I have been wanting to sing from the rafters about this wonderful initiative for sometime now.

While starting as a pilot, a new choir has begun to bring the joy of music to people living with dementia and other serious illnesses.

Community and Oral Health through the Brighton Wellness Hub is delivering Brisbane North’s first dementia choir to create lasting memories and joy for carers, partners, friends and community members.

The Bright ‘N’ Sparks Choir (Brisbane North Dementia Choir) began in early 2024 at the Brighton Wellness Hub.

Dementia can happen to anybody, but the risk increases with age with almost one person in 10 aged over 65 and three in 10 over 85 years suffering dementia in Australia.

The Bright ‘N’ Sparks Choir will provide a very therapeutic experience, and good activity for speech, memory and socialising. Music and inclusion can enhance and maintain a person’s wellbeing, but also prevent and reduce isolation, loneliness and depression.

Thank you to Katie Chan and Claire Harrison for getting the Bright ‘N’ Sparks Choir off the ground.

As our membership continue to grow, I encourage all of our bedded services to think about how your residents and patients can participate in the choir.

The Bright ‘N’ Sparks Choir runs each Friday from 9.30 am to 12.00 noon at the Brighton Health Campus, with singing from 10.00 to 11.00 am, followed by a light morning tea.

To find out more information please contact Katie on 3631 7568.

Choir members Neil and Belinda Begley The personal stories of some of our choir participants are not only amazing but inspiring! Neil, pictured right with his wife Belinda have shared his unique story in the book: Red Dragon Rising Sun: An Australian’s Childhood in China. Neil was born in China with his missionary family and has always been involved in choirs throughout his entire life. At one stage he and his family spent two and half years in a prison camp as a result of the Second Sino-Japanese War. We are blessed to have these two music lovers as part of the Bright ‘N’ Sparks Choir. ​

International Women’s Day

I also want to highlight that it is International Women’s Day, and acknowledge the women who do so much amazing work across our services.

Themed ‘Count Her In’ the day highlights how important economic empowerment is to women’s rights and gender equality.

I am always proud of the hundreds of women employed across COH and across a broad spectrum of professions.

Please take some time today to show your appreciation for your strong, compasionate, committed and wonderful female colleagues.

Bringing the acoustics to the Auditorium

Brighton Health Campus has recently completed taking the ‘Audio’ out of Auditorium and made it a more acoustically-friendly multi-use space.

After several weeks of planning, designing and procurement activities through four different vendors/contractors followed by a few months of installation, we now have a large inviting workspace to conduct meetings, training, education and forums while avoiding the dreaded screech of missteps and furniture movement.

While originally used in the 1970s for stage shows, concerts and dancing, it’s unique flooring has seen better days.

To preserve what was left of this and to get better use out of this facility more in-line with Metro North Healths’ requirements, several changes include:

• carpet tiles
• a dividing wall and door across the stage to increase storage capacity
• acoustic baffling which is arranged in both colour (light to darker shades of blue) and shape to mimic the ocean.

Thank you to Julie, Roger and the entire BEMS team. You can see from the before and after shots below that the auditorium looks absolutely amazing!!!

A final shout out

A year long trial of dental presentations to Emergency Departments (EDs) across Metro North Health has shown some promising outcomes while improving patient dental health in Caboolture and Redcliffe.

Metro North Oral Health Service Director of Governance and Innovation Dr David Carr said the Rapid Access Management of Dental Presentations to Emergency Departments trial looked at establishing a faster access pathway for patients presenting to EDs with dental conditions.

Read more …

Glynis.