Elderly I may be, but some of us take a keen interest in our community through, for example, the Riv, and would like to be part of the result; as we can still read, write and talk. We have a voice too!
Robin Donaldson,
Moama
Celebrating the incredible Australians impacted by stroke
I write to thank your community for their interest and input to our annual Stroke Awards, which celebrate Australians for their care, courage and achievements in this important field.
This year, the winner of the Courage Award left barely a dry eye in the house.
The resilience shown by Victorian Nicole Gallacher, who had a stillborn baby after her stroke in November 2020, was amazing to see.
What made her accomplishment even more special is that she was joined on stage by her husband, Dave, who nominated her for the award, and their newborn baby, Angus, who was named after the neurosurgeons who saved her life.
Other award winners include the inspirational young Noah Barlow, who couldn’t attend the event, as he was in hospital.
The 13-year-old Victorian boy was honoured for his tireless efforts in lobbying for accessible playgrounds at his local primary school and playground.
He is a survivor of nine strokes and a huge Star Wars fan, and I was among a group of Stroke Foundation representatives who were lucky enough to hand deliver Noah’s award to him, along with Darth Vader, Stormtroopers and Princess Leia herself.
That was a moment both Noah and I won’t ever forget.
We also had the pleasure of recognising Queensland’s Douglas Hemming with a Creative Award.
Doug found art after his life-changing stroke.
He had worked as a teacher for five decades, right up until the day before his stroke in May 2021.
The personal stories of Nicole, Noah and Douglas were just a few of the awe-inspiring experiences we got to share during our annual awards ceremony.
They show courage, hope, resilience and are such a strong reminder of why we do what we do at the Stroke Foundation.
Nominees came from across Australia, and from all walks of life. It is always a joy to read their stories and meet the finalists at the event.
There are 445,000 Australians living with the impact of stroke.
That means there are people in every community who know exactly why stroke, awareness, treatment and recovery is so important, and the people who support those critical services are our heroes.
I hope to hear more stories of tenacity and achievements in our 2024 Stroke Awards, so please consider submitting a nomination to recognise and celebrate the people in your community.
Dr Lisa Murphy,
Stroke Foundation chief executive officer
Pearls of wisdom for John, Moira and Bev
This long-time Liberal Party member — and self-funded, Lib/Nat Coalition bomb-thrower — having great admiration for John Pesutto (admiration now waning), Moira Deeming (ambivalent) and Beverley McArthur (hero status) as individuals, throws into the ring the following Mexican, and French, pearls of wisdom:
Mexican adage: “The throat must pay for what the tongue may say.”
Montesquieu: “The sublimity of administration consists in knowing the proper degree of power that should be exerted on different occasions.”
Mexican adage: “Agreements should be clearly expressed, and chocolate served thick.”
Molière: “Unreasonable haste is the direct road to error.”
Howard Hutchins,
Chirnside Park
More needs to be done for Australians with mental illness
I write on behalf of the not-for-profit Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia to highlight that it is critical much more is done to help Australians who have a severe or complex mental illness.
Right now, a massive 154,000 Australians who have a severe and complex mental illness are getting absolutely no support from either the National Disability Insurance Scheme or other Commonwealth and state/territory programs.
Without adequate support, people with severe and complex mental illnesses may die up to 23 years earlier than the general population. About 50 per cent of people with the most severe mental illness attempt suicide (compared to 3.7 per cent of the general population). There is so much work to do.
We know there is a huge gap. It is undoubtedly time to close that gap. There are not enough services available to help people in trouble. Too many people wait for their distress to escalate into a full-blown crisis before they seek support at emergency departments.
We are working with a range of sector partners to outline how things could be changed. Progress has been so slow and it is quite unacceptable.
Recovery is possible. We have a major network which is called ‘Finding North Network’. It is a growing online community of people who want to share their experiences and help others. It is safe and secure.
It is a place where people with first-hand experiences of mental illness can connect as a community. It is a forum for people to share experiences and discuss ideas. We urge readers to visit — just go to www.findingnorthnetwork.com.au
Tony Stevenson,
Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia chief executive officer
Leading tobacco control experts call for urgent rethink on vaping
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler’s proposed vaping reforms will have serious and harmful consequences for public health in Australia, according to leading tobacco control and addiction experts.
Last week the experts from Australia and New Zealand wrote an open letter to the minister calling for an urgent rethink on the crackdown.
The proposed vaping reforms, announced earlier this month, will see a hardening of the failed prescription-only model and a ban on the importation of nicotine vapes for personal use. Flavours and nicotine concentrations will also be restricted for adult smokers wishing to switch from smoking to vaping, a far safer alternative.
The restrictions are effectively a de facto prohibition. However, history has shown that prohibitionist drug policies are rarely successful. The prescription model has been rejected by both doctors and consumers. In just 18 months since it was implemented by Greg Hunt, a dangerous black market for unregulated and potentially unsafe vaping products has become rampant across the country.
Measures to protect non-smoking youth are essential; however, the experts argue excessive regulation that makes vaping less accessible, less appealing, more expensive, or less effective perpetuates adult smoking and increases smoking-related death and illness.
The proposal will also create a substantial Medicare burden of an estimated $1.5 billion annually, if all of Australia’s two million vapers abide by the prescription pathway. This is very unlikely, however, as fewer than one in 10 vapers currently access nicotine vaping products through legal channels. The rest obtain these products via the black market.
With no additional funds being allocated to the Australian Border Force and significant strains placed on states and territories to carry out the burden of enforcement, it is highly unlikely that the black market will go anywhere anytime soon.
This means young people will continue to easily purchase potentially unsafe illegal vapes that do not provide basic consumer protections. Adult smokers will also have reduced access to an effective and popular quitting aid, which for many can be lifesaving.
The experts say the only way to eliminate a black market is to replace it with a legal, regulated one. A well-designed adult consumer regulatory model is most likely to achieve the two goals Mr Butler is seeking: making vaping products available as a quitting aid for adult smokers and minimising access by young people.
The letter comes at a time when the health minister has acknowledged that Australia’s smoking rate has “essentially flatlined”. A recent study estimated that Australia will not reach its target of five per cent daily smoking by 2030 until 2066.
Nicotine vaping products are the world’s most popular and most effective smoking quitting tool, twice as effective as nicotine replacement patches and gum. The experts say that vaping could help to accelerate the decline in smoking in Australia, as it has in other countries.
New Zealand adopted the adult consumer model in 2020 with much success. In just over two years, the country’s smoking rate declined by an unprecedented 33 per cent. In contrast, Australia’s official smoking rate has been falling by 1.7 per cent per year.
If Australia’s crackdown on vaping is implemented, however, there will be far-reaching and deadly consequences. It will drastically slow the decline of smoking, some current vapers will return to smoking, and young people will continue to access dodgy vaping products from the black market. In short, Mr Butler’s vaping policy will be a huge missed opportunity for public health.
Dr Colin Mendelsohn,
Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association founding chairman
Regional communities the biggest loser in Victoria’s budget
Under Labor, Victoria is broke.
In a budget that highlights total financial incompetence, the Andrews Labor Government is making life harder for regional Victorians, with funding slashed in key areas such as roads, health and agriculture.
On health, there is no plan in this budget to solve regional Victoria’s workforce issues. This will only leave more Victorians on waiting lists, struggling to receive the urgent care and treatment many desperately need.
In fact, Labor has cut a further $1 billion from the health system after cutting $2 billion in last year’s budget, despite the crisis gripping the system.
There is also no funding in this budget for desperately needed hospital infrastructure in Mildura, Shepparton, Bairnsdale or countless other regional communities.
Our crumbling regional roads will also be left to disintegrate, with maintenance funding slashed by 45 per cent since 2020 and $260 million cut in this year alone.
Labor is risking the lives of Victorian motorists by taking money from the Transport Accident Commission to try hide their mountain of debt, leaving life-saving road safety initiatives on the cutting-room floor.
These savage cuts come despite deaths on Victorian roads being up a shocking 30 per cent on this time last year and following federal Labor’s slashing of $1.3 billion from Victoria’s roads.
The regional development budget has also been halved from $211.5 million to $106.6 million in this year’s budget, with funding slashed a devastating 80 per cent since just 2020.
Funding for agriculture hasn’t escaped the axe either, with a 34 per cent funding cut and Daniel Andrews signing the final death warrant for our sustainable native timber industry and communities in the state’s east.
In a brutal state budget, regional Victorians are being punished for the government’s own incompetence.
Peter Walsh,
Leader of the Nationals and state Member for Murray Plains
Talking point: David Muir writes that the King’s Birthday on Monday represents an opportune time to look forward to when Australia is a republic.
King’s Birthday — a time to look to the future
Victorians will enjoy a public holiday next Monday for the official birthday of King Charles III.
While not his actual birthday, it acknowledges the British monarch as our head of state.
But most people will not actively celebrate the King’s birth and will likely give it little or no thought.
Instead we should look forward to when Australia is a republic and we have another day designated on our calendar marking our transition to a totally independent nation.
While the Real Republic Australia does not campaign for the replacement of Australia Day, we suggest that a new day on our calendar marking the change to a republic would have more meaning than the monarch’s birthday it would replace.
A ‘Republic Day’ or ‘Constitution Day’, however we might term it, could help Australians focus on our future and the issues that unite us as a nation.
There is no contradiction in respecting King Charles as our head of state under the Australian Constitution — just as we respected Queen Elizabeth II — while using the lawful, peaceful and democratic processes available to us under that same constitution to change it and become a republic.
There is plenty to think about next Monday, especially how we might become a republic.
The Real Republic Australia wants to see Australians themselves choose our head of state through a genuine direct-election process.
We do not want one picked for us by politicians, nor do we support the Australian Republic Movement’s idea of having more than 800 federal and state politicians hand down to voters a shortlist of candidates.
The “politicians’ republic” model failed at the 1999 referendum and we think it will be rejected again if it is the only choice offered at a future referendum.
David Muir
Real Republic Australia chair
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