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

State reports
Australian Capital Territory
It has been a time of great change in the world of stomal therapy
in the ACT.
Sharon Gibbins has left the cold climes of Canberra and moved
to the sunshine ‘up north’. We wish her all the best in her new
adventures.
Clare Love has moved from Canberra Hospital to community
health and continues to exercise her skills helping the ostomates
in their homes.
Judith Barker has completed her qualifications and is now a
nurse practitioner. She continues to share her time and skills
between the hospital and community settings.
Karen Williams has taken a sea change and moved to the south
coast.
All of these changes have resulted in a re-evaluation of stomal
therapy services in the ACT. There are currently no qualified
STNs working in the major public hospital in Canberra and
this has resulted in a number of quality improvement activities
to best utilise the available services. Watch this space for the
outcomes!
We have had some new associate members join the AASTN, so
we are encouraging them to further their skills and gain formal
qualifications in the exciting world of stomal therapy.
Kellie Burke
New South Wales
The NSW branch continues to meet every second month with
an educational session before each meeting. Instead of having
all the meetings (except December) on Tuesday evenings we
have trialled Wednesday evenings to see if attendance improves.
The next meeting will be held on Wednesday 3 October. The
December meeting is on Friday 7 December to be followed by
Christmas Dinner in a local restaurant in Newtown. All of the
NSW branch meetings are held at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
commencing at 17:45. For further information about meetings
contact Carol Stott 0402018790.
At the August meeting Dr Julia Thompson spoke about her
recent tour of Southeast Asia lecturing on stomal complications
and colostomy irrigation, and there was general discussion on
the credentialling process. We must encourage as many people
as possible to go through credentialling. Acting as preceptors for
students undergoing STN courses is integral to the role of the
STN and extremely rewarding. Information about credentialling
will be sent out to all NSW branch members with the meeting
minutes, to encourage the credentialling process.
Sadly, Tony Rafferty, president of the Colostomy Association for
almost thirty years, died on 31 July 2007, shortly after retiring
from the association in June. Anne Marie Lyons and Carol
Stott attended the funeral, representing the NSW branch of the
AASTN. Anne Marie additionally represented Concord Hospital
where Tony was a patient over many years. Our sympathy is
extended to Tony’s family.
Carol Stott
Queensland
Stomal Therapy week
Gold Coast
On 2 June an afternoon seminar was held on the Gold Coast for
the first time, to celebrate Stomal Therapy Week, with ostomates
travelling from as far away as Lismore to the Gold Coast Ostomy
Association venue. This Northern Rivers group travelled by
bus and made a day of it, incorporating the seminar with
shopping. The seminar was scheduled to facilitate maximum
attendance (including company reps) and we were thrilled to
have attendance boosted to a total of eighty-five!
Bill Tyrell spoke on his experiences as a country STN, as
president of the AASTN, and on workshops he has conducted
for community and hospital based nurses in the Northern Rivers
region. Elaine Lambie spoke on the challenges experienced by
STNs and nurses generally with changes to hospital management.
Dr Scott McClintock, spoke on ileal conduits and his talk was
most appreciated, it being many years since a urologist has
spoken to this group. Sheryl Waye presented ‘Handy Hints’
and, as always, was well received by the ostomates. The seminar
finished with Bill, Sheryl and Elaine presiding over ‘Question
Time’.
We were also very fortunate to have a ‘pre-launch’ of Nicola
Hamilton’s book Climbing the Ladder of Life. Nicola is an
ileostomate of some ten years and the book is about her
experiences. Nicola’s story is told simply and very openly and
will certainly be an encouragement to others. Climbing the Ladder
of Life will be available in bookshops and via the internet.
Brisbane
The AASTNQ annual educational seminar for ostomates was
held on Brisbane’s Northside on Saturday 16 June as part of
Stomal Therapy Awareness Week and attracted an audience of
ninety-seven. The program included presentations on nutrition,
urostomy care, types of ostomy surgery and an enlightening
presentation on living with a stoma from a young woman’s
perspective.
The trade display was as popular as ever, as was the sumptuous
afternoon tea sponsored by the reps. The Queensland Stoma
Association assisted with the hire costs of the venue and setting
up and arranging audiovisuals. AASTNQ members Maxine
Wench, Petra Prokop, Brenda Sando and Lucy Daniels generously
donated their time to support Shirley Jones with running the
afternoon. Feedback was very positive with overwhelming
support for another seminar next year.
32 JOURNAL OF STOMAL THERAPY AUSTRALIA 2007 27(3)