We have concluded the Hervey Bay event held at Mantra Resort over the 16th & 17th September with a wonderful group on nurses from local hospitals as well as many from far away. The weather remained fine and warm and those of us visiting from other parts of the state have been extremely impressed with the area and can understand the attraction Hervey Bay has for tourists as well as those retiring.

This was another of the events we have been involved with in collaboration with Nurses for Nurses Network, and happy to say more are planned. This will include:
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PORT DOUGLAS - THE DETERIORATING PATIENT, RESPIRATORY AND CARDIAC ASSESSMENT
30 Jan - 04 Feb 2022
THE OAKS PORT DOUGLAS RESORT - 87-109 Port Douglas Rd, Port Douglas
Registrations for this event managed by our event partners Education at Sea
REGISTRATION COST: $1090.00 - NB: Price does not include accommodation or travel costs

GOLD COAST - TELEMETRY, CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS, AND 12 LEAD ECG SEMINAR
17-18 February 2022 
HOTEL MERMAID WATERS
Corner of Sunshine Boulevard & Markeri Street, Mermaid Waters
Registrations for this event managed by Nurses for Nurses Network
REGISTRATION COST: $619.50 - NB: Price does not include accommodation or travel costs

ROCKHAMPTON - TELEMETRY, CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS AND 12 LEAD ECG SEMINAR
11-12 April 2022 
Registrations for this event managed by Nurses for Nurses Network
REGISTRATION COST: $620.00 - NB: Price does not include accommodation or travel costs

GOLD COAST HINTERLAND - A NURSING RETREAT
02-04 May 2022
O’REILLY’S RAINFOREST RETREAT, Lamington National Park
Registrations for this event managed by Nurses for Nurses Network
REGISTRATION COST: $790.00 - NB: Price does not include accommodation or travel costs

Plans are underway for more such events as well as the resumption of Education at Sea events as cruising is deemed safe to undertake, but not until late 2022.  Cruising will be a very different experience in the future with more space, changes to catering and increased medical facilities onboard (including isolation facilities for suspected Covid19 passengers).  The future of the cruise industry will depend on how well they manage onboard infections, so we are confident they will be doing their very best to eliminate the risk of onboard spread of infections.

The future is looking much brighter than the past almost two years of lockdowns, border restrictions and social distancing, though Covid19 will remain as an ever present threat especially to those who choose to remain unvaccinated.

Well here we are in yet another lock-down for 31st July - maybe just three days, maybe more.
The Delta strain of Covid19 is proving to be a much more virulent than previous strains and as such a greater threat to our population.

Recent news is that top-up vaccinations may be needed every six months even after the required two vaccination protocol has been completed.  Work on producing intranasal vaccines continues and would be very welcome to those with a dislike of injections, but not here yet.

There have been some interesting observations concerning the severe reaction to AstraZeneca vaccine.  WHO has suggested there is no need to draw back to check for blood vessel insertion when administering the vaccine, however there has been a suggestion that those rare events when an individual becomes seriously ill after vaccination administration may be due to direct venous injection of the vaccine. Maybe, maybe not - but worth taking the precaution of drawing back before injecting as we have traditionally done?  It can't do any harm to take this precaution, even if there is no validity in the hypothesis.

The YouTube daily video presentations of Dr. John Campbell from the UK are most informative and a great way to keep up with not just UK developments, but developments work-wide (including Australia).

It is now just one month until the planned NURSES RETREAT being held at O'Reilly's Rainforest Resort and we can only hope that the restrictions will be eased before they impact our ability to go ahead with this event.  Fingers crossed!

Then we have the Hervey Bay TELEMETRY, CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS, AND 12 LEAD ECG SEMINAR in six weeks time, this too is a concern, though not likely to be effected. 

Today is August 1st, it is Anne's birthday and our second day of stay-at-home for Southeast Queensland, so no big celebration for the occasion this year.  Many will be far more inconvenienced than us, and our thoughts are with those suffering great distress due to the restrictions. 

We hope everyone will remain safe from the effects of this pandemic and that the day will come when the threat has lessened greatly.  Meantime, keep safe and protect your loved ones.

We have another event in conjunction with THE NURSES FOR NURSES NETWORK

​TELEMETRY, CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS, AND 12 LEAD ECG SEMINAR
16-17 SEPT 2021 - 
MANTRA HERVEY BAY, BUCCANEER DRIVE, URANGAN
Cost: $590 (GST inclusive) Travel and accommodation not included.

More events are planned 2022 

This is a major change to our operations as we reduce the number of independent events we will be conducting in the future, instead working in conjunction with Nurses for Nurses network who will handle all the administrative tasks, freeing us to concentrate on content of the seminars and courses and devoting more time for Advanced Life Support courses in our premises.  Our travelling will be drastically reduced which in turn will limit our exposure to possible infections.

Anne will continue to present the majority of the seminar content, backed up by several great presenters arranged by Nurses for Nurses.  

The aim with these events is not just great informative education, we also aim to provide an enjoyable experience in some unique locations where our attendees can network with like-minded nurses, gaining even more value from the experience.

At some time in the not too distant future we all hope to return to cruising, starting with cruises closer to our part of the world when safe to do so. 

To make the registration experience simple and efficient these will handled by Nurses for Nurses. They have several payment options to help anyone needing more time to budget for the costs of attending our events. 

We look forward to having our loyal customers join us at many of the future events.

Keep safe meantime,

THIS EVENT NOW BOOKED OUT BY MID-MAY.  WILL BE HELD AGAIN 2022.
We are continuing our association with the Nurses for Nurses Network (NFNN) which in the past has seen our involvement in educational events on cruise ships. As these are on hold for the foreseeable future so the new way of delivering these educational events is a move to land based facilities that can offer a unique experience.

From 1st to 3rd September we are participating in a Nursing Retreat to be held at O'Reilly's Rainforest Resort located behind the Gold Coast in the Lamington National Park.  The drive from Canungra to the resort (some 20 plus Km of narrow winding road) is through some spectacular country, as you steadily gain elevation and enter a completely magical world.  The road ends at the resort, set high up in the mountain where the climate is much cooler, but the reception is warm. 

​Full details of the event are on our website, as well as the Nurses for nurses website. All bookings and arrangements  will be managed by NFNN. If more convenient fees can be paid in increments, details on their website.

​As with cruise events, travel and accommodation are not included in the conference price, and you will need to contact O'Reilly's Resort to book your accommodation direct, however NFNN have arranged for a reduced rate for participants for the days of the conference. The code will be supplied when you register for the retreat.  You may wish to stay longer.  (When we spend time there we don't want to leave!) 

Meantime we are continuing in a reduced capacity with ALS courses, and some specialty seminars but with greatly reduced numbers to avoid a situation where we are required to increase social distancing and have to cancel events because of too many participants.

Our New Zealand business has been closed, as travel has become risky and uncertain with the threat of extended quarantine being required.  This has been a very sad ending to a wonderful episode of our lives, but unavoidable. It has however, allowed us to devote more time and energy to our local activities and to try new methods of delivering educational content to our customers; some work, some need more tweaking!  And we are also enjoying the time in our own home, at long last able to have flowers in the garden, which previously could not survive our frequent and prolonged trips abroad.  As well as the NZ visits we were keen cruise takers, both for NFNN work and privately. 

​Like so many others, we have suffered many downsides, but also some good from the pandemic. Our hope for the future is that we all survive this event, and a lasting freedom from the virus is possible.

Meantime, please keep safe, and do all you can to protect your loved ones.  

What a year!
Started out well enough, but mid-March during a lecture tour in New Zealand it went belly up in a big way. We had to cancel the remainder of the jobs and head for home in a hurry. After some anxious days waiting to get a flight home we were able to get seats on one of the last flights across the Tasman and go into home quarantine for 14 days.  We spent the time cancelling seminars and refunding our clients.
Sadly the New Zealand business has not recovered and will have to be shut down indefinitely. 
Our activities in Australia have been limited to small groups, but will be held we hope more often due to the constant threat of having to abandon events at short notice if the outbreaks of Covid19 continue which seems likely.
None of the three Education at Sea cruises for 2020 could go ahead, and the future of cruising is very much a mystery. Our thoughts go out to all those cruise staff who are now redundant; many thousands just in Australia.  Some of our favorite ships have been cut of for scrap.
We also think of our nursing colleagues who have been working under such a heavy, threatening work-load this last year.  Hopefully that will ease somewhat during the new year if the vaccines come on line and make a difference to the threats you have had to face,
Many of you will be celebrating Christmas in a very different way this year, unable to join with family and friends as you have been able to in past years.  Perhaps we will have to be content with phoning or Skype calls to our loved ones who are absent.
​We wish you one and all a happy Christmas and New Year and continued good health.   

October already, and now able to resume some activities so long as we maintain social distancing and have a COVID19 management plan in place, but more importantly adhere to that plan to minimise the risk of cross-infection should we have an infected person who is unaware of their condition in our gathering.

Coming up next week we have our Cardiac Arrhythmias seminar. With the limited audience we are able to accommodate there are many who missed out, and for that we are truly sorry.  We will look at repeating this event in the near future.

The Acute Cardiac Care course will run from 19th to 23rd October, again with reduced numbers. To partially overcome the limited class numbers a second course for undergraduate students only has been scheduled for November, and this also is full.  When we finalise the 2021 schedule it will include additional courses early in the year while students are on the semester break.

Meantime, stay safe everyone please.  We cannot let our guard down too soon with this pandemic or there will be a huge cost for our impatience.

Covid19 continues to rule all our lives for the foreseeable future unfortunately, though we in Queensland have been less restricted than our southern neighbors.  We really feel for those on the border who have far more complications to deal with. The unpalatable truth is that we are not like;y to defeat this virus for some time, even IF a vaccine is developed capable of giving long-term immunity.  Meantime our economy has suffered a terrible blow which will take many years to recover from.

Interesting that vitamin D3 may offer some lessening of the severity of Covid19 infection which is slowly gaining a degree of validity with more and more conservative physicians as the limited trial data is presented.  

Also some better outcomes for those who receive high flow oxygen via nasal prongs rather than positive pressure  ventilation (less trauma to lungs).  Similar result to that previously noted with ARDS patients.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) meanwhile is taking full advantage of the Covid19 distraction to further their agenda, which doesn't fare well for Australia (or any other country for that matter). Please be kind and considerate towards our Chinese Australian citizens and visitors; they are not the CCP, and are not deserving of any blame for the actions of that dictatorship.  Our economic recovery will be damaged no doubt due to the deteriorating situation, but may be aided in the long run by the reduction in international trade with China if our manufacturing industry can be resurrected.  It will mean higher prices so we may have to forego non-essential commodities, but I'm sure we will survive.
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Our video productions have had some success, and we have resumed some events with reduced numbers which has worked OK.

Our plans for New Zealand work late 2020 are going to need a big change due to the restrictions on travel between Australia and New Zealand. It is not going to be feasible to undertake any work across the Tasman until well into 2021, so we may be able to do a few more events at home.  

Keep well everyone until we meet again.

Graham & Anne 

Well, so much for the 2020 plans!
COVID-19 put put a big stick in the spokes of that wheel.
Went OK at first - then middle of March during a lecture tour in New Zealand it all came undone for us.  The remainder of the tour was cancelled and we were initially unable to get back to Australia and looked like becoming unwilling residents of NZ for the duration of the lock down when the travel restrictions were introduced with little warning. Luckily Air New Zealand were allowed another 24 hours of operation and got us home to Australia where we spent two weeks in quarantine.  The time was spent cancelling plans and refunding customers while wondering 'where from here?'

We decided it was time to try our hand at video production, as there was no indication how long it would be before resuming our usual activities. What a steep learning curve! With no previous involvement in this medium it was a matter of starting from scratch. Many failures later and adding a large amount of additional IT gear, Anne is now in production at last. 

There are three videos currently offered for purchase online with more to come. These are for personal viewing only, but commercial licences are planned for the future as well.

Rural and remote nurses who have less opportunities to further education due to travel expense and other restrictions to their attending live education events may find these a big help.

Starting this month we have commenced resumption of some activities and if all goes well we will add to the list of courses for the remainder of the year.

And of course we need to complete the NZ events which were postponed.

Keep safe everyone.

​Graham & Anne

The 2020 schedule of events is ready to publish at last!
We have been so busy this has been on the back-burner for a little while however we finally got time to devote time to the task.

We will be doing all our seminars and workshops as well as courses in our own training room from this point onward.  This has allowed us to reduce the prices as there are no expensive hotel charges to factor into our pricing.  The downside is that space is limited and we can only accommodate a much smaller number of attendees, so events may sell out faster than ideal.  If demand is higher than anticipated we will try to repeat events more often.

​There are few events left this year, but we will be occupied the last half of November doing the cruise to Papua New Guinea for Nurses for Nurses and we hope to see some previous and current clients on the cruise with us.  This will be our first time visiting PNG, and have been assured by the organiser that the ports of call are all safe and an incredible experience, so we are looking forward not only to the cruise but the shore days as well. 

We hope to have some relaxation over the Christmas New Year period, then join a cruise on the Queen Elizabeth II around southern Australia and New Zealand. Contact is problematic during the cruises but we do manage to reply to most within a few days when in ports-of-call.  We are out of phone contact during these times so we urge anyone trying to reach us to use email only. 

Early February our courses commence again, then March will see us off to New Zealand again for work, then back to Australia and continue our events here.

We will be sending out a Newsletter shortly with the full list of events to everyone on the mailing list, until then keep smiling!

​Another 10 DAY CRUISE with Anne, but be quick as this is filling quickly and numbers are limited.  Destination is PNG!
EDUCATION AT SEA​ - Recognition and Clinical Assessment of the Deteriorating Patient
19 November - 29 November 2019 - Brisbane to Brisbane visiting Papua New Guinea
P & O Pacific Aria - great little ship, friendly staff and good facilities. We checked it out last December!
Costs: Conference Registration $890.00
Please note: Conference registration does not include accommodation or travel cost.
Bookings:  All bookings for this event are being handled by Education at Sea 
(Travel Direct Australia) Please contact Helen, Jason or Elita on +61 (02) 6674 2577
Cruise bookings contact Nurses for Nurses at 07 4151 3884 or Webpage: 
https://www.nursesfornurses.com.au/events/234/Recognition-and-Clinical-Assessment-of-the-Deteriorating-Patient-PNG

Happy New Year to all!

The old year is almost finished and a New Year is about to begin, so time to add to this blog.

We have had a little time to relax in the lead up to 2019, and time for reading and researching the latest developments in health, or should that be ill-health?

The statin drug debate continues but the conclusions are becoming more clear-cut in spite of resistance to new knowledge by those who really need to adjust their attitude to the issue.

We have come across this most interesting video from the Australian Broadcast Commission (ABC) which is several years old but summerises the issue very clearly.

Then we found the second video highlighting the the outcome of this program for the presenter where she tells about the response from opponents to the truth; very scary!

We urge you to watch and perhaps it will help you personally if you or your family members are in any way affected.  But please don't expect to be able to have any impact in your clinical practice for the current guidelines are hopelessly behind the times and unlikely to change any time soon in the face of such opposition. Keep safe!

Saturated Fat & Cholesterol Documentary -  https://youtu.be/1pfGTBXkq3g

The resulting response is explained by Dr. Maryanne Demasi in her address - 'Statin Wars: Have we been misled by the evidence?' -   https://youtu.be/BzTjPuikhQE

If these two videos wet your appetite, take a look at the video on the work of Dr Robert Lustig, an dietary expert and endocrinologist who works in a clinic for obese children as he explains what the real cause of health problems is (and it is NOT saturated fats, or gluttony as we are frequently being told). 
Sweet Revenge Turning the Tables on Processed Food - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z-_6JgMiwA

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We are currently working in New Zealand; a very busy lecture tour which runs until beginning of October.  While Anne is busy lecturing, I find some time for research.  This is what has prompted me to add some enlightening articles to the blog for this month. I would urge all our valuable clients to take the time to read the attached by Dr George Lundberg, then follow the link to another article that presents supporting evidence by Dr Malcolm Kendrick, author of The Great Cholesterol Con and Doctoring Data.
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These eminent gentlemen have taken off the blinkers and dared to go against the prevailing dogma concerning nutrition and the obesity epidemic.

It may be of personal help to you if you struggle with weight control, and to your families if they too have been influenced by the blatantly inaccurate recommendations formulated by food producers and supported by our "health authorities". 

These doctors are not crackpots, they are far from it. They are both very well informed health professionals that can benefit us all with their wisdom

​https://drmalcolmkendrick.org/2018/07/03/why-saturated-fat-cannot-raise-cholesterol-levels-ldl-levels/

This is a bit heavy, but you will soon understand what he is pointing out, and how it relates to the current  dietary recommendations and modalities of treatment for some diseases. 

This interesting article has appeared in Medscape recently.  Thought provoking if we have elderly family who have a raft of health complaints and are on statins - often with no justification!
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It is not like us to do another post so soon after the last one, but this news cannot be delayed.

Something totally new to us is planed for 23 February - 5 March 2019 when Anne will be doing a cruise on Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas from Melbourne to Sydney via New Zealand, a ten-day cruise where Anne will be presenting the seminar 'Recognition and Clinical Assessment of the Deteriorating Patient' for Nurses for Nurses Limited  who arrange regular Education at Sea events for nurses who want to enjoy a cruise holiday combined with professional development credits. Graham will be along to carry the bags.
This promises to be be an enjoyable and interesting time for all who are able to join us on this cruise, as presentations are held on sea days only so you will be able to enjoy all the ports visited on the cruise which include the sounds, Dunedin, Akaroa, Wellington and Picton. 

When not attending sea day presentations there are so many other activities on board you will be spoilt for choices; you simply can't do everything.  And for those less energetic there are wonderful places to relax or enjoy the spa.  And the evening entertainment is first class. I won't even mention the food, but expect to gain weight unless you exercise some restraint, or increase your exercise greatly in the on-board gym, or walking the decks.

If you want to travel with family that is also an option some may like to consider, but lone travel with like-minded nurses will ensure this is a great experience for lone travellers also.

A really great opportunity which promises to be a memorable occasion for all participants. To find out more go to this link:  https://www.nursesfornurses.com.au/events/220/

We will not be handling the bookings for this event, which are being managed through Education at Sea (Travel Direct Australia) Please contact Helen, Jason or Elita on +61 (02) 6674 2577

Do join us - it will be a wonderful educational event and enjoyable holiday combined, with possible tax breaks.

Recently we have been involved in a restructuring of our business which will mean that we no longer are associated with OSCA Health Education with whom we have in the past worked in collaboration with to deliver several courses; the ALS, Acute Complex Care and Acute Cardiac Care.

With the conclusion of this arrangement we will in future be conducting the Acute Cardiac Care Course, and Adult Advanced Life Support courses, but not the Acute Complex Care Course.

Anne Evans-Murray will remain as our primary lecturer, with occasional assistance from several  very experienced health professionals.

We are happy to announce that we will be reviewing the prices of some courses with the hope of making them more affordable for our clients.

Our New Zealand business continues to be very active and to put increasing demands on our time which means we are absent from Australian for long periods several times each year as we complete lecture tours 'across  the ditch'.  During these periods contact can be a bit more difficult, but we do our very best to maintain the lines of communication.  The preferred method is email as we so often cannot accept phone contact while busy at seminars, or out of range. We can usually reply to emails within 24 hours.

Easter is almost here, as are the Commonwealth Games.  As we live close to the athletes village it will be almost impossible for us to operate during the games we have been advised, so we will be moving our activities to New Zealand during that period, and for several weeks afterwards to avoid the inconvenience.

For those of you who will be staying on the Gold Coast with plans to be involved in the games we hope you have an enjoyable time and are blessed with fine weather. By the time we get back to Australia autumn will be well established with much cooler weather, but we will be acclimatised after our time in NZ!