veNTIlATIoN - Green Cross Publishing

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regional news
clAre
ANNE AKAMNONU
N E W S F O R I P N A B R A N C H E S C O U N T R y W I D E
We hope everyone had a good Christmas in spite of the prolonged inclement weather. Although pleasant to look at, the weather is
very difficult for our older population and we all should to be alert to their needs.
We wish all our practice nurse colleagues around the country best wishes for 2010 and hope we can look forward to a much
needed ‘summer of sunshine’.
The Clare branch had their last meeting of the year on 17th November 2009. It was well attended and Deirdre Jordan, who is the
Science Officer with yakult, gave us an in-depth and interesting talk on the health benefits of probiotic yogurts and drinks. Her
presentation was very scientific and gave us much food for thought.
Our Christmas night out was held on 12 th December and reports are that a good night was had by those who attended.
Morrissey’s Pub/Restaurant in Doonbeg was the venue and they hosted a wonderful meal. The weather was chilly but could not
dampen the festive spirit! The local pub, Comerford’s provided the entertainment for the remainder of the evening. For various
reasons, including the difficult weather conditions, the numbers attending the Christmas night out was quite small and we may
decide an Easter or summer outing might be a better option for 2010.
Our January meeting is scheduled for19 th , the third Tuesday of the month in the Old Ground Hotel, Ennis. We look forward to a
good attendance and we welcome any new members and new ideas for meeting topics.
doNegAl
ELSIE STEWART
Many thanks to Rhona Keaveney and Steven Wiliamson from Roche Pharmaceuticals who kindly sponsored our November meeting,
which was held in the Radisson Hotel, Letterkenny. Guest speaker for the evening was Katheen Credant, Community Diabetic Nurse
Specialist, who gave us a valuable presentation including an update on the latest diabetic drug therapy.
The December meeting was again held in the Raddisson Hotel. Many thanks to Margaret (Mags) Moran, Infection Control Nurse in
the Community, for her thought provoking presentation on infection control within the primary care setting.
As January’s weather generally tends to cause very difficult driving conditions, and indeed this year is no exception, it has been
decided to hold our next meeting in February; date and venue to be arranged at a later date.
May I take this opportunity to wish all members, both at branch and national level, a very happy, peaceful and prosperous 2010.
gAlwAy
MAUREEN DELANEy
On the 26 th November we gathered at the Radisson, our meeting was sponsored by Abbott. Geraldine Mannion, Rheumatology
Nurse Specialist, Merlin Park Hospital, gave us a presentation on ‘Biologics and the Practice Nurse’.
I would like to offer our sincere sympathy to Evelyn Browne on the death of her father, may he rest in peace.
We concluded our year in Cloonacauneen Castle with our Christmas meeting. Many thanks to Gillian Duggan of Astra Zeneca.
Catherine Kirrane, our Vice-chairperson, expertly demonstrated inhaler technique to a very well attended meeting. We hope we
have encouraged all members to keep up their attendance for the rest of the year’s meetings.
Sally Whelan, the Galway branch secretary has kindly offered to email the minutes of the meetings to anyone who wishes to keep
up to date with branch news but may find it difficult to attend some meetings.
Our next meeting will be in February, details to be arranged.
Happy New year from all in the Galway Branch, I would like to wish all a healthy and happy 2010.