twrama 1990_final oc.. - AMA WA

NEWS
WA embraces
Good Sports program
First in: Greg Hutchinson, President of Alexander Park Tennis Club was presented with the Good Sports accreditation certificate by
Healthway Chair Dr Rosanna Capolingua and WA’s Good Sports Manager Greg Williams.
Research has shown there is a widespread problem with
alcohol in sporting clubs which can result in significant
risks and harm to club members, says Healthway’s Chair,
Dr Rosanna Capolingua.
A study in Western Australia found that three quarters of
men (77.9 per cent) and two-thirds of women (68.4 per cent)
were potentially drink-driving when they left their sporting
club, she said.
Dr Capolingua was speaking at the WA launch of a new
partnership between the Australian Drug Foundation (ADF)
and Healthway, which will combat risky drinking in the
State’s community sporting clubs by bringing the ADF’s very
successful Good Sports program to WA.
In WA, the Good Sports program will work with
Healthway’s Healthy Club program. Good Sports has been
working with sporting clubs across eastern Australia since
2001 to help clubs better manage alcohol issues and to create
a more family-friendly environment. The program has more
than 5000 clubs involved and independent research shows the
program is making a real difference.
In Good Sports clubs, there is a 22 per cent drop in risky
drinking among club members on match day, short-term risky
drinking drops by 15 per cent and long-term risky drinking
drops by 14 per cent. Drink Driving drops by 8 per cent in
Good Sports clubs on game days.
The Australian Drug Foundation’s CEO, John Rogerson
said: “It’s fantastic that the Good Sports program will now be
available in Western Australia, which now makes the program
officially national. This is a fantastic State to be in because it
loves its sport and there’s a lot of it.”
“We know the program works; since it started in 2001 we’ve
had a significant impact on clubs’ drinking culture across
Australia. So we’re really looking forward to having the same
impact in WA,’ Mr Rogerson added.
“We really want to tackle drink driving and we want to
bring females and families back to the clubs by creating
family-friendly environments.”
Mr Rogerson pointed out the Good Sports program offered
comprehensive support and expertise to sports clubs so that
when a club became a Good Sports club, parents knew that
their children would be protected from misuse of alcohol at the
club, communities benefitted from reduced drink driving and
players appreciated an improved club culture that had been
shown to attract more sponsors, juniors and volunteers.
“Healthway has been working with local sporting clubs for
many years through the Healthy Club program,”
Dr Capolingua said.
“This new partnership with Good Sports will complement
our work in this area and make available extra support and
expertise for sporting clubs wanting to do the right thing by
their members.”
Alexander Park Tennis Club in Menora became the first
WA sports club to become an accredited Good Sports club.
Club President Greg Hutchinson was presented with the Good
Sports accreditation certificate by Dr Capolingua and WA’s
Good Sports Manager Greg Williams. ■
14 MEDICUS October