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PHC 2000 Rural Workplace RHC

Bernard is back from USA

An invitation to present a paper at the first National Men’s Health Conference in Washington DC has proved a winner for the programs of Centre for Advancement of Men’s Health (CAMH)and the Mallee Track Health & Community Service (MTH&CS)

I was invited based on my 10years of work in men’s health developing programs through CAMH across Victoria, Australia and Canada. The principles and lessons learnt over the years in a cross section of communities have now been developed into integrated programs across the Mallee Track in rural Victoria

Washington is a long way from Ouyen and the Mallee but the programs and the lessons we have learnt was very appealing to the health industry in America. Men’s health is much more advanced in the way we provide opportunities for men to learn about their health issues here in Victoria. The popular Men’s Health Night & Breakfast has proved very popular here, as a vehicle by which to educate men about health and in the Mallee Track and other rural areas across Australia and in Canada has been very effective in getting our early intervention prevention message across to men.

My Paper on ‘Understanding & engaging males to reduce early mortality’ was very popular with standing room only for my talk. The numbers attending clearly indicated that Americans were very keen on the way Victoria approach men’s health and the MAN Model of Health Promotion success.

One outcome of this Paper was an invitation to Nevada to discuss Men’s Health with the Governor of Nevada’s Taskforce on Men’s Health & Prostate Cancer and an hour-long meeting with the Chief of the State of Nevada Health Department and senior executive staff.

Flights were changed, timetables and sightseeing of New York cut short and three additional flights landed me in Sacramento with a drive to Reno and then Carson City. This was a big adventure for the boy from the Mallee bush to head off to the Governor s Taskforce on Prostate Cancer in Nevada. .

The enthusiastic interest in our programs around early intervention and health promotion was refreshing coming from Americans so far from the Mallee when we have trouble getting support from our own state Health Department. Our resources have already been ordered to support American programs yet the uptake from other local health services to our innovative and ‘community spirit’ programs that have attracted community participation rates of up to 25%plus of our Mallee Track population for our Diabetes & Walk Australia projects, is not as enthusiastic.

The State of Nevada Health Department & Governor of Nevada Taskforce on Prostate Cancer indicated an interest for me to go back to Nevada in September to participate in a range of activities including guest speaker at their State Men’s Health Forum. If this comes off then it will be further recognition of our work and a great opportunity for me in the State of Nevada to have an impact on men’s health and community programs for early intervention health.

With the launch of our Diabetes Management along the Mallee Track DVD by the Federal Minister Health, Tony Abbott, recently in rural NSW, our program will be recognised around Australia. The Dept. Health & Ageing will also be supplying their Building Healthy Communities package, which includes our MTH&CS DVD to Nevada and other health organizations around the world. The DVD was release unofficially at the World Conference on Health Education and Promotion in Melbourne last month where the I presented two Papers which has created a lot of interest in our CAMH/MTH&CS way of dealing with chronic disease. Flinders University Community Point of Care Unit continues to be involved in our chronic disease program with support and expertise. They will track our Diabetes program over the next two years providing us with valuable research and findings on the outcomes for Diabetics and the impact on general community early intervention and prevention.

The trip to Washington, which led to the invitation to Nevada, was only possible with the support of MTH&CS, MRCC, Telstra Country wide, Tekace Communications and Pfizer Australia. I thank these organizations for their support and confidence in our work and hope that we can have an impact on the way USA deals with early intervention health programs to reduce early mortality for males and general community chronic disease.

Highlights

• Washington DC is the ‘seat’ of power and the history of America is recognised with incredible monuments to the men and women that pioneered America and those who sacrificed their lives for world freedom.
• Visiting the new War World 11 monument, which is an outstanding recognition of the sacrifice of so many. Actor Tom Hanks and former presidential candidate Bob Dole are two men behind the first WW11 monument in Washington DC.
• The Korean monument and finally building up the courage to walk the Vietnam Wall where 85,000 names of those killed in Vietnam are itched onto the black stones.
• Being detained at the Pentagon for taking’ happy snaps’, which is not allowed. Nearly cost me my camera but ended up losing a $150 camera disc.
• Having the opportunity to visit New York and see the sights and sounds that are constant visions of our TV and movie screens.
• The sombre view of the ‘hole’ left after the cleanup of Twin Towers and the monuments adoring fire stations around New York honouring their fallen comrades.
• Trip to Nevada and how good it felt that Australian health programs are well respected and that more importantly that these programs originated in rural Victoria and are continuing to be developed in the Mallee /Sunraysia area, will be adapted for American communities.

CAMH and my programs conducted in partnership with MTH&CS in the Mallee/Sunraysia area has a lot to offer the health industry with the range of products produced and developed here.

Contact Bernard Denner 61 419 566 750
or email bernard@mannet.com.au