Tallaght Hospital to host free ‘Are You Winter Ready’ public health talk
With the cold and unsettled weather of winter fast approaching, Tallaght Hospital is hosting a public health talk, entitled ‘Are You Winter Ready’ on Thursday, 26 October at 6:30pm in Lecture Theatre 001, Tallaght Institute of Technology.
This free talk, open to all interested members of the public, will look at the best way to plan, prepare and prevent and be winter ready.
The talks will cover how to prevent and treat common winter illnesses such as flu, colds or winter vomiting; where or who to seek professional medical help from if needed; information on winter vaccinations; and, how to look after your health to prevent or reduce the risk of contracting such illnesses.
Speakers on the night include a number of local-based healthcare experts such as Professor Stephen Lane, Consultant Respiratory Consultant at Tallaght Hospital, Local GP Catherine Wilkinson, Eimear Digan, senior dietician and Martina Mc Govern Senior Social Work Practitioner.
Professor Lane is a leading Irish expert on respiratory conditions and has extensive experience in areas such as asthma, COPD and lung infections.
Acting as MC for the evening he will also talk about the Flu vaccine and why it is important as well as addressing common myths around the ‘Flu’.
Dr. Catherine Wilkinson from GPs at Tallaght Cross will talk about the general winter illnesses we can all fall victim to and what to do when that happens.
Eimear Digan is a Senior Dietitian working at Tallaght Hospital, Martina McGovern is a senior social practitioner with the Integrated Care Team for Older Persons, CHO7. They will both cover off the bases for planning and prevention for winter.
The talk is part of a wider information campaign undertaken by Tallaght Hospital in partnership with the Dublin Midlands Hospital Group to increase public awareness of the need to be ‘Winter Ready’.
This six-month campaign will run from October to March next year and will focus on providing information on a number of key areas such as accessing the most appropriate healthcare services; protecting yourself from common illnesses such as flus and colds and ensuring that individuals know how to prevent and treat winter illnesses.
The ‘Are You Winter Ready’ campaign will be officially launched also on the day.
Speaking about the importance of being winter ready, Professor Stephen Lane, Respiratory Consultant at Tallaght Hospital said: “As everyone knows the winter period is the time when illnesses such as colds, flus or vomiting bugs are at their peak and impact on the public in the worst way.
“Learning how to manage and prevent everyday illnesses with confidence and common sense is important.
“Being fit and healthy is also critical to ensuring that if these winter illnesses strike that your body is equipped to fight off these infections in the shortest time frame”.
Professor Lane continued: “All those who attend this talk will hopefully go home equipped with a lot of the information vital to ensuring that they and their families stay healthy over the winter period or if they do get sick know where to go to get the best treatment in the most suitable location.
“All are welcome on the night and we encourage everyone to attend.”
