Archive for August, 2011

Emergency Care Clinics Vs The Emergency Room

August 22nd, 2011

Do you like waiting around all day in a waiting room when you have an injury or illness? Do you have lots of extra money to just throw out the car window? These are the only reasons you should be going to an emergency room. Emergency care clinics work to give you everything you need to feel good about your experience with them.

Emergency clinics take care of most of the things that emergency rooms take care of. Emergency clinics will have you in and out of there in a fraction of the time that an emergency room will make you wait for. They will also charge you a fraction of the cost. Most people will feel way better about their experience at an emergency care clinic as well. The doctors care about you more and work harder to fix your problems so you feel satisfied upon leaving. They really work fast and friendly to get you back to your normal life. They won’t have you waiting around all day to treat you like a number and then not even completely fix your problem with the proper care.

The people at the emergency care clinics can do check-ups on and off site. They can travel to schools to do general physicals for all the kids, they help with minor breaks and sprains, they even take care of illnesses and job related injuries. You can get a doctor’s note from an emergency care clinic just the same as from your doctor or from the emergency room. The emergency room can’t leave and go on site to a school, sport or camp and give physicals. These organizations can. They can tell kids involved in the programs whether they are healthy enough to participate in activities or not.

These clinics can take care of cuts and breaks. They have the ability to do stitches and casts just as emergency rooms can but they will do it much faster than an ER can. They will help you to get what you need without paying a ridiculous cost.

The difference in emergency rooms and emergency care centers is the friendly atmosphere, the fast paced style of the office, and of course the price. They just like to help people because they care about their community. They are not trying to gain anything from it except to treat people with respect and to help everyone out.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6490029

Pacific Health – Current Physical Activity Status of Pacific Peoples in New Zealand

August 11th, 2011

Physical activity (PA) status of Pacific communities in New Zealand

According to the Active New Zealand Survey (ANZS) 2007/08 results by Sport and Recreation New Zealand (SPARC) 52% of Pacific respondents were regularly active, 36.5% were sometimes active compared with those who were not active (10.9%). While over half the people surveyed appeared to be active enough, 47% could be more active. That is, the data suggests that less than half are not meeting the national guidelines of 30 minutes of PA on at least 5 days out of 7.

Demographic profile of Pacific ethnic groups in New Zealand

In 2006, based on Ministry of Health data, the Pacific population accounted for 6.9% (265,974) of the total population in New Zealand. Samoa was the biggest community (49%) followed by Cook Islands (22%) Tongan (19%) Niuean (8%) Fijian (4%) Tokelauan (3%) and Tuvaluan (1%) peoples. Also, 37.7% of the Pacific population was under 15 years compared to 21.3% of the total population and the median age was 21 compared to the national average of 35 years. The majority (67%) of the Pacific population was living in Auckland (as was 66% of the Samoan population), and 60% of the population was born in New Zealand, the same percentage as 60% the Samoan population.

Increased levels of PA could reduce health risks affecting Pacific peoples in New Zealand

Getting more people active could slow down the rate of modern lifestyle diseases such as cardiovascular disease. Physical activity may also reduce or eliminate risk factors such as cigarette smoking, high blood pressure and diabetes, overweight and obesity. Obesity affects more Pacific people than non Pacific people in New Zealand. For instance, in 2008, the Ministry of Social Development reported that Pacific peoples aged 15 years and over had higher obesity rates (65%) than the total population in this age group compared with European/other (23%) ethnic groups between 2006 and 2007.

Are you active enough?

  1. Are you achieving the national PA guidelines?
  2. What does PA mean to you?
  3. What types of PA do you enjoy?
  4. What makes it difficult for Pacific peoples to do PA?
  5. What would make easier for Pacific peoples to do more PA?

Talofa [Hello] I am a self employed independent researcher and I lead and manage Pasifika Research Ltd which is focused on improving education, health and social wellbeing of Pacific peoples in New Zealand. I have a degree in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management and a Post Graduate Diploma in Sports and Leisure Studies. In 2009, I graduated with a Masters degree in Sport and Leisure Studies and my thesis was focused on understanding young people’s perceptions and experiences of physical activity in Apia, Samoa. In my spare time, I like to mountain bike, work out with weights, cross train, travel, read and write articles.