Community and Oral Health

"I retired as a beekeeper, my brother and I were doing business out at West Emerald, producing five tonnes of honey a month for Capilano. People always asked me how many stings I would get in a day and I said it depends, whether it's a good day or a bad day. A bad day might be 150 stings, but it depends what tree they were on. Not everybody can say that they enjoyed their work, but I did, until the health went, I was working seven days a week. Doesn't matter who it is, I always try to say g'day when people walk past and be outgoing, I may not know their names, but people know my face so they will then stop and talk. The most interesting thing I can tell you is to smile and not let anybody know that they're hurting you, it doesn't cost you anything for a smile!"

💭 Monday Mantra, Norman, RBWH Cardiac Care Unit Patient ... See MoreSee Less

Whilst menopause is something that almost half of the population will experience, it's a topic that is often underdiscussed. ❤️‍🩹

Caboolture Hospital Pelvic Health Physiotherapist Helen is currently undertaking a PhD at the University of Sunshine Coast, and with the support of The Common Good, is exploring experiences of how menopause impacts staff working in healthcare settings.

"There are lots of evidence-based strategies that can be implemented to improve menopausal symptoms. Some of these are based on the pillars of lifestyle medicine - healthy eating, physical activity, mental wellbeing, sleep, healthy relationships and avoiding risky substances - which are all things that we promote and practice in allied health," Helen said.

"I have seen some of the challenges that women have to manage in the workplace particularly in relation to some of the less talked about symptoms of menopause such as bladder urgency or incontinence and I wanted to see if there was a better way to support staff during menopause transition.

"Our project identified that menopause related symptoms are common and bothersome in the workplace for majority of peri and postmenopausal staff at CKW. Only one in ten peri or postmenopausal staff feel women experiencing menopausal symptoms are supported at work."

The next phase of Helen's research will involve focus groups and workshops at Caboolture Hospital and surrounding Metro North facilities to co-design a solution to support staff with menopause transition. ... See MoreSee Less