Tag Archives: health
“It’s important for carers to be cared for” Gloria Hunniford
SHE’S had her fair share of negative life experiences, and Gloria Hunniford has spoken out about the importance of looking after elderly carers.
Gloria Hunniford swapped stories with the eldery carers of the Redbridge Carers Support Service“I know myself having lost my daughter how strenuous caring can be to a family. It is a big responsibility and it takes a lot of energy
.”
The Health Lottery Ambassador swapped stories with the people of the service, who put on activities for local carers aged seventy or over.
“The camaraderie is great as they obviously all get on very well,” revealed Gloria after the event.
Taking a break can have a huge impact both on carers and those they care for
SANDRINGHAM: Could you get on your bike for Park House?
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Organisers of a charity cycling event being held at Sandringham later this month have said they are pleased with the increasing rate of entries.
More than 200 riders have already signed up to take part in the Cycle Together Sandringham event, which takes place on Sunday, June 23 and will support the work done to provide respite breaks for disabled people at the Park House Hotel on the estate.
And, to mark this week’s National Carers Week, three regular visitors to the hotel have spoken of how important the property is to them.
Jackie Thoday, from Litcham, said: “I regularly stay at Park House to give my husband, who is my carer, a break. He knows I will be looked after with a high level of care from dedicated staff and I go home refreshed.”
Viv Barrett travels all the way from Leighton Buzzard to take advantage of the hotel’s facilities.
She said: “It gives me a holiday with the reassurance of knowing that I am safe, and will be well looked after by good care staff.
“The accommodation is very nice and, as I need to be hoisted the room is fully equipped, including an electric hoist. I cannot fault the care team.”
Five minute operation to treat Glaucoma
Me and my operation: Five-minute op means no more painful eye drops for glaucoma
By Carol Davis
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More than half a million Britons have the eye condition glaucoma, which damages sight. Gill Robinson, 61, a retired carer from St Ives, Cambridgeshire, had a new procedure, as she tells CAROL DAVIS.THE PATIENT
A new five-minute laser treatment means those who suffer from glaucoma will no longer have to use painful eye dropsWhen I started getting headaches at the age of 35, I had my eyes checked because I was driving people with learning disabilities.
I was prescribed glasses, which stopped the headaches, but during routine tests they found the pressure in my eyes was high. The optician explained the fluid that keeps your eyeball in the right shape can start to damage your sight if it can’t drain away.
This is because pressure in the eye builds up and damages the optic nerve. That worried me, but tests each year showed the pressure wasn’t high enough for doctors to take action.
But a test in 2004 showed the pressure reading had risen to 35 – normal is ten or 12. I was referred to Rupert Bourne, who saw me two weeks later.
He said I was at risk of developing glaucoma, where the pressure is so high it causes damage and sight loss.
The fluid in the eye drains away through tiny channels into the veins around the eye – but in some people these holes become blocked.
He prescribed eye drops to keep the pressure down and said he’d see me again in nine months’ time.
Each night, I’d have to pull my lid down to put the drops in before I went to sleep and they would sting horribly. My eyes were permanently sore and red, and people thought I’d been crying.
In 2011, the pressure was rising again. Mr Bourne explained the drops can stop working over time. He said he could put a tiny titanium tube into the corner of my eye. This would force open the drainage channels.
