Tag Archives: health

CLARE FM’s John Cooke has won a national media award for his contribution to health journalism. Mr Cooke, who presents Morning Focus on the regional station, was presented with the Consumer Broadcast Radio award at this year’s GSK Irish Medical Media Awards. RTÉ reporter Rita O’Reilly and producer Tara Peterman were jointly named Journalists of the Year, while Joe Leogue was named Young Journalist of the Year for the story he broke for the Corkman newspaper. Irish Times journalist Kitty Holland received the Story of the Year Award for her investigative report into the death of Savita Halappanaver. Mr Cooke was presented with his award a programme with three Clare women on the topic of ovarian cancer. During the emotive programme, Tulla woman Marie Phelan and Ennistymon’s Margaret Barry outlined how they had overcome ovarian cancer. Oncology nurse Ann Murphy from Ennis also detailed her experience of the fourth most common cancer facing women, outlining statistics from the Irish Cancer …

THE committee of the Parkinson’s Health Conference in Feakle are preparing for ‘the Oscars of Irish Medicine’, as their event has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award at the Irish Medical Times Irish Healthcare Awards. The conference, which highlighted a research study by an Italian neurologist into the benefits of set dancing for Parkinson’s Disease (PD) patients, has been shortlisted in the Best Patient Education Project, Non-Pharma category. Therapeutic Effects of Irish Set Dancing on Parkinson’s Disease – Feakle Health Conference, is one of three shortlisted in the category and was chosen out of nine entries. There were 120 overall entries to the awards in total. Described by its organisers as “this year’s ‘Oscars’ of Irish medicine”, the winners will be revealed at a gala event run by the Irish Medical Times in the Shelbourne Hotel on Thursday, November 7. The awards are now in their 12th year and recognise originality, excellence and innovation in such areas as hospital …

MARK Bowers was shocked when consultant urological surgeon, Garrett Durkan looked him in the eye in the Mid-Western Radiation Oncology Centre, Limerick and confirmed he had prostate cancer. While no one is prepared for this devastating news, the fact that 17 months earlier an ultrasound test revealed a cyst was benign, made it an even more bitter pill for the 52-year-old to swallow. Looking back at that day last October, the Killaloe man felt it was akin to “an icy hand grabbing your heart and squeezing it”. Three previous Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) tests had shown elevated antigens but none of them were considered to be at a dangerous level. Right from the start of his diagnosis, he was assured all the way that he would be fine, as the cancer was detected in its early stages. His brother-in-law in Canada, who is in his early 70s, is dying from prostate cancer. Mark believes his brother-in-law, who ironically nursed people …