From
the Chair
Sally Webb - Chair, Bay of Plenty District Health Board
It’s hard to believe we are already in
December and heading towards the end or
another year. As you’re no doubt aware, we
have a new Health Minister, Dr David Clark
and we look forward to welcoming him to the
Bay of Plenty in the near future.
In this issue of Health Matters there are some
great stories, including those about initiatives
focused on keeping people out of hospital.
While hospitals provide crucial services for
our communities, there are things we all can
do at home to stay well or improve our health.
Personally, I think there are three areas we can
each focus on to stay well.
1. Be active…
Find a physical activity that you enjoy and
suits your level of mobility and fi tness. Get
outside, go for a walk, or bike ride, or play a
game, just do it.
2. Be present…
Look around you and enjoy the moment.
Whether you are at work or home, eating
lunch or talking to friends, be aware of the
world around you and the people who are in
it. Take notice and enjoy the little things.
3. Give a little…
Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger.
Volunteer your time. Thank someone. Smile
as often as you can and to as many people as
you can. It costs nothing and has incredible
benefi ts for your own wellbeing and others.
As this is the last issue of Health Matters for
2017, I would like to take this opportunity
to thank my Board members for their
commitment and support throughout the year:
Ron Scott Deputy Chair, Anna Rolleston,
Beverley Edlin, Geoff Esterman, Judy Turner,
Mark Arundel, Marion Guy, Matua Parkinson,
Peter Nicholl, Yvonne Boyes and Punohu
McCausland Chair of the Runanga Board.
I also want to acknowledge the management
and staff of Bay of Plenty District Health
Board plus all the other health providers
across our communities. Their dedication
and commitment is at the heart of our health
services.
We are heading into the Christmas and
holiday season and many of us will be taking
time off for holidays with family. I want to
wish you all a peaceful Christmas and holiday
period, safe travels wherever you are and
please remember when you are out in the
superb Bay of Plenty summer, SLIP SLOP
SLAP and WRAP.
Arohanui
Sally Webb
Bay of Plenty initiative provides
ground breaking research
A BOPDHB initiative, the Brainwave
Singers is providing ground breaking
research on the benefi t of singing to
improve speech for people living with
Parkinson’s disease.
Speech and Language Therapist Robin Matthews
developed the choir seven years ago to help
people with Parkinson’s to improve their speech.
He’s now completing his PhD on the topic.
About 1 in 500 people have Parkinson’s, a
progressive neurodegenerative condition. It’s
more common with people over the age of 60.
To date there have been few studies that
have looked at singing as a means of improving
voice. Robin’s randomised control study
measured a number of things including voice
volume, voice quality, wellbeing and quality
of life. His research found the singers had
signifi cant post-treatment improvement in
psychological and psychosocial well-being
including their levels of stress, anxiety
and depression.
The research also found signifi cant improvement
in voice quality of the singers with them
sounding less croaky or hoarse. The singer’s
vocal chord effi ciency also improved.
“We know that singing makes us feel good, now
science is discovering how singing can help
people suff ering from Parkinson’s to Aphasia
(stroke).”
“Singing uses diff erent parts of the brain. To
sing, you have to remember the tune and words,
then fi ll your lungs with air, produce a voice and
then coordinate your voice and breathing whilst
singing the melody. For people with Parkinson’s,
the coordination required helps produce a better,
louder voice.
National outbreak of
whooping cough declared
The Ministry of Heath has declared a
national outbreak of whooping cough, as
a total of 1,315 cases have been reported
since the beginning of 2017.
“Babies under one year old are most vulnerable to
the disease and often catch it from older siblings,
their parents or family members and friends,”
says Ministry of Health Director of Public Health
Dr Caroline McElnay.
“The best way to protect babies is for pregnant
women to get their free immunisation against
whooping cough between 28 and 38 weeks of
pregnancy, and take their baby for their free
immunisations when they’re six weeks, three
months and fi ve months old.” Any siblings should
also be up-to-date with their immunisations –
older children receive free boosters at four and
eleven years of age. If people are unsure whether
they or their children have been immunised,
they can talk to their health practitioner, doctor
or nur se.
“On time immunisation is vitally important,”
says Dr McElnay. “If immunisation is delayed,
babies are vulnerable for longer.”
When pregnant women are vaccinated, they pass
their immunity on to their babies, protecting them
until they are able to be immunised at six weeks
of age. The Ministry has asked midwives and
general practices to work together to ensure that
pregnant women are referred to general practices
for immunisation.
The Ministry of Health is encouraging people to
be extra vigilant as they gather for Christmas and
New Year celebrations, in order to protect young
babies from whooping cough.
“Anyone with coughs should be especially
careful if they are likely to come in to contact
with babies. Most adults don’t realise they have
whooping cough, but it is incredibly contagious.”
Outbreaks of the disease occur every 3 to 5 years.
New Zealand’s most recent national outbreak
spanned from August 2011 to December 2013,
with about 11,000 cases notifi ed. A total of 3
deaths in babies and young children occurred
during this period, with hundreds needing
hospital treatment. New Zealand’s vaccination
strategy for whooping cough is aimed at
preventing disease in babies. Whooping cough is
less serious in adults, but is harder to prevent for
them as immunity wears
ears off over time.
Help stop the spread
of whooping cough
• Make sure all your children are up to
date with their immunisations.
• Keep your baby away from
anyone with a cough.
• If you have a cough yourself,
stay away from babies.
• If you’ve got a cough that won’t
go away, see your doctor.
Margaret Ryan (left) who sang with the likes
of Shirley Bassey in her younger years, credits
Robin Mattews’ Brainwave Singers with
helping her to regain her voice after being
locked in silence from a stroke.
“For people who have had a stroke; research
shows they can regain the ability to talk by
learning to sing words they are unable to speak.
If the brain’s language centres are damaged,
neural plasticity – ‘rewiring’ the brain – may
train the part of the brain responsible for singing
to take over the speech functions.”
“You don’t have to be able to sing, that’s not the
point,” he says. “Anyone who has a neurological
condition such as Parkinson’s, stroke or brain
injury can join. The group is hugely supportive
of one another and therapeutically the experience
is very uplifting.”
“It’s physiotherapy of the voice; singing as
therapy,” says Robin.
For more information about the
Brainwave Singers contact
[email protected]