Dr Bruce Small, who has been practising in Timaru for 32 years, spoke to us about an interesting potpourri of things relating to our health.
Dr Small reminded us that to promote healthy living we to maintain our fitness, to watch our nutrition, have a positive attitude, and get professional health care.
South Canterbury can boast one of the highest rates of immunisation in the country; quick time for cancer treatment; ED waiting times on target; a good level of secondary care and a dedicated primary care team.
In New Zealand the biggest killer is cancer. Bowel cancer is particularly prevalent in South Canterbury with a bowel cancer screening programme commencing in 2018/19 for those aged between 60 and 74.
Sixty nine countries worldwide have introduced HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination resulting in a decline in cervical lesions and genital warts. There is still some scaremongering about its success in New Zealand.
The WAVE (Wellbeing and Vitality in Education) programme has been introduced in all of the South Canterbury primary schools teaching healthy habits such as nutrition and the benefits of gardening.
There has been a national outbreak of Whooping cough, but South Canterbury has been less affected than other areas because of the cocooning programme introduced to pregnant mothers and their families.
Other preventable disease mentioned were measles and rubella, lung cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, diabetes and heart disease. The future use of genetics and stem cells were also briefly discussed