Patients at Parkes Hospital were treated to a musical accompaniment last month. Six people from across the region were trained as specialised Musicians in Hospitals for an Arts OutWest project.

Three local musicians, Drew Farrant-Jay- et, Leah O’Rourke, and Stephan de Wit van der Merwe, were selected for the two-day training program. They covered topics such as ethics, appropriate repertoire, and work- ing with health professionals. The practical sessions took the musicians to various hos- pital settings, including rehabilitation, pallia- tive care, and general wards.

For Drew, a social work student, the pro- gram was an opportunity to combine two of his passions; music and finding different ways to help people.

“It was very insightful, learning about the therapeutic benefits of music,” Drew said. “But the practical side of the course was the real privilege, being able to play for vulner- able people.”

Stephan described the experience as profound. “It was a very emotional experience,”

he explained, “to see the impact on the community and to bring the gift of music to patients and their families.”

Stephan said the most inspiring aspect of the program was the focus on the pa- tient’s wellness. “Medicine and treatment tends to be based on the ‘sick’ part of the person, but as a musician in hospital you get to treat the ‘healthy’ part of the patient,” he said.

Like the other practitioners Leah agreed that playing in the palliative ward was an exceptionally powerful moment, but for her there was an additional connection. “It was such a privilege to be able to play for my friend’s father in the final moments of his life,” she said.

“It was thoroughly rewarding to be able to use my gifts and talents for people in need,” Leah said. “I think the staff benefit as equally as the patients. Music creates a calm, positive environment, and the ben- efits flow out to the whole community.”

By Raen Fraser

Because of our relatively remote location and low light pollution, the Central West boasts some of the darkest skies in the world – making it a fantastic place to appreciate the wonders of the night sky. A week after attracting writers and astronomers for the Skywriter’s big gig, Parkes will be host- ing another gathering of celestial lovers, this time astronomers and astrophotographers.

AstroFest is a two-day festival of astron- omy that brings world-renowned astronomers and astrophysicists to Parkes. It is organised by the Central West Astronomical Society and is now in its 13th year. Perhaps its biggest drawcard is the widely regarded astrophotography competition, dubbed the David Malin Awards. It has become a stand- out feature of the festival – and is considered to be the premier event of its kind in Australia.

Aspiring and accomplished astrophotographers from all over Australia enter the photography competition – not only for the prestige, but for a chance of winning prizes to the value of $10,000.

This year’s competition had eight categories, and were judged by world-renowned astrophotographer – and competition name- sake – Dr David Malin. It was not just techni- cal skill that is assessed – prizes are awarded to pictures that capture the beauty of the sky and the intrinsic interest of astronomy in an aesthetically pleasing manner.

“This year’s pictures maintained the high standards we have come to expect from the Australian community,” David said. “There are some splendid examples of modern astrophotography among the finalists.”

The finalists’ photos will be exhibited at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory’s Visitors Centre from July 16 for 12 months. A second touring exhibition, organised by the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, will travel to selected venues across Australia. Last year’s exhibition was viewed by 110,000 people.

The David Malin Awards will be presented during the AstroFest conference dinner tomorrow night.

By Raen Frase

Now that Western NSW and the Far West have rolled out the NDIS roll on 1st July, services providers and eligible recipients of the NDIS will work with the National Disability Insurance Agency over the coming months to ensure participants are supported with an individualised plan to meet their needs.

It is an exciting time and arguably the biggest change to the health system in Aus- tralia since the introduction of Medicare in 1975. Despite some challenges thus far with the implementation of the NDIS, the general consensus has been extremely positive and by 2019 the NDIS is expected to support about 460,000 Australians.

For Currajong Disability Services, the new scheme is a welcome change and has enabled the organisation to expand and explore avenues previously unavailable. Likewise, it has also given more control to clients who now have more choice about their supports than at any other time before.

Currajong Disability Services Client Program Co-ordinator Jonty Ralph is excited by the NDIS.

“The NDIS will provide clients and their families with more choices and flexibility,” he said. “Over a period of time we will see the undoubted benefits. This should make things easier for everyone.”

As an insurance scheme, the NDIS takes a lifetime approach, investing in people with disability early to improve their outcomes later in life.

While not applicable to everyone, most people within their lifetime have had some exposure to disability.

“The industry is growing as demand for more resources also grows – especially support workers,” said Ralph. “The NDIS has also opened up the national conversa- tion on disability and has everyone talking so this is also a good thing,” he said.

“With so many people impacted by disability the discussion is also an important one because you never know how it may impact you.”

More info here – http://currajong.org.au/ndis/

By Dane Millerd

Whether due to trauma or degenerative changes a torn meniscus will often present with pain and swelling in the knee joint and difficulty straightening the knee. Sometimes there may also be a history of painful clicking or locking. Manual testing and MRI can confirm the diagnosis of a meniscus tear.

Whenever possible, physiotherapy is considered the first line of treatment when there are symptoms of a meniscal tear. This involves strengthening exercises, icing to reduce swelling and avoiding activities that put pressure on the joint such as pivoting, squatting or repetitive bending of the knee.

One of the main functions of the knee joint meniscus is to absorb shock. Luckily, the muscles around the knee also function as shock absorbers. Research has shown that as muscle strength around the knee in- creases bone stress decreases and therefore pain and dynamic stability improve.

If, after a few weeks of conservative man- agement, pain and dysfunction are still present your doctor may recommend surgery. This is usually day surgery and involves arthroscopic repair or removal of the torn piece of cartilage. As part of the recovery process the muscles around the knee must be strengthened in order to minimise sec- ondary degenerative changes.

If osteoarthritis is also present in the affected knee, as is often the case with degenera- tive meniscus tears, surgical treatment may not provide the pain relief or return to optimal function normally expected of arthro- scopic repair. In fact the research indicates that arthroscopic surgery for this population offers no advantage over physiotherapy for relief of symptoms or improvement in func- tion.

For the fitness of you.

Linda Reilly