Endoscopy

The Endoscopy Unit at St John of God Murdoch Hospital performs, on average, 240 procedures per week. Manager of the unit, Susan Scully, says the worst part of having a colonoscopy is done by the time you arrive at hospital. “Most people find the process of taking the bowel preparation fluid before their procedure unpleasant,” says Ms …

The importance of rehabilitation

Nurse Unit Manager Mark Cook at the Specialist Rehabilitation Service at St John of God Mount Lawley Hospital shares his knowledge of the rehabilitation process after a hip replacement: Why is rehabilitation so important for recovery? Rehabilitation services may be offered to people with existing conditions, or those who are taking a little longer to recover from hip replacement surgery. The main …

Anyone for tennis elbow?

Tennis elbow, also known as Lateral Epicondylalgia, is a common upper limb injury seen by hand therapists. It is equally common in both men and women aged between 30 and 50 years. The term relates back to 1873 when modern tennis began and players started to experience pain outside their elbow. Today, only five per cent of tennis players actually …

Patients give emergency department top score again

Patients have voted Murdoch Private Hospital Emergency as the top private emergency department in Australia for the second year running. Both in 2013 and 2014, the department was ranked the best compared with other private departments of a similar size in an annual survey by global health organisation surveyors, Press Ganey. Director Emergency Medicine Paul Bailey says the score is the result of …

Am I having a heart attack?

9,300 Australians die of a heart attack each year and many of these people die because they don’t know the signs or wait too long to seek help. Director Emergency Medicine Paul Bailey says every minute counts when a person is having a heart attack. “When people arrive at our Emergency Department with chest pain, our first concern is to …

Welcome to the Spring edition of Inside Health

Welcome to the Spring edition of Inside Health. It is upsetting that there is an increasing need in our community for cancer facilities, research and care. It is, however, heartening that so many types of cancer are treatable and in many cases, curable. When patients are diagnosed with cancer, often their whole world is turned upside down and what lies ahead …

Reactions and allergies to drugs

“Do you have any allergies to medications or have you had any adverse reactions to medications?” This is the question most often asked of you when you see a doctor for the first time, or go to a hospital emergency department following an illness or accident. If you answer yes, the doctor, or a pharmacist …

Carers’ stress addressed

Every year, 200 people in WA are diagnosed with a High Grade Glioma, commonly known as a brain tumour. It is almost invariably fatal, with a rapid decline in function and independence and affects not only the patient, but the carer and family unit. People with brain tumours experience cognitive and behavioural changes, they cannot …

Fact or fiction: cancer and its treatments

Dr Sanjay Mukhedkar from Oncology West says it’s natural to be worried about what lies ahead if you are diagnosed with cancer but there are aspects of treatment that are not going to be as bad as you think. Dr Mukhedkar shares some of his insights. All my hair is going to fall out. Not all chemotherapy drugs cause …

Trialling treatments for better health

Oncologists at the Murdoch Oncology Clinical Trials Unit (MOCTU) are passionate about finding new and better ways to ‘kick cancer’ in our community. Dr Kynan Feeney says research shows that patients who are in clinical trials often fare better than those who are not involved. “Clinical trials give patients access to new types of treatment so that we can see …