Irish anti-smoking laws & measures saved 1,700 lives, ‘New study shows’
As much as 1,700 people in Ireland who would have died from tobacco-related illnesses are alive today because of anti-smoking laws in the country, a new study reveals.
Measures such as significant hikes in the price of tobacco and the workplace smoking ban, introduced in Ireland in 2004, have prolonged the lives of 1,716 people.
The figures, published last week in Tobacco Control Journal, part of the British Medical Journal, relate to a period between 1998 and 2010.
The information forms the first of 11 studies to examine the effects of smoking cessation measures in European countries.
One of the authors of the report, Prof Luke Clancy, said price hikes were the most significant factor in making people quit smoking in Ireland.
He said it was a surprise that the second-biggest factor in making people quit was the workplace ban, which was controversially introduced in 2004.
The measure was brought in to protect workers from second-hand smoke and was not expected to be a deterrent to smoking in its own right.
Ireland scored poorly on media campaigns and smoking cessation services which, for instance, the UK is very strong on, he said.
Prof Clancy said 1,000 fewer people in Ireland die each year from smoking-related illnesses than in 1998.
At present, about 5,500 people die of such illnesses every year; 20 years ago the figure was 6,500.
He attributed the big decrease to advances in the treatment of strokes, cardiovascular problems and cancer which are brought on by smoking, but also the continuing decrease in smoking from a peak in 1975 of more than 50 per cent of the adult population.
The figure at present is about half that.
The survey predicted that rates of smoking will be at 20 per cent by 2040, resulting in 27,768 fewer deaths by that time.
However, if smoking rates were halved, the number of lives saved would be closer to 40,000, Prof Clancy maintained.
Finland is the first country in the world to set a target of having a smoke-free society by 2040.
Nigerian woman who ran prostitution service jailed for three years
The Nigerian woman with an address of no fixed abode who ran a prostitution service and kept brothels in Sligo and Longford has been jailed for three years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Charity Ajayioba (36) later claimed that she had been trafficked to Ireland and was forced to work here as a prostitute to pay back a debt.
The court heard that the brothels earned €90,000 over 36 months and that there were at least two to three women working at each location.
Patrick Reynolds BL, defending, suggested to Detective Sergeant Frank McGrath that Ajayioba was “trapped in this country and moved around as a prostitute”.
“My investigation led me to believe that she was neither a victim of human trafficking nor was she a victim of sexual exploitation. I believe she was a suspect in this investigation at all times,” Det Sgt McGrath told the court.
He accepted that although analysis of Ajayioba’s bank statements showed sums of money going into her account, she was arrested with “only the clothes on her back” and gardai have no evidence that she has any other assets.
Det Sgt McGrath told Garret Baker BL, prosecuting, that the State’s principal witness was a prostitute who had been working for Ajayioba.
This woman came to garda attention when they raided a house in the Rathbaun Estate, in Sligo, after it was noted that a number of Nigerian woman had been living there without making themselves known to the relevant authorities.
Det Sgt McGrath said the prostitute later made a detailed 31 page statement to gardai outlining where the prostitution took place and identifying three properties in Sligo and one in Longford.
She claimed that she had earned €44,300 at that stage working as a prostitute and she had given half of that directly to Ajayioba, the remainder went on rent and bills.
Ajayioba, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to directing the activities of a prostitute and keeping a brothel in Sligo on March 22, 2007. She has no previous convictions and has been in custody since her arrest in April 2011. She was also arrested at that time on “an immigration matter”.
Det Sgt McGrath said Ajayioba was arrested in Ballymun and although she initially denied the offence and knowing the State witness, she later made “certain admissions”.
Mr Reynolds suggested to Judge Martin Nolan that Ajayioba had been “forced to keep a brothel”.
“She did what she had to do to survive. There is no indication that she reaped the benefits of this. She had to pay back a debt. The money went into her account and it went out,” Mr Reynolds said.
“Gardai suggest she is a much bigger player than she was but my client cannot be sentenced on a nudge, nudge, wink, wink,” counsel said.
Judge Nolan said Det Sgt McGrath did not accept Mr Reynolds’s submission that his client was “only a small bit ahead of the State’s chief witness” and said that counsel had no evidence to offer in support of Ajayiboa’s proposition.
Mr Baker said he didn’t think it was fair to suggest that the Det Sgt McGrath was adopting a “nudge, nudge, wink, wink approach to the prosecution of the case”.
Judge Nolan said Ajayioba had been directing at least one prostitute and was keeping brothels.
He accepted the facts of the case were “unclear” as to what position Ajayioba held, her level of control or the amount of profit she made in the running of these brothels.
Judge Nolan said Ajayioba was entitled to “credit” for her pleas of guilty but said they were serious offences before he jailed her for three years.
Minister Reilly’s new move on hospitals revamp with 3 new appointments
Health Minister James Reilly has announced three new appointments as part of his ongoing revamp of how hospitals are run.
He has also established a oversight group to oversee the recent national recommendations on hospital safety and governance in the recent HIQA report on Tallaght Hospital. The setting up of hospital groups followed by independent hospital trusts to manage hospitals is a major element of Dr Reilly’s reform programme, which also includes the phasing out of the HSE and the introduction of universal health insurance.
The first two hospital groups to be established cover Galway-Roscommon and mid-western hospitals.
Minister Reilly has appopinted Noel Daly to chair the Galway-Roscommon group, and Prof Niall O’Higgins is to chair the mid-western group.
Noel Daly is a former Chief Executive of An Bord Altranais and has served in senior management posts in the health service in Ireland and the UK.
Niall O’Higgins is a former Professor of Surgery at UCD and was chair of the group that published proposals that were eventually used as the template for the reorganisation of cancer services in recent years.
Minister Reilly has also announced that international experts in patient safety and governance are being included in the new oversight group on the HIQA recommendations. The group will begin its work before the end of the month.
The group includes members from Denmark and the UK.
The Minister has also announced the appointment of Prof John Higgins to his Special Delivery Unit to chair a strategic board to assist in the design and establishment of hospital groups.
Prof Higgins is head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Cork University Maternity Hospital and head of the medical school at UCC.
Dr Reilly said the new appointments will assist in the development of HIQA recommendations on improving competence and accountabillity of hospital boards.
Socialising can help reduce symptoms of depression ‘Irish research reveals’
Socialising can help reduce the symptoms of depression, new research has revealed.
The Minister for Disability, Equality, Mental Health and Older People Kathleen Lynch officially launched the report
Spending time with a friend, going for a coffee or visiting a museum are among activities found to help people with mental health problems.
A study, carried out by researchers from University College Dublin and led by Dr Ann Sheridan, saw participants given €20 a month to spend on taking part in a social activity.
At the beginning, 20pc of the 100 taking part who had already been receiving treatment for depression said they had no contact with friends.
A third of them never talked to neighbours, 35pc lived alone and half never attended social groups.
“By the end of the study, all of the participants reported feeling better about themselves, having more confidence to socialise in their community, and experiencing fewer symptoms of depression,” said Dr Sheridan.
The subjects took part in a social activity for at least two hours a week, some were paired with a volunteer to form a friendship, and they were all asked to keep a diary of their social activities.
Figures show that around 390,000 adults across the country experience some form of psychological distress at any given time.
As many as 320,000 of those contact their GP in connection with mental health problems.
“The evidence from this study is unequivocal,” added Dr Sheridan, a lecturer at the UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems at UCD.
“Supporting the development of positive relationships and increasing social activity helps with the treatment of mental health difficulties.”
Minister for Disability, Equality, Mental Health and Older People Kathleen Lynch officially launched the report, which was funded by the Health Research Board.
She said the study showed that conventional medical treatments for depression can be supplemented by social support from family and friends.
“Increased social interaction helps sufferers to rebuild their self-esteem, which in turn enables them to maintain and develop positive relationships and
No comments:
Post a Comment