Go, Western Health!

As you know, Eleanor Clinic is located directly opposite the power house that is The Western Hospital, with the entrance to Eleanor clinic facing the Western Hospital’s Emergency Department. Over the last few weeks we have witnessed the increasing amount of ambulances arriving to the hospital.

We are so thankful to our colleagues at the Western Hospital who are taking care of our community and families, when any of us are getting very sick. Quite a few Western Health staff have also been seconded to lend their skills and expertise to help with the crisis in the aged care system.

Eleanor Clinic’s Dr. Felicity wanted to support our colleagues and made this fantastic banner: “Go Western Health”, to show our support and gratitude. Everyone talks about nurses and doctors, but hospitals need many other unsung heroes to function: cleaners, cooks, orderlies, ward clarks, nurse unit managers, security guards, administrative staff, and so many more.
So from the bottom of our heart: Thank you to everyone at Western Health for looking after all of us here in the West!

#RUOK?

There are many things we can all do to support our wellbeing at this time – seeking professional help is only one of these.

Try to go for regular walks, eat nutritious meals, limit alcohol intake and keep in regular contact over the phone with your friends and loved ones. And please remember: it is always a sign of strength to reach out for support and help when you need it. .

R U OK?

It’s ok not to be ok

Frankly, it is ok not to be ok. After all: we are all living in the middle of a pandemic. But being in a pandemic doesn’t mean we have to do this alone. There is help and support available and, as GPs, helping our patients to find the right support for them can be one of the most rewarding parts of our job. Our Health minister, Greg Hunt hit the nail on the head when he observed: “Many will be feeling anxious, some will be feeling depressed, many will have mental health challenges that are being exacerbated. Can I start by saying, that’s normal, that’s OK. These times are unprecedented. Each person will deal with it in their own way.”

Being in a pandemic doesn’t mean we have to do this alone

The Better Access Mental Health Care Plan scheme remains available to offset the cost of accessing sessions with a psychologist. For those with an existing Mental Health Care Plan who have experienced further mental health difficulties with the second lockdown, there has been new funding for another 10 sessions. Yes, that’s on top of the sessions you might have previously used. And Telehealth makes it very easy for you to access this service: just book in for a mental health appointment with your regular GP.

The photo is part of a campaign that checks in on our Premier’s wellbeing from a large networking group of GPs. Politics aside, he has the unenviable task of working every day to try to guide us through this pandemic and we can only imagine the amount of pressure he is under. A reminder that everyone – even the Premier – needs some help once in a while.

Temporary changes to vaccination services at Eleanor Clinic

We wanted to give you an update on the status of vaccinations at Eleanor Clinic.

As you would have experienced, we take extreme care at Eleanor Clinic to ensure that all our patients have minimal risk of exposure while with us. In fact, we have been contacted by other clinics who have adopted our COVID-19 safety protocols, which is humbling. However, our high safety standards take considerable effort regarding time and staff on our side.

The recent rise in people contracting COVID-19 in Victoria shows that there is currently a bigger degree of community transmission than there was previously. This means there is a somewhat higher risk of catching this illness when out and about in Melbourne than there was at any stage before.

To us this means doubling down on our already extensive safety measures, particularly when performing vaccinations at Eleanor Clinic. These efforts are so time consuming that we can currently only offer vaccinations to those with the highest clinical need.

Those groups are:

• Infants up to the age of 4 months (incl. 4 months vaccinations)
• Pregnant women
• People with immune-deficiencies or severe chronic disease as assessed by their treating GP

Please accept our apologies that we will have to defer immunisations for other groups than those above for a few weeks until the number of new COVID-19 cases within our community has decreased. This may mean that your child older than 4 months of age or other adult will have their immunisations with us a few weeks later than originally planned. In our mind this is currently the safest option.

To be clear: this is only for a few weeks until the COVID-19 numbers come down again and we can somewhat reduce our stringent safety protocols. Immunisations are very important – which is why we are focussing on being able to provide them for those in highest need. We’ll keep you updated on any changes.

As always, please speak to your friendly Eleanor Clinic GP with any questions you might have.

National Diabetes Week

By Dr Olivia Rimington

Today marks the start of National Diabetes Week, and this year the focus is on Diabetes and Mental Health. As a Type 1 Diabetic for over 20 years, I certainly agree that Diabetes can have a significant impact on a person’s mental and emotional health, as well as their physical health. However, there is growing evidence that the use of a low carbohydrate, real food diet can help both Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetics improve their blood sugar control, which makes living with Diabetes feel like less of a burden.

Since I started following a low carb, real food lifestyle over four years ago the improvement to my physical and mental health has been nothing short of amazing. You can read more about my journey here.

If managing your Diabetes is starting to feel like a burden, Diabetes Australia has resources and support available at https://headsupdiabetes.com.au or make an appointment to see your friendly Eleanor Clinic GP. We are always here to help support you.