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BERWICK AREA HEART SUPPORT GROUP
SEPTEMBER 2009 NEWSLETTER
Next meeting
One of our new members, Andy Stockdale from Ford, will provide a small exhibition of his own wood-turning, including bowls and lamp stands made from unusual wood. In gratitude for his own treatment, he has made and sold these on behalf of the Cardiac Unit at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and more recently the NHS in Coldstream. He has raised over £21,000 so far.
Phil will give a slide-show of photos from 1943 that illustrate the remarkable response of Britain to the food crisis during the War when increased home production was urgently needed.
Thanks
Many thanks again to Dr Wooding for her return visit this August. It was good to have a well-attended meeting and again to welcome newcomers to the Group.
Dr Wooding is a local GP. ‘Cardiac’ is not her own speciality – she attends more to asthma, and alcohol and other drug abuse, - but she hoped to explain how she as a GP together with the practice team is available to heart patients.
Topics from August Meeting Discussion with Dr Wooding
Swine Flu
In Berwick we are seeing better outcomes than we normally see with the usual ‘winter flu’.
If you are a heart patient and your temperature goes to 38 degC or above, phone your doctor. They will call you back. If they prescribe Tamiflu because of, for example, possible issues with bronchitis or angina, then somebody (not you) should collect the medication on your behalf
Tamiflu’ is not a cure, and for healthy individuals not at higher risk, even if taken early enough, might only make a quicker return to work of 6 days rather than 7 days.
The Swine Flu vaccine is not tested yet, but the usual ‘winter flu’ jab in October is a good idea. Swine Flu jabs will also become available for the most vulnerable.
There was some discussion in the meeting of a ‘second-round’ of Swine Flu, which seems inevitable, but medical opinion is of the view that as long as the virus stays the same it will not be a serious threat to most people who get infected. Some possibility obviously exists of a new strain emerging somewhere in the world, for instance by combining with other types of flu, but even if that occurs we should hope that effective enough vaccines will be available by then.
Local NHS response after a ‘Cardiac Event’
An MI / stent, that is, an acute event followed by hospital treatment, is followed by a letter to the GP. The cardiac nurse should then rapidly make a first appointment. The possibility of a patient missing-out on this contact was discussed with Dr Wooding. It is acknowledged that GP locums need to be on-the-ball and up-to-speed on local procedures, and that a long-term ‘visitor patient’ should be treated exactly as a resident patient, although one of our members was able to quote a case in the borough where such a patient missed out. People who have moved recently or have been treated outside of the region seem to be most at risk that the system will not pick them up straight away. We know also that some of the former functions of highly-trained District Nurses are now spread out among less-highly trained nurses, and co-ordination among more specialised cardiac nurses is necessary. [Notefrom Phil…As a Group have had contact with the local cardiac nurse and co-ordinator, April Long, who volunteered to attend one of our meetings a few months ago: we will ask her back early next year. We are also in contact with Cardiac Rehab co-ordinator Alice Whincup who liaises with cardiac nurses in the region.] If you have any queries whatever, especially about medication, ask your GP. It is normal to check repeat prescriptions and any ongoing long-term treatment and for the GP and nurses to get reports back from the patient. We had a long discussion with Dr Wooding of possible side-effects of medication. Seriously damaging side effects thankfully are rare, especially with the statins (stomach bleeds with aspirin; very rare dangerous muscle reactions with statins) but statins in particular can cause various discomforts, particularly muscle pain. Dr Wooding made the point that ringing the changes on the particular statin and its dose is usually successful in getting round these problems. There are also, these days, combinations of low dose statin with other drugs that do the same overall job of stabilising and protecting the arteries and can get round a particular patient’s problem. Dr Wooding included a brief reference to an (expensive) over-the-counter supplement CoEnzymeQ10 ** (see below) that has some reputation for alleviating statin side-effects; although studies are not sufficiently confirmed for this substance to be prescribed on the NHS.
Emergency procedures
There was some discussion of emergency procedures, especially for those of us with known heart problems. We know that because Berwick is far from the metropolitan areas of Tyneside and Edinburgh that we have a long way to go for specialist treatment such as stent placement and other intensive care. However, with paramedics now trained to use specialist equipment to diagnose chest pain and with their modern means to deal with heart attack, we are a lot safer than we were even a few years ago. The overall survivor numbers are much improved.
Chest pain
The chest pain clinic is now available especially for rapid checks on persons without known heart disease to see whether they have an underlying heart problem. Sorting out angina pain from other possible causes is important. [It is not always easy. In the past this Group had a member who was thought to have developed angina, but was finally given the OK. I hope though she is still doing the life-style changes she started when she thought she had angina. They will stand her in good stead for all kinds of health reasons as the years ago by. Phil]
**Note on CoEnzymeQ10
This is a naturally occurring, and necessary, substance in the body that is produced in a similar manner to cholesterols. Levels or concentrations in the blood are about halved if you take a statin. Supplementation at 100 – 200mg/day is sufficient to restore blood levels. Supplementation appears totally harmless, if expensive, but it is not fully known whether it makes up for any side-effects from a statin.
Last month’s Newsletter
Some of you will have received by now a late copy of an abbreviated Newsletter intended for August that should have reached you before the meeting and the discussion with Dr Wooding.
A combination of technical problems and an unforeseen glitch in the posting system managed to defeat our team. (Note that Terry managed to get out a limited-edition, but the posting glitch then caused a delay in that getting to you.)
We have decided that we would repeat the following ‘core message’ that previously was in the August limited-edition of the Newsletter.
Encouragement
Welcometo the new members, who have begun to receive our Newsletter. Our ‘outreach’ has expanded because Terry has explored further ways of reaching you via Cardiac nurses, and Cardiac Rehab in Wooler and Belford. He has been able to do this on the back of the increased funding we received for the purpose.
Here is an outline of some of the points we as a group think are important, and the activities that we try to foster.
1. We are here for the members – you can tell your story, meet others who, over the years, have been through the various ‘mills’, and get a chance to ask a range of medics the questions that interest you. You will always know that there will be people who are interested in your progress.
2. In the first place we asked for NHS Cardiac Rehab, and then when it arrived gave it our long term support. We know this is proven to help you get back on your feet, feel well again, and that it will dramatically reduce your future risks.
3. We strongly support you taking your medications. With the advent of statins, the outlook has improved remarkably in the last 10 years. Medication does sometimes bring its own problems and you may need to be able to discuss a problem and ask questions. We hope to provide a forum where you can do that.
4. Medication works best if you can find ways to help your body help itself. The proven success of exercise (for example, exercise is a key to Cardiac Rehab) is obvious, but again, any problems can be discussed. Similarly, dietary changes that help prevent weight gain and involve you eating dramatically less saturated fat and salt and a great deal more fruit and vegetables, are not always easy. However, they can be done and the new cooking and eating (and even gardening) experience can become a fascinating past-time that you can share with others.
5. Last year we supported NHS Health Improvement who tested blood pressure in a large work-place in Berwick in order to detect and treat hypertension. We know that all the points raised in 4 above are proven to help normalise blood pressure. We like to reach out to people with raised blood pressure, or who have other ‘risk factors’ for heart disease, stroke, or peripheral artery disease.
Note. If you want to stop smoking, we will try to help as best we can.
6. We are always interested in reaching out to people with Type 2 Diabetes because of the strong link with increased risk of heart / arterial disease, and because, again, actions described in 4 above are proven to help, often dramatically. We will welcome a Diabetes Consultant at a forthcoming meeting scheduled for October.
7. We know that there is a link between heart disease and emotional stability and welfare. This issue was explored again by a recent speaker, NHS Clinical Psychologist Graeme Gillespie, and a write-up was in July’s Newsletter. If you missed or would like another copy of that Newsletter you can just ask, or you can read it online at our award-winning Website that is maintained by Terry.
8. We are not just ‘medical topics’, or even the interesting ‘alternative therapies’ such as breathing exercises. We have had some great speakers on local matters, for example, recently; old-time farm work, Berwick Archives, CAB. If you can think of speakers who could bring fun and interest, please let us know.
Wally’s Yarn
A blonde calls her boyfriend and says, "Please come over here and help me. I have a killer jigsaw puzzle, and I can't figure out how to get it started." Her boyfriend asks, "What is it supposed to be when it's finished?" The blonde says, "According to the picture on the box, it's a tiger."
Her boyfriend decides to go over and help with the puzzle. She lets him in and shows him where she has the puzzle spread all over the table. He studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then turns to her and says, "First of all, no matter what we do, we're not going to be able to assemble these pieces into anything resembling a tiger.
He takes her hand and says, "Second, I want you to relax. Let's have a nice cup of tea, and then .." He sighed...... ....... "Let's put all the Frosted Flakes back in the box....."
Terry’s having a rant this week !!!!!!!
I am looking forward to the slides that Phil has ontheresponse of Britain to the food crisis during the War, and to compare how times have changed
It is now the normal to see the farmer in his field not with his big shire horses or a little tractor and plough or even his trusty dog!, these have all been replaced by a hand held computer, ( GPS ground position satellite ) and a mobile phone stuck in his earhole steering his monster 4x4 with his free hand, they need all this high tech gear to ensure that all the machinery is in the correct field at the correct time and operating from the same satelite, (The field size today being the size of the average farm during the war years,) you can look over the hedge into a field during harvest time and see a combine cutting, baler baling, plough ploughing, sower sowing, all at the same time, so the field of corn you pass in the morning is a newly planted field of corn when you return a few hrs later, you then rush to home check the calendar to find out if you’ve lost a week somewhere. Growing in the next field is a crop of potatoes which have a hose dotted with tiny holes planted along every drill into which the farmer continually pumps water and who knows what else (except for the few days it rains during the summer) this ensures he has a good crop of water melons (sorry I mean potatoes) for sale, when the crop is ready he then sprays it with some chemical to burn of the foliage (tattie shaw) , again you can find them harvesting , ploughing and planting all at the same time. could it be that modern farming requires plants to be ground at all times to stop the wind blowing the soil away?
Modern farming methods show no respect for the soil and use soil as nothing more than a growing medium to add the various nutritions that a particular plant needs. Why can’t farming return to mixed farming and crop rotation where the soil gets a rest, and the use of proper fertilisers (cow crap) then the soil would reverts back to being black and crumbly, full of texture, not brown and sandy like dust,
There are numerous farms working similar to the old fashioned way of farming using modern techniques, nowadays they call it “organic “ and charge extortionate prices, surely there must be common ground between both systems with farming producing a quality product with taste without ruining the soil for future generations
PS.
I went to Gala last week and travelled about 25miles before I seen a field with any cattle or sheep in it !!!!
Then there were fields full of suckler cows & calves and some black faced sheep,I then passed a smallholding, with pigs in a field, chickens running round the barns, then I came back down to earth more cultivated fields as far as you could see.
Terry
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