It’s important to challenge those who seek to demonise parents who use alcohol and drugs as “bad parents”, according to Donna Ribton-Turner, Director Clinical Services at UnitingCare ReGen. Rather than scapegoating parents with alcohol and drug issues, they deserve appropriate support and care, she says. *** Stigmatising vulnerable families only makes things worse Donna Ribton-Turner [...]
READ MOREAs the NT targets “problem drinkers”, it seems government policy may be the real problem
The NT Government recently announced that “problem drinkers” in Katherine, Darwin, Alice Springs and Gove will be subject to mandatory treatment as part of a new policy starting in July. It expects up to 800 people will be required to undergo treatment. According to this statement, ”problem drinkers” placed in protective custody three times in two [...]
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Right around the country, state and territory governments are letting us down when it comes to promoting public health and tackling alcohol
Are governments abrogating their public health responsibilities? This was the title of a presentation to the National Rural Health Conference in Adelaide this week, by David Templeman, CEO of the Alcohol and other Drugs Council. The article below is based on his presentation – and suggests the answer to the question is a resounding YES. [...]
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Profiling a citizen-generated public health campaign against alcohol and junk food marketing in sport
When citizens are prepared to take a stand against the junk marketing so prevalent in sport, perhaps the tide is turning. In the article below, Jeremy Henderson from the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education profiles a Tasmanian man, Aaron Schultz, who is mounting a citizen-generated campaign for action on alcohol and fast food marketing [...]
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The Good Kidney Riddle: Preventing Disease and Dialysis in the Younger Generations
In 2011 the AIHW published the Chronic Kidney Disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People (AIHW, 2011) report which contained some alarming statistics about the renal health of Indigenous Australians. The report found that Indigenous Australians develop end stage kidney disease (ESKD) at over six times the rate of non-Indigenous Australians and that Indigenous Australians were four [...]
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A former health minister tells: three reasons why politicians have failed to act on alcohol
A ban on alcohol advertising needs to be seriously canvassed, according to a former NSW Health Minister, John Della Bosca. In a speech to the recent NSW Alcohol Summit (you can read a transcript of his comments below and a wider report of the proceedings from the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education), he also called [...]
READ MOREOn Big Food, unhealthy partnerships, and the public health benefits of regulation
When the junk food and alcohol industries seek to cosy up to health professionals and organisations, beware. The aim of such “partnerships” is to stop the sort of regulation that is needed to improve public health and safety, according to the latest JournalWatch article profiled by Dr Melissa Stoneham of the Public Health Advocacy Institute [...]
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Headlines about sly grogging in Alice Springs are a red herring – instead, target the cheap, legal sales
Recent articles in The Australian newspaper sounding the alarm about illegal alcohol sales in Alice Springs deflect attention from more pressing public health concerns, according to Dr John Boffa and Bob Durnan from the People’s Alcohol Action Coalition. They say the harm caused by cheap cask wine being sold by hotels is a far greater concern, [...]
READ MORENo simple answers for parental alcohol and drug use
Donna Ribton-Turner, Director of Clinical Services at UnitingCare ReGen argues that we need a more complex approach to supporting families dealing with alcohol and drug problems. Alcohol and other drug (AOD) use is a topic that tends to generate passionate public debate. Problematic AOD use by parents (particularly of illicit drugs) is one issue that [...]
READ MOREThe perfect cocktail…and other tips for safer, healthier alcohol regulation
The Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT (AMSANT) recently called for a minimum floor price on alcohol. In the UK, the conservative Prime Minister David Cameron is supporting such a policy, and some of the background to this breakthrough has been revealed today by a leading British authority on alcohol policy, Professor Sir Ian Gilmore. At [...]
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