The Diabetic Issue Number: - 7 Date: - December 2004 HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR The Newsletter of the Friends of the Manx Diabetes Centre Carrjyn Laare Chingys Shugyr Vannin The Support Group of the Manx Diabetes Centre Registered as a charity in the Isle of Man . Charity Number 894. Website: -www.diabetes.org.im e-mail: - [email protected] e-mai;: - [email protected] All monies from whatever source received by the Group shall be exclusively spent on the Isle of Man for the furtherance of the well-being of the diabetic patient and to facilitate the work of their medical carers. HbA1C blood testing machine presented to Manx Diabetes Centre The Minister for Health and Social Security talks to The Diabetic A Christmas Message from our Trustee the Rev. John Guilford The Group’s meeting with the Social Services In this Issue The Friends of the Manx * Major piece of equipment presented to the Manx Diabetes Centre by the Group Diabetes Centre present * Minister for Health and Social Security major piece of equipment talks to The Diabetic to the Centre. * Christmas message by our Trustee the Rev. John Guilford. The reason for the existence of the * Signs that may lead to misunderstandings Friends of the Manx Diabetes Centre th came to fruition, when on Tuesday 16 * Elderly care in the Community November they presented their first * The World Health Federation major piece of equipment to the Manx * Mannin Quilters raffle for their hand Diabetes Centre. made quilt. * Presentation to the Friends of the Manx Diabetes Centre by the Mannin Quilters. * Obesity who do we listen to * The Dorothy Metaxas Recipes * Harry the Computer guy * Bike Egypt and or Hike Peru * The Budding Journalist * Its that “WHY” again. * The Chairman’s Christmas Message The Presentation of the HbA1C All at Feegan’s Lounge . wish you a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year. The HbAIC analyser which cost the TheWe lookFriends forward toof welco themin Manxg you all Group £3,000 provides outstanding once again in 2005. accuracy and precision, is entirely self DiabaetFor all youes r CentreInternet requ presiremenentts contained and offers an invaluable Telephone (01624) 679280 indication of diabetic control over the Island, the DHSS controls the biggest preceding three month period. budget in Government finances. It monitors long-term well being and Whilst adamant that it is incumbent diabetic control, and helps make for them to deliver high standards of diabetic management in minutes. health care for our Island people, Mr You do not have to give blood from Rodan admits his department has to a vein, like you do at the blood clinic, meet considerable challenges when it works on your blood testing there are so many demands on the principle. public purse by other departments It is a machine that makes an other than health services. immediate difference in diabetes management, and it will give in clinic analytical results, with results available in 6 minutes. This is the first piece of substantial equipment that the Group is donating to the Manx Diabetes Centre in accordance with their mandate as contained in our constitution, that all monies collected from whatever source will be spent for the direct benefit of the Isle of Man diabetics and their medical carers. The Committee of the Friends of the Mr Steve Rodan Manx Diabetes Centre would like to Minister for Health and Social Security thank all their members and Friends who contributed to the successful With the help of dedicated staff his outcome of this invaluable ultimate goal is to ensure that the presentation. DHSS will be seen and perceived by the Manx people as the flagship of The Minister for Health Government departments in the Isle of and Social Security speaks Man. Mr Rodan who was born in Glasgow to The Diabetic. in 1954 came to the Island in 1987. Educated at the High School of Mr. Steve Rodan, the new Minister Glasgow, an early childhood memory for Health and Social Security sounded was a school trip in a steamer down the confident during a personal interview river Clyde. Unfortunately he says that for the Diabetic, that present problems, it only got him half way to the Isle of such as dentistry cover for all citizens, Man, so he had to wait sometime to out of hours medical cover for our arrive here. population, reducing hospital waiting He left Glasgow High with Highers lists, and residential care for the elderly in English, Chemistry, Maths, Latin, can be resolved. Greek, Geography and Economics. He recognizes that his department is His next academic achievements something of a hot potato. were at University, he attended Certainly as the largest department Edinburgh University for two years within government and the biggest studying chemistry, but then switched employer in public services on the to Heriot-Watt University also in Edinburgh from where he graduated His first appointment to a with a BSc in Pharmacy. government post was in 1995, when Mr Rodan has lead a colourful life Mr. Rodan was appointed to serve as having always maintained an interest Member for the Department of Local in politics since university, and in 1979 Government and Environment. He was stood as a candidate for the Scottish also Chairman of the Estates and Liberal Party, in Moray and Nairn. Housing Division, and then in 1997 he Unfortunately for them, but fortunately was appointed Chairman of the for us, he was not elected. Planning Committee until 1999 when At the time he was working as a he became Minister for Education. pharmacist in Inverness. He then left We wanted to know how he thought Scotland and from 1980 to 1987 he his tenure of office as Minister of took up a post as Pharmacy Manager in Education would go down in Manx a Pharmacy in Bermuda. history. From Bermuda he found his way to He explained that he felt whilst he the Isle of Man and he and his family was Minister of Education his main have been here ever since. objective was to further develop the He took over the Pharmacy in Laxey excellent standards of the Island’s which he owns, and has been running Educational System. The external it ever since. inspection of schools on the Island However his interest in politics had helped to improve and further these not diminished and he became a Laxey high standards, and he was pleased to Commissioner and then Chairman of have started Manx-medium primary the Commissioners. education at St John’s. It was in May 1995 that he was first Not to mention the establishment of elected to the House of Keys, at a by- the Business School, which in reality is election following the resignation of the first stage, he claimed, of a Dr Mann who had been elevated to the University for the Isle of Man. Legislative Council. This was all very well but the He has since held his seat at all Diabetic wanted to know what elections. qualifications he now felt he had to The Diabetic was curious as to why lead this very important and exacting Mr. Rodan had decided to enter Department of Health and Social politics on the Island. Security. He emphasized that he had always Mr Rodan told us that he had always been interested in politics and felt that been interested in the work of as he was now living in the Isle of Man Government, and not only working in he should put something back into the the political forum of parliamentary community. democracy, but working across the He had started with being a political spectrum was a real political commissioner and this progressed his challenge. interest in following and analysing Mr. Rodan believed that his local issues and how Government professional background in health influenced these local issues. This was matters would prove helpful to a challenge he could not bypass. progress the health services during his When the opportunity arose he took term as Minister for Health and Social it, and stood for Garff, the seat of the Security. late Sir Charles Kerruish. It was important though, to carry on helping his constituents to resolve their problems, and fight through the system Once again we would like to wish on their behalf, for they are the ones, Mr. Rodan every success as Minister he said, that put you where you are. for Health and Social Security, and Mr. Rodan, is married with two hope that his career will grow from daughters, one at present teaching in strength to strength, and that he will Spain having a degree in Spanish and once again triumph as Minister for French, and the other is at present at Health and Social Security, as he has Leeds University reading Business and done in everything he has set out to do. Psychology. Christmas was round the corner and A Christmas Message by The Diabetic invited Mr. Rodan to send a message to all his staff at the our Trustee the Reverend Hospitals and to all patients who were John Guilford. looked after by these wonderful people. As is now the norm we have once He wanted to wish them all, as he again asked our Trustee the Reverend put it, the greatest wish of all, Good John Guilford to give us his Christmas Health and best wishes to all who Message. worked in the health services, and to This has now become a welcome those who do the caring and who put in feature in our Christmas issue. an onerous and wonderful effort throughout the year. He had nothing but admiration for their patience and tenderness with their charges.