Posts filed under 'Opinion'
Most people are aware of the fact physical activity can reduce stress but an article in the Irish Independent today contained a passage that explains better than I have seen elsewhere.
“If, by around 4pm, it feels as if a stressful day at work has turned your brain to blancmange, it might not only be down to overwork or a shortage of double espressos. We respond to stress in the same way our ancestors did – by adopting a “fight or flight” response. Adrenalin and other hormones are released into our bloodstreams and our muscles are primed for response. The problem is that, these days, stress is more likely to be brought on by a tricky PowerPoint presentation or a job interview than an attack by marauding lions, so the toxins that build up for a physical response have no outlet. The results can be good; the cardiovascular system is accelerated and we can work harder (for a while, at least), but others are not so good; stress slows down the gastrointestinal system and reduces appetite, and can overexcite the brain, fuzzing our thought. By responding to or anticipating stress with fight (kickboxing or judo, say) or flight (30 minutes on the treadmill, say, or 50 lengths of the pool), blood flow to the brain is increased, allowing the body to purge the potentially toxic by-products of stress. According to Ratey, exercise also helps in the long term. “It builds up armies of antioxidants such as Vitamins E and C,” he says. “These help brain cells protect us from future stress.”
March 25th, 2008
Hypoglycaemia Diabetes expert CathyMoulton says that hypoglycaemia is what happenswhen the blood’s sugar level drops too low. “If a diabetic becomes hypo, they might complain of tingling lips, feel anxious and start to perspire,” she says. The easiest form of treatment is consuming rapid-acting glucose in the form of a non-diet drink, a glucose tablet or glucose gel that can be squeezed into the mouth. “If you encounter someone who you think is suffering from hypoglycaemia then it’s a case of pointing it out to the person and giving them their hypo treatment. About 15 minutes later, to keep blood glucose levels up, the sufferer should consume a slower-acting carbohydrate such as a sandwich or some biscuits.” If they’re not treated, then diabetics can fall unconscious – in which case nothing should be given by mouth and an ambulance should be called immediately.
Heart attack
“Doubt kills” is the name of the latest campaign from the British Heart Foundation, the idea behind which is that every five minutes somebody in the UK dies from a heart attack – often because people are unsure what to do. June Davison, a BHF cardiac nurse, explains that the most important thing you can do is call 999 immediately if you suspect someone is suffering from a heart attack. “The quicker someone suffering from a heart attack gets treatment, the higher the chances are that they won’t die,” she says. “Then it’s important to make sure that the casualty sits and rests while waiting for paramedics to arrive. Don’t let them move about. A commonly held belief is that they should take an aspirin immediately, but anyone having a heart attack shouldn’t wander around the house looking for aspirin. Instead, call an ambulance and make sure the casualty is comfortable, then locate some aspirin for them to take. Don’t let them put any unnecessary strain on the heart.”
Burns
“Butter, oil, grease – I’ve even heard about honey being used on burns – but all these things only help the burn to continuing burning,” says James. “Burnt skin is very hot and that is what’s causing the pain so you need to get rid of the heat. Place the burn under a cold tap for 10 minutes. If it’s a chemical burn, then double the time under the tap because you’re trying to get rid of the chemical and stop the burning.” Generally, says James, if the burn is no bigger than the size of the palm of the person’s hand, it won’t need medical treatment. However, the elderly and very young are more susceptible to the after-effects of burns, so even if it’s smaller than the palm, they may still need to go to hospital. “Once the burn has cooled down, cover the affected area with clingfilm. Put it over the burn but don’t wrap it tightly. If you don’t have any clingfilm, use a clean dressing from a first aid kit or a clean cloth. This will protect it from infection and stop it getting knocked. If burn blisters break, then the wound is open to infection.”
Choking
“The most common misconception with choking is that everyone needs the Heimlich manoeuvre,” says Clive James, senior training officer at St John Ambulance. “In most cases, if you can get the person who is choking to do a big cough, the obstruction will come out.” If that doesn’t work, he says, bend the casualty forward and slap them five times between the shoulder blades quite hard. “You need to bring the heel of your hand right down on the middle of their back. Then it’s important to check the mouth.” If you’ve cleared the blockage you’ll know, because the first thing the person will do is take a big gasp of breath in.
But if the choking persists, “you need to do what we call the abdominal thrust – what’s called the Heimlich manoeuvre in America,” he says. “Stand behind the casualty, put both arms around them and put one clenched fist between the navel and the bottom of the breast bone. Then put the other hand over the top and grab your wrist, pull in and upwards sharply up to five times. If that still doesn’t clear the blockage, then go back to doing the back slaps and alternate between five back slaps and five abdominal thrusts. If you’ve repeated that cycle three times to no effect then you should call an ambulance.”
With children, the advice is very much the same, except that you have to remember to be more gentle and St John Ambulance advises that if you perform an abdominal thrust on anyone, adult or child, they should go to hospital for a check up.
Epileptic fit
According to Epilepsy Action 456,000 people – one in every 131 – in the UK have epilepsy. If someone is having a seizure, it is important to protect the person from injury by removing any harmful objects from nearby and cushioning their head. If the casualty is someone you don’t know, look for an epilepsy identity card or identity jewellery. Once the seizure has finished, breathing can be aided by gently placing them in the recovery position. Don’t restrain the person, don’t try to bring them round, don’t move them unless they are in danger of injuring themselves and don’t give them anything to eat or drink until they are fully recovered. Epilepsy Action recommends calling 999 if “you know it is the person’s first seizure, the seizure continues for more than five minutes or if one seizure follows another without the person regaining consciousness.”
Unconsciousness
“If someone is knocked unconscious, you need to make sure the casualty is breathing and put them into the recovery position,” says James. To do this, start with the victim lying on their back and with the legs straight out. Kneel on one side of the victim, facing the victim. Move the arm closest to you, so it is perpendicular to the body, with the elbow flexed. Move the farthest arm across the body so that the hand is resting across the torso. Bend the leg farthest from you so the knee is elevated. Reach inside the knee to pull the thigh toward you. Use the other arm to pull the shoulder that is farthest from you. Roll the body toward you and leave the upper leg in a flexed position to stabilise the body. “The most important thing is to protect their airway – if that blocks with vomit, saliva, blood or their tongue, they can die. After putting them in the recovery position, call 999.”
Bleeding
“If someone’s bleeding, your main priority is to stop the bleeding as quickly as possible,” says James. “Direct pressure and elevation are what’s needed, so put something over the wound and, if you don’t have anything else – and you know the person concerned – put your hand over it, as long as you don’t have cuts and abrasions on your hand. If you have gloves, so much the better.” James advises that if it’s an arm or a leg that’s bleeding, you should put your hand over the wound, squeeze it tight and raise the limb.
“If it’s a bad cut, people may well feel shocked, so they might feel dizzy – in that case, lay them down, with the legs lifted. The last thing you want is for them to fall over while you’re trying to treat the bleeding. If someone is so dizzy they can’t stand up, you should call an ambulance.” If you have any doubts about whether someone should go to hospital, contact a doctor or NHS Direct.
Asthma attack
“The seriousness of an asthma attack can be underestimated, even by healthcare professionals,” says Sally Rose, an asthma nurse for Asthma UK. According to the charity’s statistics, about 90 per cent of deaths relating to asthma could be prevented through an improvement in emergency asthma care. “In the event of an attack, you should encourage the person to try to relax and stay calm. Then they should take their reliever inhaler, which is usually blue. This can be used every minute for five minutes during an attack. If symptoms don’t improve after five minutes, call 999.” The person should continue to take one puff from their reliever every minute until help arrives. Sit the person down, but don’t let them lie down, and loosen any tight clothing. “If the attack has been caused by an allergic response to something, find out if the sufferer has an EpiPen (an auto-injector of adrenalin) and use it,” she advises. And if the sufferer is unconscious, try to resuscitate them, then call an ambulance.
Breathing has stopped
Use CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). Attempt to wake the casualty. If they do not wake, check ABCs and call 999. If the casualty wakes, moans or moves, do not proceed with CPR.
1. Check ABCs:
Airway – look for chest movement, look for throat obstruction
Breathing – listen and feel for air flow through mouth or nose
Circulation – look for pulse in wrist and neck
2. If the casualty isn’t breathing, open their airway. Tilt head back, use two fingers to lift chin. Begin rescue breaths. Pinch casualty’s nose, make a seal over their mouth with yours, and give a breath big enough to make their chest rise. (For babies and small children, cover mouth and nose and give a gentle breath). Let chest fall. Repeat twice for adults, five times for babies and small children.
3. If there is no circulation, begin chest compressions. Place heel of hand in middle of casualty’s chest. Place other hand on top of first and interlace fingers. (Use two fingers for babies and small children.) Compress chest to a third of its depth. Lift off and allow chest to recoil completely. Perform 30 compressions at the rate of 100 per minute.
4. Repeat rescue breaths and chest compressions alternately for two minutes.
5. Continue to check ABCs and perform CPR and rescue breaths until ambulance arrives.
March 12th, 2008
I read the following in the Examiner and on Digg today about the Music Industries trying to force Eircom to filter my internet connection and limit my bandwidth.
A) Why should any ISP monitor traffic. I don’t want anybody monitoring any of my activies be they on the internet or elsewhere. I value my privacy. Not that I have anything to hide mind I just don’t trust the competence of the people holding this data.
Also I download legal files using torrents etc. so why should I suffer downloading these files because people choose to use that technology to download copyrighted material?
B) Why is downloading movies “hogging bandwidth”? I paid for my DSL line. Why shouldn’t I use it. I think this is why this action will never win. If Eircom limit the bandwidth you can use for torrents etc. people won’t need bigger, and more expensive connections, and Eircom will lose money.
So to save this money Eircom will fight tooth and nail. Which is good news for the rest of us.
From The Examiner:
——————
As CD sales on the Irish market continue to plummet, showing losses of €44 million in the past six years, four of the largest record companies have taken Eircom to the High Court over illegal music downloads.
In the first case of its kind, the record companies are taking on the primary internet service provider rather than individual so-called pirates.
The music industry estimates that for every single legal download there are 20 illegal ones. Latest figures show that on a global scale 20 billion music files were illegally downloaded in 2006.
Because of illegal downloading and other market factors, the Irish music industry is experiencing “a dramatic and accelerating decline” in income, said Willie Kavanagh, managing director of EMI records (Ireland) and chairman of the Irish Recorded Music Association.
The Irish market for sound recordings suffered a decline in total sales from €146m in 2001 to €102m last year, a fall of 30%, he said.
A substantial portion of the decline in sales could be attributed to illegal downloading services and the increasing availability of broadband internet access here, said Mr Kavanagh.
He said legal actions brought against persons with the highest numbers of illegal files on their computers at specific times had proven very costly and time consuming. The companies believed selective legal action was not sufficient to safeguard their property rights.
The four leading record labels — EMI, Sony, Universal and Warner — have brought the High Court action aimed at compelling Eircom, as the largest broadband internet service provider in the state, to take specific measures to prevent its networks being used for the illegal free downloading of music.
The companies are challenging Eircom’s refusal to use filtering technology or other appropriate measures to voluntarily block or filter material from its network, which is being used to download music in violation of the companies’ copyright and licensing rights.
The proceedings arose after Eircom told the companies last October it was not in a position to run the filter software on its servers.
In his affidavit, Mr Kavanagh outlined measures by the record industry aimed at discouraging record piracy, including public awareness campaigns and legal actions against individuals engaged in piracy.
Mr Kavanagh said illegal downloaders come from all walks of life and the reality for many young people was that they have never known a position where they actually have to pay for sound recordings.
From Digg:
——————
It looks like the IFPI has shifted its focus from the individual filesharer to the ISPs. Last month, the IFPI won a court case in Denmark, and the ISP “Tele2″ was ordered to block all access to The Pirate Bay. Tele2 announced later that it will fight the decision.
Banning illegal filesharing from their network, voluntary or not, is in the best interest of ISPs according to the IFPI: “Illegal P2P file-sharing may have helped drive broadband subscriptions in the past, yet today these activities, particularly in respect of movies, are hogging bandwidth,” they state.
March 11th, 2008
Many of you are probably wondering why I haven’t said anything about the Cork GAA trouble that’s happening at the moment. The reason is I was undecided about how I felt about in. I always agreed with the players that the coach should be allowed to pick his backroom staff, which I said to the Examiner when asked at a recent rally about the issue. Otherwise it would be difficult to get the best man for the job.
However I didn’t agree with going on strike and refusing to play.
This morning I heard on the radio that they might be a solution imminent as they are entering into binding arbitration. Which basically means they are getting someone in from the outside who will pick a winner, and both sides have agreed to be bound by his decision.
I hope they find in favour of the coach picking his own team but on the other hand I worry that the players will strike again in the future over something else. They should really ensure that another option is made available to them when there are issues like this in the future. And I believe Frank Murphys powers should be reduced because I personally put the blame squarely on his shoulders for this.
I am a member of 2 GAA clubs and no one has asked me my opinion on this. It is just the County Board (i.e. Murphy) making decisions for the rest of the county.
On a lighter note here are two of the funnier jokes I got on this.
It looks like Pairc Uí Caoimh is up for rent on Daft.ie. Or see a screen shot here if it has been taken down.
And it seems the Cork strike it affecting Corks youngest supporters the most. 
February 15th, 2008
Found this nice graphic. Would be pretty useful for the bottom of signatures.
To use it yourself you can use the following html.
<a href="http://www.danasoft.com"><img src="http://www.danasoft.com/vipersig.jpg" border="0" /></a><p style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px">Sign by Dealighted - <a href="http://www.dealighted.com">Coupons and Deals</a></p>
January 26th, 2008
I got a new camera yesterday. Nice one to a Samsung L830. I got it in Currys in Mahon. Funny thing was that I went into PC World first (who have had their Irish Website shutdown because they didn’t pay for it) but they wouldn’t show me the camera before I bought it! I asked the guy could he turn it on so I can see how the controls work, what the display size was like and how the picture appeared on the display. Very strange. I mean why would I want to buy a camera that I haven’t seen? That’s like buying a car that I couldn’t take for a test drive.
So I went next door to Currys and they showed me the camera, gave me the book so I could see the specs and let me play with it for a while. I was looking dubious so the guy said I could exchange it for a different camera if I didn’t like it. Perfect! So a sale of Currys at the expense of PC World all for the sake of plugging in a camera and leaving me look at it for 5 minutes.
Actually I got a few camera this year. I got an underwater camera and a video camera as well. All of them work perfectly in Linux. I’ve been using the Gimp and Picasso to edit the photos and the brilliant Kino to take videos from the camera.
The underwater camera also takes movies with sound underwater which is pretty cool. The picture quality isn’t the best but by messing with some of the settings I am getting them better and better. Pictures taken with a flash are perfect but that’s no use when I take it scuba diving as particles in the water will obscure the shot. Anyway I am sure I will figure it out.
January 2nd, 2008
Well work is nearly finished. Another Christmas Day working at the office is nearly done. It was great. Only a few calls from Asia and Israel and the whole Christmas has just passed me by. It was a good one this year. Avoided the town for my grocery shopping, not many decorations are work or home, (I let Lorri but up a few lights this year) and working all this week so it feels like any other week. The only hassle was the traffic over the last few weeks on my way home from work. But that’s all over now and there is no traffic today so I can enjoy my drive home.
Next month in January. I love it, the longest possible time away from Christmas and the start of a fresh year with fresh possibilities. It’s great. And I have the whole first week of becuase I worked all of Christmas Week. Going to go out an enjoy myself. Happy New Year!
December 25th, 2007
You know they keep telling us we are spending more money on Health Care than other countries, and in fairness I kind of believe them. The problem is the money is being spent on administrators who couldn’t organise a piss-up in a brewery. I read the following article in todays’ Independent. Looks like the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. It’d be funny if it was happening in a Health Service.
“A FARCICAL situation has emerged whereby one hospital has a new CT scanner but no staff, while a nearby hospital has the specialised staff but no CT machine to operate.
Opposition TDs have criticised the fiasco, saying it further highlights the fragmented nature of the Health Service Executive (HSE) and an inability by management to marry resources with personnel.
Nenagh Hospital in Tipperary has a state-of-the-art CT scanner and a room built specially to house it — but the required specialised staff numbers have not been sanctioned.
But less than 60km away in Ennis General Hospital, Co Clare, funding has been approved for more than six staff to operate the CT service. However, there is no scanner and nowhere to house it.
Labour councillor Alan Kelly said that with the ongoing recruitment ban, there is little hope of Nenagh getting additional funding for the specially trained staff. He said staff and management at the hospital are increasingly frustrated at “meeting brick walls” at every turn.
“The manager of the hospital finds the whole situation crazy,” said Mr Kelly.
“He has been trying to get the funding but this year Nenagh Hospital got one of lowest allocations in the budget in the country.”
He accused the HSE of having an agenda and attempting to close the hospital by stealth.
However, he said the local community will fight them every step of the way, pointing out that the hospital covers a huge area.
There are also concerns the scanner will be obsolete before it becomes operational because the technology moves forward so quickly.
The same problem existed in Louth for some time. Patients from Louth County Hospital in Dundalk had to be ferried to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda for treatment. The scanner in Dundalk was opened in April by Health Minister Mary Harney but it is still not operating for a full working week. Staff from Drogheda travel to Dundalk to operate it as there is no separate staff allocation.
Fine Gael health spokesman Dr James Reilly said local managers are becoming increasingly frustrated. “This is just another example of the ongoing and systematic mismanagement of the HSE,” he said.
“Local managers are getting more frustrated because to get anything done they have to go all the way to the top to get it back down again to local level.”
In Mallow, Co Cork, the same type of scanner has been idle for a year since it arrived, three years after the date it was first promised.
In August ads were placed to find a clinical specialist radiographer and senior radiographer. However, thanks to the ongoing recruitment ban, patients continue to have to travel by ambulance to Cork University Hospital for CT scans.”
December 10th, 2007
I read in the Examiner today that the two panels are now on strike. It is no longer just the footballers!
“As of now, the Cork players are officially unavailable to the hurling and football managers. They have resigned from the panels.”
So what does this mean? Does it mean we are going to give our opponents a walkover in matches, maybe even not contest the Championship in the Summer?
“There is a clear understanding among the group that this could mean opting out of inter-county action for the year. Some have already presumed that.”
I agree with the sentiments of the panel, not allowing the coach to pick his selectors is a stupid move but surely if the clubs voted that was the players should follow it? I mean that is democracy after all. You have to go with the will of the majority, even if the majority are idiots? I mean just look at the Government we’ve had for the last few years.
I don’t know if I agree with them going on strike. Perhaps holding up games for a few minutes or something a little less extreme would sit better with people. They’ll have to be careful now that a new panel is drafted in and they lose their place. I mean it is a team sport. People come to follow Cork and not necessarily the individuals who are playing for Cork. As long as there is a Cork team on the field Cork people will follow it, regardless of who makes it up.
I really hope they County Board and the clubs rescind the ruling for the good of Cork hurling. But they may not because of the strike action. They will probably be worried if they rescind the ruling the players will go on strike for any little grievance in the future.
However the last time they went on strike they came out playing better than ever after it. So maybe it might be for the best after all.
December 10th, 2007
Everyone is talking about the robbery in Guinness this week. However I think people are missing the real crime here. The mark-up on beer put on by the Government and Publicans. From the Irish Independent “A man drove a truck into the company’s famous Dublin brewery and hitched up a trailer containing 450 kegs of different beers before escaping through the front gates.
Diageo, the drinks company that owns Guinness, Budweiser and Carlsberg, said yesterday that the tab stands at €64,000.
That works out at less than €1.60-a-pint, as it does not include mark ups by the Government or the publicans. In the pub, the haul would be worth €160,000.
“It’s a serious breach of our security. I spoke earlier to one of our supply guys who said it was unprecedented that this number — a full trailer of kegs — would be illegally taken off a site,” a spokeswoman for Diageo said yesterday.
“So obviously, we’re taking it extremely seriously. Full investigation ongoing but in terms of our own security procedures that we have in place by finding out what exactly happened and how it happened, and also working with the Gardaí.”
In the run up to Christmas there are more than 250 truck movements in and out of the St James’ Gate complex every day. At around four o’clock on Wednesday, a man drove a cab truck into the yard where there were three or four trailers loaded with kegs.
He hooked up one of the trailers containing 180 kegs of Guinness, 180 kegs of Budweiser and 90 kegs of Carlsberg, before calmly driving out the main gate.”
€1.60 for a pint! I’m paying nearly a fiver for mine.
November 30th, 2007
Previous Posts
Most people are aware of the fact physical activity can reduce stress but an article in the Irish Independent today contained a passage that explains better than I have seen elsewhere.
