The Journal of Stomal Therapy Australia - Australian Association of ...

YOU Inc President’s report
March 2006 – Feb 2007
Margaret Allan • President, YOU Inc
Young Ostomates United Inc (YOU) was established in 1989 to
cater for the specific needs and concerns of young ostomates. We
operate from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, but often handle
enquiries from other places in Australia and even from overseas
via our website.
As in previous years, the YOU group had several gatherings and
meetings during 2006 for the benefit of the members. The year
started with our Annual General Meeting when I assumed the
role of president, and at which a calendar of events for the year
was outlined.
In June 2006, YOU hosted an open forum with Northern
Hospital Ostomy Support Group, providing the opportunity for
all members to come along and share and discuss concerns and
issues relating to a stoma. Approximately forty people of all ages
gathered on the day and lots of discussion ensued. The initial
forum was followed by refreshments, which gave people the
opportunity to talk more informally in small groups.
This was followed in August by a session of ‘YOU Talk’. We hold
this style of meeting from time in an effort to provide a smaller,
more private environment for young people to express and
discuss issues that they are not comfortable voicing in a larger
group. We have found the YOU Talk format to be very valuable
over the years and this one was no different. A wide range of
topics was discussed, like relationships, partners, travelling,
living away from home, the work environment etc. The feedback
on the day was very positive and many of the members gained a
great deal of support and encouragement from the experience.
Again in conjunction with the Northern Hospital Ostomy
Support Group, YOU hosted a community awareness event for
World Ostomy Day on 7 October 2006. This was preceded on
Friday 6 October by an information display in Block Arcade in
the Melbourne CBD where a range of resources and information
relating to stomas, inflammatory bowel disease and cancer were
available. The stand was manned by volunteers and generated a
lot of interest from the community.
On Saturday 7 October, 90 – 100 YOU members and friends
gathered in Brunswick to hear a range of guest speakers
providing information on medical and stomal therapy ostomy
issues from both a local and global perspective. The YOU group
held a fashion parade to demonstrate that ‘ostomate’ does not
necessarily mean ‘fashion victim’; it is possible to be current,
trendy and stylish with a stoma. This helped to allay the fears
of many new members who thought they would need to replace
their whole wardrobe and never be able to wear jeans again!
The World Ostomy Day community awareness presentation was
a very big undertaking for both support groups and demanded
much organisation by the committee formed especially for
the purpose. The feedback on the day and after the event was
extremely supportive and encouraging, with comments like
‘outstanding’ and ‘most impressive and best organised’.
The value of these gatherings cannot be quantified, but whenever
YOU meets socially or more formally for meetings etc, the benefit
to the members is undeniable. At the more formal gatherings it
is often after the formalities that people gather to chat in small
groups where they are comfortable discussing personal issues
and concerns. Many new members gain a great deal from talking
openly with more experienced ostomates about matters that
might not be easily discussed with friends or family – they often
leave smiling and with a lighter step, having discovered that
there is a great deal of life to be lived with a stoma.
In 2006 Coloplast established a competition for each region of
the world to submit a story on their achievements on World
Ostomy Day to win US$2,500.00. So of course we entered! A
narrative was compiled, together with a series of photographs
taken at our community awareness day.
In February 2007 we received notification of $1,000 in funding from
the Department of Human Services (DHS) in Victoria, via their
Health Self-Help Funding Program. The DHS recognises the vital
role self-help groups play in both the health system and community,
and funding is provided to assist groups such as YOU in their
endeavours to support and exchange information with members.
The DHS funding is most welcome and we are currently assessing
the reprinting of many of our YOU brochures and pamphlets,
the cost of which cannot always be met from membership fees
alone. This material is a widely distributed resource that is often
requested by medical, stomal and other health professionals. We
are also planning to produce a more professional journal that
will be distributed to new members as a means of providing
support and encouragement during a challenging time. Our
newest resource ‘Fashion Tips’ (developed in conjunction with
the fashion parade held on World Ostomy Day) will also be
produced in a more professional format for distribution.
YOU also has a well-established visiting service that has been
operating since inception of the support group. The service
aims to ‘match’ people undergoing surgery with well-adjusted
ostomates with a similar background, ie ileostomy, colostomy,
married, single, male, female etc. At times it is not possible to
conduct a personal visit, so much of our ‘visiting’ occurs via
telephone. Fortunately, this fulfils a the function of providing
support and information to the new ostomate and we have
received wonderful feedback from this service. Often the contact
is ongoing, with the internet also being used as a means of
keeping in touch.
Once again it was a big twelve months for the YOU group!
The membership base has grown and attendance at each of
our meetings has increased. A lot of work goes on behind the
scenes of a volunteer organisation such as this and we on the
YOU committee are constantly encouraged by the positive
feedback we receive, with the genuine appreciation and thanks
for the support and services we provide. We hope that in 2007
we can continue to update and expand our resources, share our
knowledge with others, and support both new and existing
members as they travel the path of life as an ostomate.
To contact YOU, visit our website www.vicnet.net.au/~youinc
or contact Helen on (03) 9796 6623.
JOURNAL OF STOMAL THERAPY AUSTRALIA 2007 27(3) 29