here: It’s nice that this element is now have older parents to look after as well,” Tiny Adventures launch. Sue Turner says. Tiny Adventures began as a set of oversized playing cards that offered KEEN FOR ideas, games and quick, fun ways for parents to spend time with their children. SOME QUICK, Each set of cards has fun activities that take anywhere from one minute to an FUN FAMILY hour, and include items like “bouncy balloony fun” and “jokey journeys” as ACTIVITIES? well as arts and crafts activities. The Download our Tiny cards have been an enormous hit, with Adventures app today! more than 17,000 packs being given out over the past six months. “In fact, they’ve been almost too popular,” Sue Turner says. “We haven’t Launching Launching thethe app app at at Linwood’s really needed to promote them as allright.org.nz Linwood Niu NiuPreschool Preschool demand has been high from the start.” 4 | Summer 2014 Be a summer starter! All Right? is getting behind The Press’ Summer Starter fun run and walk. All Right? research shows that many people in Canterbury aren’t doing many of the little things that can have the biggest impact on their wellbeing. We’re not socialising with others as much, we’re not Parking arrangements as physically active, we’re not as connected to nature, and we feel for Christchurch hospital we’ve got more health issues than before the earthquakes.