Parkes Phoenix

Letter to the Editor…

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To the community of the Parkes Shire,

It has been my great pleasure to have served you as a Councillor over nearly 35 years. I am very proud of the decisions that Council has made which have seen our wonderful Shire grow and prosper. I believe that Parkes and the Central West are in a unique situation where they are on the verge of significant investments and economic opportunity. I believe that our Shire and the wider community need a strong leader who will take the message to Sydney to ensure that our region gets its fair share of economic investment from the State Government. This is why I have decided to stand for pre-selection for the National Party for the State seat of Orange.

I will continue to serve as Mayor during the pre-selection process and if successful the ensuing months leading up to the election. It has been an honour and privilege to serve this community and I trust you will appreciate and understand this new direction I seek to embark on.

Yours sincerely,
Mayor Ken Keith OAM

Letter to the Editor…

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Dear Editor,

I recently retired as a volunteer with Meals On Wheels. After more than 20 years I can say: “Oh what a journey!” To have met and known some great characters: those humble and grateful with happy eyes of seeing someone today, and those who always had a historic story of great significance.

There have been many that I had made contact with as a nurse many years ago, and then as part of a wonderful small town community. I am the one who has to say thank you to everyone for the small part of these wonderful people that rubbed off on me and the opportunity to leave something of myself with them.

All these moments have helped to make my life bigger and filled with immeasurable joy and pleasure.

Thank you
Helen Huntley

Letter to the Editor…

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Dear Editor,

In March, the World’s Greatest Shave will be celebrating its 20th birthday and to commemorate this milestone, the Leukaemia Foundation is calling on record numbers of Australians to register and join in the fun. Over the past two decades, more than 1.9 million Australians have supported the campaign to help the Leukaemia Foundation.

Every day, another 35 Aussies are diagnosed with a blood cancer such as leukaemia, myeloma and lymphoma. Your support also means regional families continue to be provided with free home-away-from-home accommodation near their treating centres.

Our commitment to fund research projects continues to help more Australians with blood cancer survive and live a better quality of life. I’d like to invite the Parkes community to join us and register for World’s Greatest Shave to help beat blood cancer. Let’s make this year the boldest and bravest year ever! Register today at www.worldsgreatestshave.com

Bill Petch
CEO- Leukaemia Foundation

Letter to the Editor…

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Dear Maggi,
I was delighted to win the “Get it Sorted” competition in the Phoenix. The $100 gift card is very welcome at this time of year!

Thank you for running the competition. Hopefully it will raise people’s awareness about recycling.

We do enjoy your informative paper each week.

Wishing you a happy and safe Christmas.
Yours sincerely,
Nancy Kingham

Mayoral Notes…

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Congratulations to the Peak Hill community on successfully hosting three major events in recent weeks. The regional final of the National Busking Championships, the Annual Landscape Art Awards and Campervan Trailer National Meet have drawn hundreds of visitors to town, a huge boost to the local economy.

This week, Council staff lent a hand to pack donated furniture, fittings and building materials from the relocated Southern Cross Care unit into three shipping containers, to be donated to villages in Timor Leste, including Weberek Village. Two thirds of the equipment and materials will be delivered to 19 different health clinics in remote parts of Timor, with the remainder donated to orphanages, women’s refuges and schools.

Council signed a friendship agreement with the village of Weberek in 2010, and have assisted in the delivery of vital projects to improve socio-economic outcomes for remote communities.

The popular Kids Day Out returns to the Parkes Visitor Information Centre today, from 11am until 3pm. Once again, there is an action-packed day planned with Old Kentucky Animal Farm, Jumpin Beanz Jumping Castles, Jesspresso Coffee Van, Big Daddy Woodfired Pizzas and Dippin Dots on site throughout the day, as well as hands-on science activities with the CSIRO Dish team, live music and a snake handler show to keep the whole family entertained.

After a four year hiatus, the popular GP Cup will make a return to Parkes on Saturday, 28th October focussing its attention to addressing the growing need for GP proceduralists within the Parkes Shire. Teams of 10 will compete in soccer, netball, touch football and a mystery event over the course of one action packed day at McGlynn Park.

Download a team nomination pack via Council’s website.

Yours Faithfully,
Cr Ken Keith OAM
Mayor of Parkes Shire

Letter to the Editor…

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Dear Editor,
Same sex marriage: the call for human beings to be able to commit to a life together with the legal union called marriage. Many would say that’s not such a big ask You might be surprised that before this debate began, a group of Christians decided it was time to band together in support of LGBTIQ fellow Christians, and a national movement was born: Equal Voices.

A branch has started up in the Central West, based in Parkes. Our focus is on giving opportunity for those who have been hurt by comments and attitudes, to find their voice, and be heard.

We invite LGBTIQ people to tell their stories, in the hope that attitudes will change and people will become more loving and affirming in their interactions.

We have an open invitation to sign a national apology via our website: https://equalvoices.org.au/apologise/
Our sincere hope is that the present gulf will narrow into the future. If you would like further information, or are keen to be involved, connect with us on Facebook at ‘Equal Voices Central West NSW’, or email us at centralwestev@gmail.com

Rebecca Baxter
(For Equal Voices Central West Branch)

Editor’s Note

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Hello cold days, and hot chocolate, fuzzy socks, warm fires, frosty mornings, hot soup, good books and warm friendship… Yes it’s time to keep calm and welcome winter.

I am sure you can all add at least one favourite thing about winter to this list. Most of all, winter is a time to enjoy the comforts of your home, your family and friends and good food. With the long weekend ahead of us, we have brought you a decent read with a variety of stories and ideas what to do.

Over the past two weeks we have been getting a lot of stories about young people doing well, putting their stamp on life and looking at the future with hope and optimism.

May you feel inspired by them and have a week filled with optimism!

Enjoy Issue 66! Maggi Barnard Editor

Editor’s Note

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Parkes is well known as a sports town, and many people would argue sport gets all the attention. But I would beg to differ as we continue to receive an influx of so many other wonderful stories every week.

I would not like to single out anyone or any group specifically, but feel the Parkes M & D Society deserves a mention for put- ting on an entertaining, quality show of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang with such a tal- ented cast and band.

To get back to sport, this week there was a lot of excitement at the PCYC when a professional basketball player from the US attended the newly-established basketball club’s training session. Who said nothing ever happens in Parkes? Enjoy Issue 63!

Maggi Barnard Edito

Letters to the editor

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Dear Editor,

I wish to reply to the article “Kinesio Tape Help or Hype?” in the Phoenix on Friday, 7th April 2017 by Ms L Reilly.

Firstly, I want to highlight that Kinesio Tex Tape (KTT) is not K Tape or Kinesiology Tape. It is the original tape produced by Kensio Kase of Japan some 40+ years ago under the strictest scientific controls.

K Tape, Kinesiology tape, sport tape and others, which have been devised since, are made by other companies – they do not presume to do what Kinesio Tex Tape (KTT) does. They each work in different ways to support muscles whilst the muscle/ joint is active.

As Ms Reilly has pointed out there are several papers questioning the validity of each tape. Rightly so. It’s evident that prac- titioners are getting confused with the vari- ety available.

KTT was initially devised to work on the lymphatic drainage system and for increas- ing the blood supply to damaged muscles, from trauma or surgery. Its use ought to be kept in the hands of properly trained prac- titioners.

To state that any of these products are placebo in function is facile. Unless one has first-hand evidence that they are inef- fective, one ought to do the courses before writing articles without scientific basis.

If we as professionals are not scientific in our approach, our clients/patients will be at high risk. It is our responsibility to stay ahead of the crowd and know what works from what does not.

My advice to Ms Reilly and the Phoenix – do proper research, not Dr Google – before writing and printing libellous waffle.

Sharon Dixon Physiotherapist MCSP, MICSP, MAPA, CMP

Dear Editor,

My column “Keeping You Fit for Life” is an opinion piece. Having earned bachelor and master degrees majoring in physiotherapy and the title, APA Titled Sports Physiother- apist, I am qualified and entitled to present my opinion regarding the use of Kinesio tape (K-Tape) to treat sports injuries. The basis of my column regarding K-Tape was to highlight the fact that although high pro- file athletes are photographed wearing this tape, there is little scientific evidence to support its use.

I pride myself on my application of evi- dence based practice in all areas of my professional life. David Sacket, considered the godfather of evidence based practice, defines it as “the integration of individual clinical experience and the best external evidence”[i]. As a physiotherapist, when applying evidence based practice, I must not just rely on the “I have seen therefore I believe” approach that Ms Dixon espouses, I must also carefully and critically analyse the relevant research.

A simple PEDro (Physiotherapy Evidence Database) search for K-Tape supplies the latest, quality systematic reviews. A 2015 systematic review and meta-analysis pub- lished in BJSM analysing 17 clinical trials concludes “existing evidence does not es- tablish the superiority of K-Tape to other treatment approaches to reduce pain and disability for individuals with chronic mus- culoskeletal pain”[ii].

Another 2013 systematic review ana- lysed eight randomised controlled trials us- ing Kinesio Tex Tape (KTT) and concluded “there was limited to moderate evidence that KTT is no more clinically effective than sham or usual care tape/bandage” and “there currently exists insufficient evidence to support the use of KTT over other modalities of clinical practice”[iii].

It is true; I have not attended any K-Tape courses. Since the best external evidence does not support K-Tape’s use, why would I waste my time and money listening to the spin and rhetoric of marketing gurus who have monthly K-Tape targets to meet?

The fact is, a small fortune can be made from the sale of K-Tape and by training athletes to fear activity without my expert application of magic tape. However, until the research proves differently I cannot mor- ally or ethically recommend its use.

Linda Reilly Ba.APP.SC(PHTY),M.Hlth. Sc(PHTY),MAPA APA Titled Sports Physiotherapist

(i) David Sacket. Editorial. Evidence Based practice. What it is and what it isn’t. BMJ 1996;312:77

(ii) Lim ECW, Tay MGX Kinesio tap- ing in musculoskeletal pain that lasts for more than 4 weeks: is it time to peel off the tape and throw it out with the sweat? British Journal of Sports Medicine 2015 Dec;49:1558-1566

(iii) Morris D, Jones D, Ryan H, Ryan CG. The clinical effects of Kinesio Tex Taping: A systematic review. Physiotherapy Theory and Practice 2013 May;29(4):259-270

This concludes the debate on this issue. Editor

Editor’s Note

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We have a bit of a science theme in today’s issue. It just happened, and it is exciting to have this thread running through our big- gest issue of the year so far. There is so much talk about science and maths taking a back seat in the subject choice of many students these days, so it is encouraging to know science can make news in our community.

On the front page you will be inspired by Gary Tilley’s passion for teaching science, while Yasmin Potts’ science achievement featured on page 13 is a great achieve- ment. We meet a scientist in Our Bloke this week, and there is a story about the Ages of Fishes Museum’s expansion on page 12. We even have a scientific debate on our letters page.

Tomorrow you can study the science of dressing up when the name of the game changes to ABBA – enjoy!

Maggi Barnard Editor

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