Graham Pettigrove

Pambula Beach

Businesses dig deep

In these times of economic downturn it is heartening to know that in our community there are businesses that are owned, and or, run by generous people who are still willing to give to good causes in the area in which they work.

On December 6 the Bimbimbie Retirement Village Auxiliary held its annual Christmas Fete.

A great many people contributed to its success and because of them the residents of Bimbimbie Hostel and Mariner Park Lodge will benefit.

The following businesses made significant contributions and are very much thanked for their generosity: Amcal Chemist, the ANZ Bank, $2 Shop, Woolworths, Merimbula-Imlay Bowling Club, Goodall’s Meats, Oakland Barn, Sapphire Dairy and Juices, Tura Beach Bakery, Kangarutha Nursery, Bournda Plants, Tony Rawlins Electrical, and Tura Beach Garden Supplies.

Thanks are also due to the management of the Merimbula News Weekly who publish publicity of the Auxiliary’s activities throughout the year.

The munificence of all who helped is very much appreciated.

Eileen Pearson

Secretary Bimbimbie Auxiliary

Bureaucrats, politicians should hang their heads in shame

I note the article appearing on the Bega District News website ‘Progress for advisory group’ dated 23 December 2008.

The Integrated Service Manager, David Jeffrey, is quoted as saying,

“Aiming to provide choice, control, continuity and community based maternity services for local childbearing families is a key direction for the future delivery of maternity care across the Shire”.

In an earlier paragraph in the same article is the contradictory comment:

“The group is progressing with consolidation of a single birthing service at Bega hospital and exploring appropriate models for care.”

The consolidation of obstetric services at the Bega hospital has ripped those services from Pambula hospital and taken from the majority of the shire’s residents the very services it purports to be planning to deliver across the shire.

The “local child bearing families” from Tura Beach southwards, cannot choose to have their local GP obstetrician help with their delivery as those doctors cannot service the Bega hospital from Tura Beach, Pambula, Merimbula, Eden and all the other communities in the south of the shire.

The only people with control of maternal care in this region are the bureaucrats of the Greater Southern Area Health Service (GSAHS) and their advisors, in whom most of us have absolutely no confidence.

There is no continuity of care if the people delivering the ante-natal care cannot also deliver care during the delivery and post-natal.

If this advisory group and GSAHS were truly concerned about the delivery of maternity and other services ‘across the shire’, they would be working to restore maternity and paediatric services, as well as making more efficient use of the theatre and other facilities, at Pambula hospital.

Instead, they are doing their best to downgrade and withdraw services from Pambula which will ultimately end in its closure.

In the end, these are political decisions. Unfortunately, as a safe Liberal seat, this community has little influence with the politicians who can make a difference. Our local member is only interested in maintaining services until the new Bega hospital can be built. He is not committed to restoring the services lost at Pambula hospital. There is no reason to think his opinion would change if his party won the next election or, even if it did, that he would have the influence necessary with his colleagues.

The bean-counters at GSAHS, their advisors and our politicians should hang their heads in shame for what they have done, and are continuing to do, to our community.

Michael Standen

Tura Beach

Risible decision puts patient care last

The Rees government has ordered hospital managers to save $32 million within the next four years by replacing fully trained, registered nurses in small and rural hospitals with nursing assistants and trainees. According to press reports, the Greater Southern Area Health Service has already identified 53 full-time registered nurse positions that will now be filled by cheaper assistants and trainees, taking $800,000 out of frontline hospital care in our area by June 2009.

Well-documented factual research in NSW hospitals by Prof. Christine Duffield shows that patients in hospitals with a higher proportion of registered nurses suffer lower rates of bed sores, intestinal bleeding, sepsis, lung failure and death — if we needed proof that experienced, fully trained nurses are essential to the wellbeing and recovery of patients.

In the recent NSW mini budget, the Rees government promised that no frontline services would be cut.

Now, its actions show that the pious words of Messrs Rees and Roozendaal were just empty political spin.

The government and their minions in the GSAHS are again eagerly proving that, for them, patients come last!

On the other hand, we have no news of cutbacks to the voracious health bureaucracy.

For students of bureaucracy, this is not surprising.

An eminent British physician, Dr Max Gammon, has become known for having established the famous ‘Gammon’s Law’: In bureaucracies, like the public health services, useless administrative work drives out useful work to help patients!

Wolfgang Kasper

Tura Beach

Sacrifice? I don’t think so...

I had a grandfather I never met. Ron King (Sgt, AIF) died in 1946, of complications from malaria (contracted while fighting in PNG), and alcohol, because he knew he was terminal anyway. He left Nan with Mum (13) and Uncle Ted (10). Poor, wonderful old Nan was a widow for nearly 50 years, after just 15 years of marriage. And yes, if you’ve done the arithmetic, they were married in the middle of the Great Depression. Our family, like thousands of others, has paid a high price towards our lifestyle in 2008. Ron paid the ultimate price. Nan was denied her partner for 47 years. Mum and Ted were denied their father from a young age. My siblings, cousins and self were denied a Grandpa.

Ron, and many others of his generation, went to war to preserve our way of life. It was a conscious decision, for the greater good. Too many died, but they succeeded, and our lives are far better for their sacrifice. We dedicate one special day every year to honour this very expensive gift from our predecessors. Anzac Day.

Now consider the threat to our children, and theirs, and theirs, etc, from climate change. If Ron’s generation fought for freedom, then climate change is our fight for the survival of the planet as we know it. The recent Rudd Government announcement of a 5 per cent carbon reduction for Oz by 2020 is feeble to say the least. The Government, Opposition and corporate Australia are obsessed with unsustainable growth. Obviously, we can’t anticipate real and meaningful leadership from them. So, it’s up to us. Every day, in every little way.

With the New Year, please resolve to take at least one real step in 2009 towards significantly reducing your carbon footprint. Not exactly a sacrifice of intergenerational proportions, or is it?

Considering the level of comfort and plenty most of us in the South East enjoy, the dollar cost of implementing carbon reducing hardware is within armchair effort to many. So, if your hot water system is crook and inefficient anyway, take advantage of the generous rebates available and install a solar unit. Replace every light globe with an energy efficient one. Buy a smaller car, or better still a bike. Walk to the shops if you can. Buy food that has not travelled half way around the world. Grow your own vegies. Don’t drive over 80 kph. Resist using air conditioners and other electricity guzzlers. Improve the thermal qualities of your house. Don’t leave appliances on stand-by. Recycle whenever possible. Use less water.

Doing two or three of these will make a difference. Some of them will also cost real money. But we won’t be risking our lives serving as yet unborn generations like Ron did, eh?

Sacrifice? I don’t think so...

Andrew McPherson

Clean Energy for Eternity member

Tathra

Council should follow community’s example

Recently you reported a Bega Valley Shire Council water fund black hole of $900,000 created by a water-wise community plus a hefty $1.70 a kilolitre price that residents pay for water. You also reported that our councillors are looking for options to revive the water fund.

I would like to ask two questions, Why do I have to pay $2.10 a kilolitre if the price you quoted is correct? And, why doesn’t the council do what their ratepayers and responsible community businesses have to do, that is, adjust their spending and live/work within their income?

In the current financial environment, we should all be making an extra effort to live within our means.

Graham Liddell

Pambula Beach