Asbestos waste dumped at the side of the road in New Inns, Great Harwood

Just a few weeks ago it was reported to the Council in Lancashire that hazardous Asbestos waste had been dumped at the side of the road in a lay by.

Witnesses have been asked to come forward if they have any details in relation to this deadly fly tipping.

By law, Asbestos waste must be packed in approved packaging with a hazard sign including a special ‘Asbestos code information’ clearly labelled. Asbestos waste should also be double wrapped and not overfilled. It must also be disposed of at a licenced waste site and a consignment note must be completed and retained for 3 years.

Asbestos fibres can cause serious health problems and current estimates confirm that approximately £5,000 workers are killed every year as a result of exposure to deadly asbestos fibres. It has been estimated that around 20 tradesmen die each week as a result of past exposure.

This story highlights why Asbestos is so dangerous, it is often when the Asbestos is being removed that workers – or in this case anyone stopping for a break in the lay by – are exposed to the deadly Asbestos fibres.

The NHS has issued a safety alert to GP’s after finding that there have been 10,000.00 cases of poor communication between Hospitals and GP’s regarding patient care once patients are discharged.

Inaccurate and illegible notes sent from Hospitals to GP’s are causing huge problems. NHS England have reported that there have been over 10,000.00 cases in the past year where mistakes around the time the patient was discharged caused problems even resulting in death.

NHS England has now demanded that all local organisations identify any work they have done to improve discharge summaries with a view to creating a national standard pro forma to reduce variations and errors.

Dr Mike Durkin of NHS England patient safety said: “the alert is intended for all health care providers including GP’s. Although compliance is voluntary for primary care, we strongly encourage all general practices to support this programme by helping us build a national picture of current practice and challenges relating to communication during handover at the time of discharge from secondary care”.

For the first time in 133 years, Midwives went on strike last month. The reason – pay! The protests came following the Government’s decision not to implant a 1% salary rise that was recommended for all NHS workers in an independent pay review. On average a midwife receives £32,000.00 so do they deserve a rise?

Jeremy Hunt’s response sets out the position “such an increase across the board would mean the Hospital Chief Executives would have to lay off 14,000 Nurses over the next 2 years”.

Is this really what it would amount to, I ask? Are there no other steps that could be made to save money and ensure that, what always appears to be a short staffed NHS, does not become even more skeletal? The Telegraph reports that the NHS has spent £584.7m on outside management consultations in the last year and Hospital Chief Executives have an average wage of £164,000.00 and their salaries have risen 6 times the rate of Nurses!

We know that earlier this year the Queen Elizabeth Hospital suspended its home birth service for 6 months due to a shortage of Midwives. In addition, both the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital were looking at ways to expand their maternity services after it emerged that women in labour had been turned away because maternity wards were full.

With a shortage of Midwives, this decision not to grant a 1% salary rise may not do much to entice those contemplating a profession in Midwifery.

We are hosting a Christmas Charity Bake Sale to raise money for The Big C Centre and The Norfolk Hospice on Tuesday 9^th December 2014 from 12pm to 4pm.

Our staff will be baking and selling a variety of tasty homemade cakes and treats served with tea and coffee.

All proceeds raised will be donated equally between our two chosen charities; The Big C Centre and The Norfolk Hospice Tapping House.

The Big C Centre was founded in 1980 when two Norfolk men were diagnosed with cancer and found themselves having to travel to London for treatment, which was sometimes harder than the treatment itself. They pledged that the people of Norfolk & Waveney would have access to treatment and support locally. Now, over thirty years later, this is being realised more than ever, with over £20 million being raised since Big C began. Local hospitals have up-to-date surgical and diagnostic equipment, research at the UEA has made some incredible discoveries and support for those affected by cancer is reaching out to those who need it, closer to them. The Big C Centre support the patients and families affected by cancer to try and help bear the unbearable. For further information please see their website http://www.big-c.co.uk/.

The Norfolk Hospice provides care, comfort and compassion for people who are nearing the end of their life and to their families and friends. They care for people with various cancers, heart and lung conditions, and neurological diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and Parkinson’s Disease. Their services include day respite, home care, outpatient services and support for patients, carers and bereaved. They receive just 10% funding from the NHS, which is well below the average 35%, so they rely on donations and volunteer work greatly. For further information please see their website http://www.norfolkhospice.org.uk/.

We would be really grateful if you and your family and friends could come along and show your support for these amazing charities and the incredible work they do.

It is a funny world that we live in, you never know what you are going to hear next. Times change very quickly. Women are independent, have equal rights and careers of their own. So what do we think about the recent articles in which Apple and Facebook have announced a new office perk – to pay for female employees to freeze their eggs?

Is this a fantastic opportunity for females. No need for that forced ‘career break’ at that key time after all those years establishing yourself just because of the ticking body clock. Could freezing your eggs be the ultimate solution for the female who does want her career to be dictated by her body clock?

Or is this simply crazy? Are these companies effectively playing God?

At the end of the day the decision has to be down to the individual. It was interesting to read the Telegraph’s article ‘the facts don’t lie: we haven’t cracked egg freezing. Not even close’. We have all heard about females freezing their eggs. This article reveals the statistics of how successful egg freezing has been. The figures are surprising. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority which is the UK’s independent regulator of the use of embryos records the following statistic:

‘Up to December 2012 around 18,000 eggs have been stored in the UK for patients own use. Around 580 embryos from stored eggs have been created. These embryos were transferred to women in around 160 cycles, which resulted in around 20 live births’.

It has therefore been calculated that there is only a 12.5 per cent chance of a woman having a baby after a cycle of frozen egg IVF.

So can you put a price on the ever ticking body clock? Would you accept £12,570 to freeze your eggs so you can continue with your career? Is £12,570 enough? What about the statistics covering the health risks to females who become pregnant over the age of 40? In addition, what about the increased health risks to the unborn child?

It is certainly an interesting topic. The Times reports that the number of mothers over the age of 35 has almost reached parity to those under 25. With how the times keep changing I wonder what the statistics will look like in 5 years’ time…