More Women suffer Cystic Fibrosis than men
Because of Oestrogen levels ‘Irish researchers reveal’
More research will aid Cystic Fibrosis treatment
A major advance has been made in understanding why females with cystic fibrosis (CF) fare worse with the disease than males.
The discovery by Irish researchers may assist not only with the future treatment of CF, but with other diseases as well.
An Irish research team has found that the hormone oestrogen promotes a particular bacteria which results in more severe symptoms for females with CF.
The researchers from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland have also discovered that women who are on the pill, which decreases the amount of oestrogen in their body, have lower levels of the bug in question.
The study showed that oestrogen helped proliferate a form of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the lungs of women with CF.
These bugs are coated in a slimy layer which makes them more difficult to treat with antibiotics and more difficult to clear through the body’s defences.
This leads to lung inflammation, and the researchers say this in part explains why females with CF can have a worse outcome than their male counterparts.
Professor Gerry McElvaney, Director of the Respiratory Research Laboratory at RCSI/Beaumont Hospital and joint senior author on the paper said: “This study opens the way to a new understanding and potentially new therapies in the treatment of cystic fibrosis, a condition in which Ireland has the highest incidence in the world.”
“This research study is among the first examples which shows the effects of gender hormones on infections, and therefore has major implications for conditions beyond cystic fibrosis including other respiratory diseases such as asthma.”
Laghey Donegal €1.6m Cannabis drugs haul ‘two men to appear at special court’
The scene at the warehouse in Laghey on the right where the huge drugs haul was found.
Two men detained at Ballyshannon Garda Station in connection with a 1.6m Cannabis seizure near Laghey will appear in court this evening.
A garda spokesperson confirmed to the Donegal Democrat that the two men will appear before a special sitting of Sligo District Court to be held this evening.
The huge cannabis haul – with an estimated street value of €1.6m was uncovered at a warehouse in Trummon, Laghey yesterday.
The seizure was part of an ongoing operation by gardaí from Ballyshannon assisted by the Garda National Drug Unit.
2,000 plants, which gardaí say were part of an elaborate growing operation were seized as part of planned search at a warehouse in Trummon, Laghey.
Two men, one in his 30’, one is his 40’s were arrested at the scene and were questioned today at Ballyshannon Garda Station.
Reaction in the Laghey area last night to the discovery – and the extent of the haul – was a mixture of shock and surprise.
“You never really do know what is going on down the road,” one bewildered local who declined to be named, told the Donegal Democrat, adding: “obviously the gardaí know more than they get credit for some times.”
Who are the carers of Ireland’s carers now?
Caring for a loved one is difficult at the best of times, but reduced services, economic insecurity and an ageing population have made life tougher for people minding elderly or disabled relatives. Here we look at the changing role of carers in Ireland’
Family carers are often invisible, under the radar, even though their numbers are increasing all the time. In the 2006 census, 160,917 citizens identified themselves as carers.
The figure for last year’s census, which will be published in November, is expected to be much higher, at about 8 per cent of the adult population, according to a recent Quarterly National Household Survey. Yet despite the growing number of people who care for their parents, spouses, children and other family members, fewer resources have been available to support them since the cuts in public spending.
This year alone the HSE’s National Service Plan, which aims to save €750 million, includes 500,000 fewer hours of home help, a vital service for many carers. Other planned cuts include the closure of up to 900 public nursing-home beds. By the end of this year, 630 private beds from the Fair Deal nursing-home scheme, which helps provide affordable private nursing-home care, will also have been cut.
“A third of carers are older people, so emigration of family members is placing an additional burden on these people. It’s another layer of support going out of the network and makes life harder for them,” says Eamon Timmins of Age Action Ireland.
“We’re also seeing an older generation emigrate this time, along with younger people, which wasn’t the case in the 1980s. The parents of those older children wouldn’t have been expecting them to go now.
“And if you look at our ageing population, and the current numbers of younger people emigrating, then you have to ask the question: who’s going to be stepping in to help care for parents in the future?”
Many people do not want to contemplate the difficult, emotive questions around health. Who’s going to take care of you when you’re elderly? What will happen if you have a serious long-term illness long before you’re elderly? Can, or will, someone in your family take responsibility for a relative, such as a parent, who can no longer take care of themselves?
It is human nature to hope for the best of health throughout life. Nobody chooses to think of themselves as becoming ill or dependent, or to think of the people closest to them being in that situation either. But people can fall ill at any stage of life, and they do get old.
Keeping people, particularly older people, at home as long as possible and out of institutions is agreed to be the best model of care. It also saves the State a considerable sum of money.
The Carers Association is a countrywide organisation with 16 support centres. In 2009, it published a report, Carers in Ireland: A Statistical and Geographical Overview. Using data from the 2006 census, the association estimated that carers were contributing 3.7 million hours of care a week, worth €2.5 billion a year. It estimates that carers now save the State €4 billion a year.
Along with other advocacy organisations, the Carers Association campaigned for a change to the census question asked of carers: “Do you provide regular unpaid personal help for a friend or family member with a long-term illness, health problem or disability?” qualified by a note: “Include problems which are due to old age. Personal help includes help with basic tasks such as feeding or dressing.” The question was asked only of people over 15.
Last year the question was also asked of under-15s. In November, when the CSO releases its carers data, the number of young carers will become known for the first time.
To receive home help, a person being cared for must be over 65 and have a level of dependency. “The most common problems carers have is that many services are aimed at under 18s and over 65s,” says Catherine Cox of the Carers Association. “In between those ages, the services are very inconsistent.”
The maximum home help a carer can usually expect to receive is one hour five days a week. The help does not officially include nursing or medical aid; it is meant only to aid with shopping, laundry and light housework, although many home helps unofficially assist with tasks showering, dressing, feeding and other tasks.
In a statement to The Irish Times, the HSE said: “There will be reductions of 4.5 per cent nationally in the level of home help hours provided, but this reduction will be compensated by a more rigorous approach to the allocation of these supports to ensure that the people most in need receive them by deprioritising non-personal care.”
The main payment for family carers is the carers’ allowance – €204 a week if the carer is under 66 and €239 if over. According to Cox, only a third of full-time carers receive this allowance, as it is means-tested.
The reduction in home-help hours is just one additional challenge facing family carers. The recession and the consequent number of people leaving the country to look for work elsewhere have had a very specific knock-on effect for some families.
The CSO published a Quarterly National Household Survey module on carers in 2010. It found that four in 10 carers look after a parent or parent-in-law; that four in 10 were the sole carer of the person they looked after; and that half of all carers cared for someone in the same household.
The survey also looked at the impact of caring on the life of the carer, by using a “strain index” score. Two thirds of those surveyed reported that their own lives had been affected by their responsibilities. Disturbed sleep, coping with distressing behaviour, financial strain, and an adverse effect on their own mental and physical health were among the problems carers reported as a result of caring for a family member. More than a third of those surveyed admitted “feeling completely overwhelmed by their caring responsibilities”.
Donegal seafood processing sector to get €9 million investment
€8,828,230 has been invested in Donegal seafood processing firms Joe McHugh TD has stated this lunchtime.
Deputy McHugh says the investment will help to realise the sector’s potential while creating much needed jobs.
The investment is part of a broader national investment of €15.5 million, which is supported by grants of €3.2 million under the EU co-funded Seafood Processing Business Investment Scheme. The Scheme is implemented as part of the Irish Seafood Development Programme 2007-2013.
“The scale of the investment being made by 21 seafood processing companies across Ireland is significant as it will see 142 new jobs being created nationally within the industry with increased sales of €44 million expected by 2015. It comes on the back of investments of a total of nearly €10 million in 2010 and 2011 and is a clear recognition of the role and contribution the seafood processing industry has to play in our economic recovery.
“In Donegal, a total investment of more than €8.8 million is being made by local firms including: Sean Ward Fish Exports Ltd., Killybegs; Earagail Eisc Teo, Meenaneary; Charlie Vial Ltd, Dunkineely; Premier Fish Ltd., Kinncaslagh; Atlanfish Ltd and Proseail An Clochan Liath Teo, Dunglow. This investment is underpinned by €3,276,365 of support grants that will allow firms to develop and expand their business to meet the demands of this ever growing sector.
“The Irish seafood industry has grown from strength to strength in recent years and this investment will ensure that that trend continues into the future. The Action Plan for Jobs identified certain sectors within the Irish economy with the potential for real growth with the agri-food sector, including the seafood industry, among them.
“Similarly, the Food Harvest 2020 strategy sets out clear targets which aim to grow the seafood revenue sector by €300 million while increasing jobs by 3,000.
“Confidence in the seafood industry in Donegal is high. This investment will help to create jobs in Donegal by allowing these six of companies to diversify and expand and ultimately increase profitability.”
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