Category Archives: Health and medicine

Broome’s new bush tucker seed bank 16/4/2016

Posted on by

The Kimberley has a new seed bank that will function as a seed shop for bush tucker (Aboriginal food) plants, and for those needing to propogate plants for mine site rehabilitation and gardening. 

Tamara Williams (Nyul Nyul Rangers), Cat Williams (Apace WA), Devena Cox (Nyul Nyul Rangers), Debbie Sibasado (Bardi Jawi Oorany Rangers), Kylie Weatherall (Environs Kimberley) and Cissy Tigan (Bardi Jawi Oorany Rangers).

Tamara Williams (Nyul Nyul Rangers), Cat Williams (Apace WA), Devena Cox (Nyul Nyul Rangers), Debbie Sibasado (Bardi Jawi Oorany Rangers), Kylie Weatherall (Environs Kimberley) and Cissy Tigan (Bardi Jawi Oorany Rangers).

It is also intended to be a supplier to high-end restaurants serving Aboriginal food-influenced dishes.

It also has a serious conservation purpose in preserving rare species for ecological renewall.

This may become important when, for example, rare Kimberley vine thickets are destroyed by bushfires.

Science Network [read this story]

Warning follows post on illegal dumping 21/01/2016

Posted on by

WORDS AND PICTURE BY GEOFF VIVIAN

This is the kind of local story I love to do, and I will tell you why.

Click on this image to read the story.

Click on this image to read the story.

It is about an everyday citizen trying to do the right thing by his community and his family, despite apathy and opposition.

Mr McPherson liked to cycle the gravel paths around a large bush block near his home with his kids.

These paths had become increasingly blocked by illegally dumped rubbish, the last item being a whole discarded trailer.

Taking this sort of issue straight to the media is an aggressive measure, but he had already tried to contact the landowner and the local City council so I didn’t mind batting for him.

I contacted both of these late in the afternoon, and by next day the landowner had decided to start fortnightly inspections, and the City council to “revisit” the issue.

From The Great Southern Weekender, January 21, 2016.

Organ donor nurse wins compo 7/3/2014

Posted on by

POST Newspapers

TEXT BY GEOFF VIVIAN

Organ donor coordinator Susan Frew has won a workers’ compensation case against the agency that handles organ donations in Western Australia.

POST 2014 3 7 p17DonateLife has admitted it made “errors” in the labeling and transport of organs.

The arbitrator awarded Ms Frew the equivalent of about four months’ pay.

She is contesting the decision.

I wrote about some of the incidents that led to Ms Frew taking stress leave and leaving her employment here.

Body parts mixed up 22/6/2013

Posted on by

POST Newspapers

Text by GEOFF VIVIAN

Transplant organs sent to the wrong cities

Click on this image to read the story

Human organs removed for transplant had been mislabelled and sent to wrong cities, a worker’s compensation arbiter heard this week.
In a second incident described to the hearing, a donor liver due to arrive in Perth from interstate was found in a courier van with other parcels while the local surgical team waited in theatre for an hour and a half.

Body parts mixed up - continued

Click on this image to read more

It emerged this week that three of WA’s most experienced organ donor coordinators were no longer working in the public health system.