A renewed focus needs to be taken on safety issues concerning young people participating in sport, is the catch-cry coming from this weekend’s Sports Medicine Conference on the Sunshine Coast.

The 41^st annual Sports Medicine Australia Queensland Branch Conference will highlight the issues relating to Injury prevention and safety in sport, and physical activity for children and adolescents.

Sports Medicine Australia QLD Branch Executive Officer, Mark Brown said this is particular timely considering some of the tragic events that have occurred in adolescent sport in recent years.

“The challenges and emerging trends associated with safety in sport and physical activity for children and adolescents is one of a number of important factors which needs more attention,” said Mr Brown.

“While increased participation in physical activity is a key component to addressing the obesity epidemic, safety issues are still taking a back seat.

“By having the necessary resources available to prevent sporting injuries, participants are more likely to continue to participate in sport and physical activity through receiving the appropriate care they deserve.

“A stronger focus on sports injury prevention needs to be taken although this is proving difficult considering recent decreased QLD State government support for not for profit organisations like Sports Medicine Australia Queensland Branch which make it harder to continue to maintain a focus on safety issues in sport,” said Mr Brown.

The conference will be held on February 11 and 12, 2012 at the Novotel Twin Waters Resort on the Sunshine Coast.

Keynote and invited speakers include:

• Professor David Lloyd; Director of the Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, Griffith University; “Technique and perceptual motor skills affect the risk of ACL injuries in sport: Directions for new training methods”

• Dr Peter Myers; Orthopaedic Surgeon and Associate Professor, School of Medicine, University of Queensland; “Advances in knee surgery”

• Professor Andrew Hills; Professor of Allied Health Research, Mater Medical Research Institute; “Childhood obesity: A heavy load to bear.”

• Dr Craig Engstrom; Lecturer, School of Human Movement Studies, University of Queensland and past SMA QLD Branch President will present the 2012 Kevin Hobbs Memorial Lecture; “MRI findings and stress fractures in cricket fast bowlers”

The Department of Human Services can help Australian working families financially prepare for the year ahead.

Human Services general manager Hank Jongen said the Department, which includes Centrelink and Child Support, provides a range of support services to the Australian community to help families fine-tune their household budget.

“One of the greatest pressures on families can be financial stress,” Mr Jongen said.

“The Department has a range of payments, services and programs in place to help Australian families tackle debt and stick to their budgets.

“We can help families plan for the future, with Child Support being able to connect separated parents to free financial counselling services, and Centrelink’s Centrepay and Financial Information Service offering education and information so people can manage their own finances and keep out of the red.”

Many single parent families use government payments to help make ends meet and Child Support can connect separated parents with free financial counselling services. 

“Families don’t have to be in a crisis to access financial counselling services,” Mr Jongen said.

“Many people after the New Year period will make resolutions to stick to their budgets and save money.

“Our staff can refer families to financial counsellors working in non-profit, community organisations. Financial counsellors can help families with budgeting, negotiating with creditors and accessing hardship programs. Their services are free, confidential and independent.

“Child Support’s free publication, Me and My Money, also offers separated parents tips and hints to help stretch their dollars.”

Visit www.csa.gov.au for more information and publications or use the online calculator to work out your family’s budget.

One of the biggest barriers to financial freedom for families is a lack of basic understanding about how to manage finances and plan for the years ahead.

Centrelink’s Financial Information Service (FIS) offers free, independent and confidential financial information and education, available to everyone in the community.

“Since the service began in 1989, we’ve helped Australians in over 6.7 million instances access financial information and education,” Mr Jongen said.

“Last financial year, our FIS officers conducted almost 80 000 interviews and spent over 6200 hours conducting outreach into the Australian community.

“We also had 72 000 people attend over 2700 FIS seminars across at sites Australia on topics ranging from reducing your mortgage and managing your money to planning for retirement.  

“These services help people to make informed decisions about investment and financial issues for their current and future financial needs.”

Visit www.humanservices.gov.au for more information or call 13 2300.

Customers can also use Centrepay, a free direct bill-paying service that can take regular deductions from their Centrelink payments.

“In the last financial year, Centrelink facilitated 18.8 million transactions for customers, totaling $1.5 billion in goods and services,” Mr Jongen said.

“Centrepay gives families peace of mind that their payments are under control.

“Instead of having large quarterly or monthly bills, these are paid in manageable amounts, making it easier for families to budget.”

To sign up for Centrepay, visit www.humanservices.gov.au and register for Centrelink Online Services. 

“A good laugh and a good sleep are the best cures in a doctor’s handbook.” is an old Irish proverb.  That goes for parents as well as for children!  

Sleep at least 14 hours for the average 12 month old is vital.  Sleep is essential for the healthy functioning of the body’s immune system.  Sleep time is growing time and time for the mind to process and to rest.

REM (rapid eye movement) is when you dream therefore process the days’ events and NREM (non rapid eye movement sleep) is quiet, deep sleep.  The two together form a cycle of sleep.

 Little children should not be given sedative medication except under medical advice.  They need a “behavioural change” program that is more long lasting.

How can I settle them?

There are no hard and fast rules because each child is different. Remember change may take a little while.

  1- A good run around in the park or rough play when Dad gets home from work can be good to make sure they are completely “tired out”

2- Develop a sleep routine eg. give baby a massage or children a bath, dinner, toilet, teeth routine. It is really important to spend this quality time with them if they have been away from you all day at daycare.

 3. - Learn to recognise your particular child’s signals of tiredness.  They may get sooky, rub their eyes, lose their concentration etc. Act quickly!

 4- Little children always love a bed-time story and a little time to think about the positive things for the day.  (A tip – limit yourself to only one or two stories even if there are four children one can choose the book and then you can choose the second book – after all you are reading it!) This should take 15 – 30 minutes. 

5-Choosing some background noise that is easily reproducible perhaps a fan whirring.  My preference was a CD of soft, soothing music played on repeat. That way if they woke (during REM sleep) they would hear it, see their nightlight and generally fall back asleep.

(Routines are sometimes disrupted!  I found that my children settled well on a fold out couch with their Teddy and music playing in a portable CD player.  It sounds like a lot to take to your friend’s house. However, I felt it was worth it -to minimise disruption of the children’s routine by a small amount.  That way the occasional evening out could be enjoyed and not disrupted by the childrens’ wakeful tiredness developing into wakeful hyperactivity!)[h1] 

Having unsettled children is a very common problem –you don’t have to battle their sleeplessness alone.  Don’t ever feel too proud to seek some help from your GP or child health nurse.

There are many issues that tend to come up when coping with the transition from 1 to 2 children….. From talking to the many mums I come across and from personal experience, here are just a few:

1. You’ve done this all before!

When I compare the attention I received from midwives in the hospital during my stay with my second bub, to my first baby’s stay in hospital, it was clearly assumed I knew what I was doing. It’s true that some of it was familiar, but this was a different baby with different feeding issues/temperament/sleep issues, and the vulnerability of having a newborn was still there regardless of how many I’d had before. The chances of being diagnosed  with post natal depression a second time after having had it with your first child is 40-50%- this is a high statistic and screams out for supporting mum just as much on her second time round I think.

1. How can there be even LESS time for me to sleep?

The issue of sleep deprivation is a really big one but it’s worth having a degree of acceptance over the situation and lowering expectations on how much sleep you might get. This time round it’s even more important to learn to accept the help offered from friends and family, so that sleep can be made a priority. It’s also worth keeping in mind that this is a temporary situation and a phase which shall pass in time. You will get some time back and feel more rested……soon.

1. MORE to worry about…..a lesson in resilience!

I think it’s part and parcel of being a parent that we tend to want the best for our kids.  We worry how our eldest is going to cope with half of our attention being lavished on a new baby. My daughter really did struggle (and still does sometimes at 7 years old!) at the concept of having a younger brother….it’s called sibling rivalry and its quite normal! Life is going to throw all sorts of challenges to our kids and it’s learning to navigate those milestones which will help them develop resilience – they need to feel the whole gamut of emotions, not just the positive ones, in order to develop into little people with coping skills!

What issues did you have the second time around?

About The Author:

Dr Melanie Strang - Professional Support Advisor - Mummy & Baby Health  

Melanie is a medical doctor who completed her medical degree at the University of NSW in Sydney. She has always had an interest in mental health and after completing her internship, worked in acute psychiatry and community psychiatry. She then developed an interest in public health and spent some time working for the Health Department looking after the public health response to Meningococcal disease. www.wellmumwellbaby.net.au