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Survey reveals over a third of us are neglecting our hearing

A survey conducted by hearing healthcare group Audika - and hosted by Decibel Research - has revealed the hard truth that Australians just aren’t keeping on top of their hearing. Research even found that for 88% percent of respondents - 1,020 individuals over the age of 40 - the thought of losing their eyesight was a bigger concern than losing their hearing. People had a whole host of reasons, but most circled back to the stigma that surrounds hearing loss - they feared that hearing aids would make them look older, or that they might be too uncomfortable, or even that they’re simply too expensive for the average person, despite 37% of those surveyed admitting that they would probably benefit from one. 34% - roughly one third of the participants - confessed that they probably do have difficulty hearing, but have never undergone testing or sought out any sort of treatment. Meanwhile, 61% admitted that the chances of them partaking in a hearing test in the following 12 months were slim to none. Even more concerning were the 51% - over half of those surveyed - said that they would put off wearing a hearing loss “as long as possible”, even to their own detriment. Their minds wouldn’t change even if they received a hearing loss diagnosis. And this is all despite 69% of those with hearing loss reporting that their lives had been negatively impacted, from 35% citing their personal relationships as the area of concern to 35% noting their social life in general, and 19% looking to their career. Those same respondents shared that they have experienced difficulty communicating and that others don’t always understand them, often withdrawn from various events, and have faced a lack of confidence in navigating social situations. None of which can have been helped by the jokes from loved ones that a quarter of them also reported. It is more important than ever to address these statistics, and to overcome the stigma that surrounds hearing loss, as the World Health Organisation has estimated that by 2050, 1 in every 4 people around the world will experience hearing loss of some degree. On top of this, it’s believed that up to one third of the world’s population may be both undiagnosed and consequently untreated. Luckily for us, preventative measures can be taken, and the first - and arguably most important step - is to take our hearing health seriously, and make the necessary changes that will benefit us in the long run. The importance of taking such measures cannot be stressed enough, from managing symptoms all the way to preventing other “serious health conditions”. As Audika’s Audiologist and Clinical Trainer Lauren McNee put it, “poor hearing, if untreated, is linked to a number of other health conditions including mental health challenges. “The results of the recent survey indicate that Aussies don’t seem to be aware of how common hearing loss can be. They also appear to be unaware of the serious daily impacts that are felt by people that are hard of hearing, and their loved ones. “Unfortunately, stigma surrounding hearing health is still prevalent across our society – yet more than half (51%) of the survey respondents said that they have a loved one that experiences it. “With greater understanding of the impacts of hearing loss and compassion for each other, we can work towards more open conversations around hearing loss and encourage those we care about to be more proactive with their hearing health.” To help Australians on their way towards a better hearing future, Audika are encouraging people over the age of 26 to head out, learn to ‘Love Your Ears’, and visit an Audika clinic for a free hearing check. And for those who’d prefer to do it from the comfort of home, you can head over to <a href="https://www.audika.com.au/online-hearing-test">Audika’s five-minute online hearing check</a>. For more information, visit <a href="https://www.audika.com.au/">Audika’s official website</a>. Images: Getty

Body

Aussies guilty of neglecting at-home pet care

New research has revealed that Australian pet owners are overlooking home health checks for their furry friends. A report released by PetSure recording data from 2022 for 2023 showed that just one in 10 pet owners provided at-home health checks for their pets, including things such as brushing their pet’s teeth or checking for fleas and ticks. However, even with the cost of living crisis, the report found 82 per cent of pet owners spoil their pet’s each month. "With pet ownership across Australia at a record high, companion animals continue to play a central role in our lives, but there is still a knowledge gap when it comes to pet health and the role pet insurance can play in helping you prepare for the unexpected," CEO of PetSure Alex Thomas said. The data analysed in the report shows the top five health conditions for dogs and cats. The top five dog diseases in 2022 included skin allergies, arthritis, diarrhoea, ear infections, and gastritis. For cats, it was vomiting, gastrointestinal tract diseases, dental disease, diarrhoea and urinary tract disease. "Like many pet owners, vets are animal lovers and they want the best for your fur baby, but pet parents need to do their due diligence. While pampering can provide enrichment for pets, it's simple things like regularly brushing your dog's teeth or checking for fleas and ticks that pet parents should prioritise," vet Dr Betty Chan said. "Being proactive with a regular at-home health routine could help detect and address issues early on, resulting in better pet healthcare outcomes. In some cases, this could mean a health condition is less complex and costly to treat – leading to a more positive experience for pets, their owners and vets,” she continued. Vets Dr Betty Chan and Dr Kylie have provided a few tips for those neglecting at-home pet checks. With skin allergies in dogs, which were the number one health condition for dogs in 2023, the vets recommend monitoring closely and taking them for regular checkups. They also said to stay up-to-date with flea treatments, which will help to avoid allergies triggered by itchy skin. While the number one condition for cats in 2022 was vomiting, this may indicate there is an issue with their gastrointestinal tract. The vets recommend feeding them a high-quality vet-recommended diet, avoiding sudden changes in their diet and increasing their water intake if they experience constipation. Image credit: Shutterstock

Family & Pets

Neglected pre-war car up for sale after miracle restoration

A 1939 MG VA, initially purchased as a stripped bare shell of itself, is heading for auction. When the pre-war vehicle sold for only a few hundred dollars, it wasn’t asking for much - most likely because it wasn’t offering a whole lot either. Missing entire doors and rusting in more than one place, the car left a lot to be desired. Its original owner had tucked it away in the garage after the MG failed an MOT in 1969 - an annual test in the United Kingdom to verify a vehicle’s safety. Although they’d intended to restore it, those plans never came to fruition, with the car learning a hard lesson in dust bunnies instead. 45 years later, it finally got the chance to see the light of day again, with its next owner snatching it up from a family friend at a ‘bargain’ price. And to everyone’s delight, the vehicle finally got the makeover it had been waiting almost half a century for. The owner - who has requested anonymity - even performed the bulk of the work by themself, although they left the engine overhaul and respray to the professionals. The hard work produced some spectacular results, and with the car now rolling into auction with an asking price of ~$18,500-$22,2000, its next owner is sure to enjoy all that it has to offer. When the line of MG VAs left production, they sold for up to $650 (or roughly $35,000 in 2023), and only 2,400 of them were ever made. The vehicles were produced alongside the larger SA and WA models, with their smallest-in-the-range 108-inch wheelbases distinguishing them from their counterparts. The VA model was only produced for two years, before the Second World War saw production come to a screeching halt. The MG company itself had been founded in the 1920s, and was renowned for its range of two-seater sports cars. After years of ownership changes, and after it was absorbed into the British Leyland group, the firm - which at that point was known as MG Rover - faced financial difficulty in the early 200s, and by 2005 was forced into receivership. However, the group was then purchased by Nanjing Automobile Group, and resumed its production of vehicles in 2007. In 2011, the MG6 appeared in the market, establishing itself as the first UK model in 16 years. And as for the 1939 VA model heading to auction with Charterhouse, Richard Bromell - who is handling the sale - had one just one thing to note, “to say the MG was bought as a project makes it sound much better than it was as it was in a very sorry state indeed “Thankfully the owner was more than handy with a spanner and undertook a complete restoration of the MG.” Images: Charterhouse Auctioneers & Valuers

Money & Banking

"Gross criminal neglect": Brisbane mum receives sentence for death of daughters in hot car

Queenslander Kerri-Anne Conley has been sentenced to nine years in prison for the deaths of her two young daughters. The 30-year-old woman from Logan pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter - of two-and-a-half-year-old Darcey-Helen and 18-month-old Chloe-Ann - in Brisbane Supreme Court this week, and today received her sentence from Supreme Court Justice Peter Applegarth. Initially, she had been charged with the murder of her daughter under a law that expanded the definition of the offence, including reckless indifference to human life. However, this Tuesday Kerri-Ann gave a guilty plea to the downgraded manslaughter charges, as well as to the possession of dangerous drugs and utensils. In November 2019, Kerri-Ann had taken her daughters Darcey-Helen and Chloe-Ann to her friend’s house, and then made the “deliberate decision” to leave the toddlers in their car seats upon returning home, before going inside to sleep. Both girls died of hyperthermia at their Waterford West home. "Your first, grossly negligent conduct was in deciding to leave your children in that vulnerable place, uncared for, unheard, and unobserved in the dark," Justice Peter Applegarth declared when handing down Kerri-Ann’s sentence. "Not checking on the children and securing their safety at 6am was another aspect of your ongoing, gross criminal neglect of your duty of care as their mother,” he went on to say. "One can only hope that these little girls slowly succumbed to the growing heat of the day much earlier that morning and faded into a deep sleep from which they never returned. "The alternative of them being awake, distressed, and trapped in their seats is too much to bear thinking about for too long." Kerri-Ann allegedly went to sleep at 6am, after spending time on her phone, and came to find the girls nine hours later. It is estimated that temperatures within the car reached up to 61 degrees Celsius through the day, and the children were lifeless as she pulled them from the vehicle. When paramedics arrived, the girls were hot to the touch, covered in blisters, and had skin peeling from them. They were tragically declared dead at the scene. The court also heard that before Kerri-Ann even contacted emergency services, she attempted to dispose of drug paraphernalia. Justice Applegarth was firm in the belief that "no child should have a parent who uses methamphetamine". Kerri-Ann later admitted to the police that she had taken ice the day before. Of Kerri-Ann’s “egregious breach of trust” against her defenceless children, Crown Prosecutor Sarah Dennis stated that “they were left asleep and presumably restrained in their car seats without the ability or means to free themselves or to seek assistance or to protect themselves from the searing temperatures.” “They were entirely dependent on the defendant, their mother, for their basic needs, one being to keep them protected from harm,” she added. “Rather than doing that, the actions of the defendant exposed them to harm.” Sarah Dennis went on to tell the court that the girls’ deaths could easily have been avoided, and that it wasn’t forgetfulness that had been the cause, but instead Kerri-Ann’s carelessness. “Her behaviour,” she said, “represented an apathy to her own children that was callous.” Justice Applegarth noted that Kerri-Ann had been the victim of an abusive childhood, and acknowledged her diagnosis in custody of a depressive disorder and guilt induced psychosocial stress. "I accept you are remorseful and not a day goes by that you don't think about the death of your daughters and the effect this had on others," he said. Ultimately, Justice Applegarth said that Kerri-Ann’s meth use had led to her daughters’ deaths, and that her previous drug convictions had done nothing to inform her parenting. It was reportedly not the first time she had left her children alone in the car. Kerri-Ann has already served over three years on remand - the majority of which was in custody - with Justice Applegarth having declared this as time served, and will be eligible for parole late November 2024. Images: 9News

News

Hefty fines for those who neglect to walk their pups

A major animal welfare group has called for dog owners who don’t take their dogs for walks, or allow them opportunities for adequate exercise, to be fined up to $4000. Currently it is only in play for ACT residents, however there are calls for the rule to be put in place in every state and territory. Rebecca Linigen, National Director at FOUR PAWS, said she hopes other states and territories will “quickly follow suit”. “Providing our beloved companions with adequate care shouldn’t need to be governed by law,” she says. “However, if this law does create a positive impact on animal welfare, and prevent animal neglect, then it’s something we should all support.” Ms Linigen also highlighted a lack of socialisation that is preventable by visits to the dog park or interactions on walks, can also lead to emotional damage. “It can make a dog fearful, aggressive and hostile towards other dogs and people,” she said. Under the ACT’s Animal Welfare Act, section 6E states that a failure to exercise a dog, or confining a dog in a space for 24 continuous hours is liable to a maximum $4000 fine. This, however, does not apply to dogs which are kept in residences with yards or spaces where they are able to move freely. Amendments made to the bill from 2020, also meant owners could be fined if they failed to offer their pets proper access to food, water and shelter, or if their pets develop an injury, pain or death due to a failure in grooming or maintenance. In Australia, laws related to animal welfare are legislated by state governments. In the last few years, renters have been given more rights when it comes to pet ownership. In March 2020, new laws meant Victorian landlords could no longer “unreasonably refuse” tenants to keep pets. A similar law is also being considered for Queensland, in which a landlord would need “reasonable grounds” to refuse a tenant the ownership of a pet. Images: Getty

Family & Pets

Holidaying family refuse to return found cat

A family on holiday has taken a cat from the property they were renting and written a letter to the town's sheriff to explain why they won't be giving it back. James Wakefield, 70, alleged that the seemingly neglected cat at his Airbnb named Nubbins was not owned by anyone and it seemed fair for the cat to be taken home and cared for, according to the letter sent to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office in Santa Rosa, California.In the three-page letter sent by Mr Wakefield, he explained that he took the cat because no one was taking care of her when he arrived at the property, and that she was hungry, thirsty and cold. When the Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick informed Mr Wakefield that Nubbins needed to be returned to its legal owner, Mr Wakefield said the family was “never going to let that cat get put back in the living condition she was in without a fight.”The cat's legal owner, Troy Farrell, has responded to Mr Wakefield's accusations of neglect by sharing a series of photos and videos where he's cared for Nubbins inside his home over the last four years, despite claiming she is an outside cat. “She has so many people who take care of her,” Mr Farrell told a <a href="https://www.sonomanews.com/article/news/alleged-cat-thief-writes-letter-to-sonoma-sheriff/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">local news outlet</a>. “She doesn’t want to be an indoor cat. She doesn’t want to be stuck in a house. She just likes to be out and about doing her thing because that’s how she came out.”When Mr Wakefield asked the Airbnb homeowner about the feline, he was told that she was a stray cat in the neighbourhood who wasn’t allowed in any of the neighbour’s houses even in the freezing weather.When Nubbins became smitten with the Wakefields, the owner was reportedly enthusiastic about Mr Wakefield taking the cat home, saying it would be “awesome if someone adopted her and gave her a good home”. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office became involved, prompting Mr Wakefield’s <a title="srp-prod-public-pdfs.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com" href="https://srp-prod-public-pdfs.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/c1zJslmOTMUpTomzRJPCzinIZio.pdf">letter of retaliation</a> wherein he details how frustrating this dispute of Nubbin’s ownership has been.“The cat either dies for lack of medical care or the cat is returned to a neighbourhood that doesn’t care enough about her to protect her from predators or get her out of the freezing windy rain she finds herself in each winter,” Wakefield wrote.“And you can be assured that your 70-year-old cat nappers will do everything in our ability to protect her.”It’s unclear if either party will take legal action for the “catnapping”.Image credits: Getty Images / Youtube

Family & Pets

Conflicts between nursing home residents are often chalked up to dementia – the real problem is inadequate care and neglect

Frank Piccolo was a beloved high school chemistry teacher in Ontario, Canada, until his retirement in 1998. “His trademark was to greet all of his students at the door at the start of class to make sure everyone felt welcomed there,” <a href="https://www.saultstar.com/2013/02/21/remembering-frank-piccolo--oconnor">wrote a former student</a>. “He had extensive knowledge of his subject matter, passion for his craft, and empathy for his students.” But after Frank’s retirement, he developed dementia. When his condition declined, his family moved him to a Toronto nursing home. One evening in 2012, another resident – a woman with dementia – entered Frank’s bedroom. She hit Frank repeatedly in the head and face with a wooden activity board. Staff found Frank slumped over in his wheelchair, drenched in blood. He died three months later. The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care investigated. It found that the woman had a history of pushing, hitting and throwing objects at staff and other residents. But the nursing home didn’t address the woman’s behavioral expressions for weeks before the attack on Piccolo, <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/21048374/inspection-report.pdf">the agency determined</a>. “There were no interventions implemented, no strategies developed,” the report stated. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440940/original/file-20220115-27-vtyb52.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="Frank Piccolo and his wife, Theresa, standing near each othe, on vacation, with a hillside village and the sea behind them." /> Frank Piccolo and his wife, Theresa, traveling together in Italy in 2001. Theresa Piccolo, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/" class="license">CC BY-NC-ND</a> As a gerontologist and <a href="http://dementiabehaviorconsulting.com">dementia behavior specialist</a>, I’ve <a href="https://www.healthpropress.com/product/understanding-and-preventing-harmful-interactions-between-residents-with-dementia/">written a book</a> on preventing these incidents. I also co-directed, with dementia care expert Judy Berry, a documentary on the phenomenon called “<a href="https://terranova.org/film-catalog/fighting-for-dignity-a-film-on-injurious-and-fatal-resident-to-resident-incidents-in-long-term-care-home">Fighting for Dignity</a>.” The film sheds light on the emotional trauma experienced by family members of residents harmed during these episodes in U.S. long-term care homes. <h2>Reporting and stigmatizing</h2> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.2008.01808.x">Resident-to-resident incidents</a> are defined by researchers as “negative, aggressive and intrusive verbal, physical, material and sexual interactions between residents” that can cause “psychological distress and physical harm in the recipient.” These incidents <a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/M15-1209">are prevalent</a> in U.S. nursing homes. But they are <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2021/11/29/resident-to-resident-incidents-hidden-source-nursing-home-harm/">largely overlooked</a> by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency overseeing care in approximately 15,000 nursing homes across the country. Consequently, such incidents <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2017.1333939">remain untracked</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2015.10.003">understudied</a> and largely unaddressed. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440941/original/file-20220115-18-1qy7een.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440941/original/file-20220115-18-1qy7een.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" alt="An elderly man with severe injuries, including cut marks and bruises, across his face and forehead." /></a> Frank Piccolo sustained severe injuries to his face and head after a woman with dementia entered his bedroom and hit him repeatedly with an activity board. Theresa Piccolo, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/" class="license">CC BY-NC-ND</a> These interactions don’t just result <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.291.5.591">in injuries</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464819863926">and deaths</a> among residents. They also leave behind devastated families who then must <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/08/20/nursing-home-immunity-covid-lawsuits">fight for answers</a> and accountability from nursing homes. Making matters worse, <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-19-433">government reports</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0714980815000094">research studies</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301220981232">media coverage</a> commonly describe these episodes with words that stigmatize people with dementia. Researchers, public officials and journalists tend to <a href="https://www.startribune.com/when-senior-home-residents-are-abusers-minnesota-rarely-investigates/450625693/">label the incidents as “abuse</a>,” “violence” and “aggression.” They call a resident involved in an incident a “perpetrator” or an “aggressor.” News outlets described the attack on Piccolo by the woman with dementia as “aggressive” or “violent.” And when reporting on <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/02/09/more_than_10000_canadians_abused_annually_by_fellow_nursing_home_residents.html">the phenomenon</a> in Canada, the Toronto Star called it “abuse.” <h2>Getting to the root of the real problem</h2> Most incidents, however, do not constitute abuse. A growing body of evidence suggests the true cause of these injuries and deaths is inadequate care and neglect on the part of care homes. Specifically, there is a lack of the specialized care that people with dementia require. Two of every three residents <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2021.02.009">involved in these incidents</a> have dementia. One study found that the rate of these episodes was nearly <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.291.5.591">three times higher</a> in dementia care homes than in other long-term care homes. A recent study also found <a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/m15-1209">an association</a> between residency in a dementia care home and higher rates of injurious or fatal interactions between residents. But for these residents, the conflicts occur mostly when their emotional, medical and other needs are not met. When they reach a breaking point in frustration related to the unmet need, they may push or hit another resident. My research in the U.S. and Canada has shown that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2018.1474515">“push-fall” episodes</a> constitute nearly half of fatal incidents. Another U.S. study found that as residents’ cognitive functioning declined, they faced <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.291.5.591">a greater likelihood</a> of injury in these incidents. Those with advanced dementia were more susceptible to inadvertently “getting in harm’s way,” by saying or doing things that trigger angry reactions in other residents. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that what it calls “aggression” between residents <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/ea_book_revised_2016.pdf">is not abuse</a>. Instead, the CDC noted that these episodes may result when care homes fail to prevent them by taking adequate action. And a study on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464819863926">fatal incidents</a> in U.S. nursing homes has shown that many residents were “deemed to lack cognitive capacity to be held accountable for their actions.” <iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gk5iEo-s_6M?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> An undercover yearlong investigation into nursing homes in Ontario, Canada, revealed shocking instances of abuse and neglect by staff members. <h2>How incidents often occur</h2> In one study, researchers examined <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1054773813477128">situational triggers</a> among residents with cognitive impairments. The strongest triggers involved personal space and possessions. Examples include taking or touching a resident’s belongings or food, or unwanted entries into their bedroom or bathroom. The most prevalent triggering event was someone being too close to a resident’s body. That study also found that crowded spaces and interpersonal stressors, such as two residents claiming the same dining room seat, could lead to these episodes. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301213502588">My own work</a> and a different <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0733464820955089">Canadian study</a> came to similar conclusions. Other research shows that when residents are bored or lack <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F153331750502000210">meaningful activity</a>, they become involved in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1471301213502588">harmful interactions</a>. Evenings and weekends can be particularly dangerous, with fewer organized activities and fewer staff members and managers present. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2018.1474515">Conflicts between roommates</a> are also common and harmful. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438566/original/file-20211220-49721-z6ev8m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="With a smiling staff member looking on, two nursing home residents enjoy conversation while having coffee." /> Residents with dementia who are meaningfully engaged in activities are less likely to become involved in harmful incidents with other residents. <a href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/caretaker-with-senior-people-in-nursing-home-royalty-free-image/489582967?adppopup=true" class="source">Morsa Images/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a> A growing body of research suggests that most incidents between residents are preventable. A major risk factor, for example, is lack of adequate supervision, which often occurs when staff are assigned to caring for too many residents with dementia. One U.S. study found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.7326/M15-1209">higher caseloads</a> among nurses’ aides were associated with higher incident rates. And with <a href="https://doi.org/10.4137/hsi.s38994">poor staffing levels</a> in up to half of U.S. nursing homes, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2018.1474515">staff members do not witness</a> many incidents. In fact, one study found that staff members missed the majority of unwanted <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2016.1211620">bedroom entries</a> by residents with severe dementia. <h2>Residents with dementia are not to blame</h2> In most of these situations, the person with dementia does not intend to injure or kill another resident. Individuals with dementia live with a serious cognitive disability. And they often must do it while being forced to share small living spaces with many other residents. Their behavioral expressions are often attempts to cope with frustrating and frightening situations in their social and physical environments. They are typically the result of unmet human needs paired with cognitive processing limitations. Understanding the role of dementia is important. But seeing a resident’s brain disease as the main cause of incidents is inaccurate and unhelpful. That view ignores external factors that can lead to these incidents but are outside of the residents’ control. Frank’s wife, Theresa, didn’t blame the woman who injured her husband or the staff. She blamed the for-profit company operating the nursing home. Despite its revenue of $2 billion in the year before the incident, it failed in its “<a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/02/09/more_than_10000_canadians_abused_annually_by_fellow_nursing_home_residents.html">duty to protect</a>” Piccolo. “They did not keep my husband safe as they are required to do,” she said.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173750/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/eilon-caspi-1298265">Eilon Caspi</a>, Assistant Research Professor of Health, Intervention, and Policy, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-connecticut-1342">University of Connecticut</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/conflicts-between-nursing-home-residents-are-often-chalked-up-to-dementia-the-real-problem-is-inadequate-care-and-neglect-173750">original article</a>. Image: CasarsaGuru/E+ via Getty Images

Retirement Life

The ocean is essential to tackling climate change. So why has it been neglected in global climate talks?

Climate change is commonly discussed as though it’s a uniquely atmospheric phenomena. But the crisis is deeply entwined with the ocean, and this has largely been neglected in international climate talks. The latest international climate negotiations made some progress by, for the first time, <a href="https://www.becausetheocean.org/the-ocean-anchored-in-glasgow-climate-pact/">anchoring oceans</a> permanently into the multilateral climate change regime. But the <a href="https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/conferences/glasgow-climate-change-conference-october-november-2021/outcomes-of-the-glasgow-climate-change-conference">Glasgow Climate Pact</a> is still leagues from where it needs to be to adequately reflect the importance of oceans to our climate system. Most countries have targets for land-based emissions – but there are no such targets for oceans. Yet the ocean plays a vital role in helping balance the conditions humans and most other species need to survive, while also offering a substantial part of the solution to stop the planet warming over the crucial limit of 1.5℃ this century. So how can oceans help us tackle the climate crisis? And what progress has been made in international negotiations? <h2>The ocean’s incredible potential</h2> Since industrialisation, the ocean has absorbed <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar5/">93% of human-generated heat</a> and <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aau5153">one-third of anthropogenic carbon dioxide</a> (CO₂). The consequences of this are profound, including the thermal expansion of water (the key cause of sea level rise), ocean acidification, <a href="https://www.iucn.org/theme/marine-and-polar/our-work/climate-change-and-oceans/ocean-deoxygenation">deoxygenation</a> (oxygen loss), and forcing marine life to redistribute to other places. Alarmingly, this may one day lead the ocean to reverse its role as a carbon sink and release CO₂ <a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000376708">back into the atmosphere</a>, as its absorption ability declines. Equally important is ocean-based climate mitigation, which could provide <a href="https://www.wri.org/insights/turning-tide-ocean-based-solutions-could-close-emission-gap-21">more than 20% of the emissions reductions</a> needed for the 1.5℃ goal. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432511/original/file-20211117-25-34h4c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432511/original/file-20211117-25-34h4c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Cargo ships" /></a> The shipping industry is responsible for about 3% of global emissions. Andy Li/Unsplash, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" class="license">CC BY</a> Crucially, we must see changes to maritime industries. The shipping industry alone has a similar carbon footprint to Germany – if shipping were a country it would be the world’s sixth-largest emitter. Although high on the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-shipping-sector-is-finally-on-board-in-the-fight-against-climate-change-95212">International Maritime Organisation’s agenda</a>, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-reach-net-zero-we-must-decarbonise-shipping-but-two-big-problems-are-getting-in-the-way-170464">decarbonisation of shipping</a> still lacks <a href="https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/let-s-be-honest-un-secretary-general-slams-imo-s-progress-on-co2">adequate targets or processes</a>. Oceans can also provide climate-safe, sustainable food choices. Current food systems, such as emissions-intensive agriculture, fishing, and processed foods are responsible for <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-021-00225-9">one-third of global emissions</a>. Considerable environmental (and health) benefits can be gained by shifting our diets to sustainable “<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-fish-can-still-be-part-of-a-more-sustainable-food-future-167944">blue foods</a>”. These include seafoods sourced from fisheries with sustainable management practices, such as avoiding overfishing and reducing carbon emissions. Markets and technologies should also be geared towards the large-scale production and consumption of aquatic plants such as seagrasses. There’s also a wealth of opportunity in “blue carbon” – capturing CO₂ in the atmosphere by conserving and restoring marine ecosystems such as mangroves, seagrasses and salt marshes. However, the success of nature-based solutions depends on a healthy ocean ecosystem. For example, there are emerging concerns around the impact of <a href="https://theconversation.com/oil-companies-are-ploughing-money-into-fossil-fuelled-plastics-production-at-a-record-rate-new-research-169690">plastic pollution</a> on plankton’s ability to absorb CO₂. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432512/original/file-20211117-21-1lqaa5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432512/original/file-20211117-21-1lqaa5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Conserving mangroves is an important way to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. Shutterstock But perhaps the greatest impact would come from adopting offshore renewable energy. This has the potential to offer <a href="https://www.oceanpanel.org/climate">one-tenth of the emissions reductions we need to reach the 1.5℃ goal</a>. The International Energy Agency has estimated offshore wind could <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/offshore-wind-outlook-2019">power the world 18 times over its current consumption rate</a>. <h2>Climate talks are making slow progress</h2> For more than a decade, the inclusion of oceans in climate talks has been piecemeal and inconsistent. Where they have been part of negotiations, including at COP26, talk has focused on the potential for coastal areas to adapt to climate change impacts such as sea-level rise, as first raised in international fora <a href="http://www.islandvulnerability.org/slr1989/declaration.pdf">in 1989</a> by small island states. The final COP26 agreement, known as the <a href="https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/conferences/glasgow-climate-change-conference-october-november-2021/outcomes-of-the-glasgow-climate-change-conference">Glasgow Climate Pact</a>, made slight progress. The pact recognised the importance of ensuring the <a href="https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/cma3_auv_2_cover%20decision.pdf">ocean ecosystem’s integrity</a>. It established the “the Ocean and Climate Change Dialogue” as an annual process to strengthen ocean-based action. And <a href="https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/cop26_auv_2f_cover_decision.pdf">it invited</a> UNFCCC bodies to consider how to “integrate and strengthen ocean-based action into existing mandates and workplans” and report back. While these are positive measures, at this stage they don’t require action by parties. Therefore, they’re only a theoretical inclusion, not action-oriented. We still lack national targets and clear, mandatory international requirements for countries to consider sinks, sources and activities beyond the shoreline in their climate planning and reporting. Where COP26 did progress was its focus on whether ocean impacts and mitigation will finally be brought into the mainstream climate agenda. For the first time in five years, a new <a href="https://www.becausetheocean.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Final-Draft-BtO3_31_Oct_2021.pdf">“Because the Ocean” declaration</a> was released, which calls for the systematic inclusion of the oceans in the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement process. <h2>What do we do now?</h2> What’s now needed is a list of mandated requirements that ensure countries report on and take responsibility for climate impacts within their maritime territories. But as COP26 president Alok Sharma said of the summit as a whole, it was a “fragile win”. We still lack any reference to consistency with existing mechanisms, such as the <a href="https://www.un.org/depts/los/index.htm">law of the sea convention</a> or how funding will be allocated specifically to oceans. As such, the actual impact of COP26 on the inclusion of oceans in climate action remains uncertain. It will depend on how the UNFCCC bodies respond to these directives, and their success in extending obligations to state parties. Responding to the climate crisis means we need to stop pretending the ocean and atmosphere are separate. We must start including ocean action as a routine part of climate action. <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/dr-sali-bache-1286674">Dr Sali Bache</a>, Strategic Advisor in International Policy and Oceans , <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/climateworks-australia-984">ClimateWorks Australia</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-ocean-is-essential-to-tackling-climate-change-so-why-has-it-been-neglected-in-global-climate-talks-171309">original article</a>. Image: Silas Baisch/Unsplash

Domestic Travel

Abused, neglected, abandoned — did Roald Dahl hate children as much as the witches did?

Described as “the world’s greatest storyteller”, Roald Dahl is frequently ranked as the best children’s author of all time by teachers, authors and librarians. However, the new film adaptation of Dahl’s controversial book, The Witches, warrants a fresh look at a recurrent contrast in Dahl’s work: child protection and care on one hand and a preoccupation with child-hatred, including child neglect and abuse, abandonment, and torture on the other. Dahl himself once admitted he simultaneously admired and envied children. While his stories spotlight children’s vulnerability to trauma, his child protagonists show how childhood can be an isolating but ultimately triumphant experience. Anti-child or child-centred? While Dahl’s fans champion his “child-centredness” — arguing that anarchy and vulgarity are central to childhood — Dahl’s critics have ventured to suggest his work contains anti-child messages. In Dahl’s fiction, children are often described unfavourably: they are “stinkers”, “disgusting little blisters”, “vipers”, “imps”, “spoiled brats”, “greedy little thieves”, “greedy brutes”, “robber-bandits”, “ignorant little twits”, “nauseating little warts”, “witless weeds”, and “moth-eaten maggots”. Frightening female character on stage. Children behind. The cruel and imposing figure of Miss Trunchbull in the stage musical Matilda. MANUEL HARLAN/Royal Shakespeare Company/AAP With the exception of Bruce Bogtrotter, “bad” children are usually unpleasant gluttons who are punished for being spoiled or overweight. Augustus Gloop is ostracised because of his size. After he tumbles into Willy Wonka’s chocolate river and is sucked up the glass pipe, he’s physically transformed. “He used to be fat,” Grandpa Joe marvels. “Now he’s as thin as straw!” From Miss Trunchbull to the Twits, Aunts Spiker and Sponge, and even Willy Wonka, many of Dahl’s adult characters are merciless figures who enjoy inflicting physical and emotional pain on children. In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wonka not only orchestrates the various “accidents” that occur at the factory, but he stands by indifferently as each child suffers. In Wonka’s determination to make the “rotten ones” pay for their moral failings, he not only humiliates the children (and their parents), but permanently marks the “bad” children through physical disfigurement. When gum-chewing champion Violet Beauregarde turns purple, Wonka is indifferent. “Ah well,” he says. “There’s nothing we can do about that”. Red-hot sizzling hatred The Witches is centred around the theme of child-hatred. “Real witches,” we are told, “hate children with a red-hot sizzing hatred that is more sizzling and red-hot than any hatred you could possibly imagine”. At their hands (or claws), young children are not only mutilated but exterminated. Indeed, the ultimate goal of The Grand High Witch is filicide: she plans to rid the world of children — “disgusting little carbuncles” — by tricking them into eating chocolate laced with her malevolent Formula 86: Delayed Action Mouse-Maker. In The Witches, as in many of Dahl’s fictions for children (he also wrote adult erotica), authoritarian figures are revealed as bigoted and hypocritical, or violent and sadistic. Primary caregivers are neglectful or absent. So the real threats to the child protagonists of The Witches, Matilda and James and The Giant Peach are not monsters under the bed, but adults whose hatred of children is disguised behind a mask of benevolence. In The Witches, the young narrator initially finds comfort in the fact he has encountered such “splendid ladies” and “wonderfully kind people”, but soon the facade crumbles. “Down with children!” he overhears the witches chant. “Do them in! Boil their bones and fry their skin! Bish them, sqvish them, bash them, mash them!” Necessary evil Although the violence present in Dahl’s work can be easily perceived as morbid, antagonism towards children is a necessary part of Dahl’s project. The initial disempowerment of the child lays the groundwork for the “underdog” narrative. It allows downtrodden children to emerge victorious by outwitting their tormentors through their resourcefulness and a little magic. Initially, violence is used to reinforce the initial “victimhood” of the child, then it is repurposed in the latter stages of each tale to punish and overcome the perpetrator of the mistreatment. James’s wicked aunts get their comeuppance when they’re squashed by the giant peach. In The BFG, kidnapped orphan Sophie emerges as the unlikely hero, saving herself and exerting a positive influence on her captor. Dahl’s fiction is perhaps considered dangerous for a different reason: it takes children seriously. The author dispenses humour alongside his descriptions of violence to create a less threatening atmosphere for young readers. Children revel in the confronting depictions even while being shocked or repulsed. Dahl — perhaps drawing on childhood trauma of his own — creates a cathartic outlet for children to release tension through laughter, especially at situations that may tap into the reader’s experiences of helplessness. Such fiction provides children a means of empowerment. Seeing themselves reflected in literature can be an important part of a child’s processing of adversity. Dahl’s work raises important questions about the safety of children, encouraging them to find their power in the most disempowering situations. Written by Kate Cantrell, India Bryce and Jessica Gildersleeve. This article first appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/abused-neglected-abandoned-did-roald-dahl-hate-children-as-much-as-the-witches-did-152813">The Conversation</a>.

Books

Skin checks: Don't neglect your skin

It is perhaps not too surprising that Australia has a relatively high skin cancer risk compared to other countries. In fact about two in three of us will be affected to some degree before the age of 70 and over 750,000 new cases of Basal Cell Carcinoma and Squamous Cell Carcinoma are diagnosed and treated each year. Skin cancer can usually be treated effectively, but there is always a potential for some instances to become quite serious or even fatal and the symptoms are not always very obvious. This makes it vital to maintain a sound strategy for managing your skin cancer risk. The first line of defence As with any health issue, prevention is always better than cure. With so much of our lifestyle being outdoors, it can be easy to forget how much sun exposure we are subjected to. While we may be more conscious of it if we are at the beach or some other relaxation activity, we may not be so vigilant during everyday activities, such as gardening or driving. The sun does not discriminate, however, so constant protective action is essential. The key preventative issues to remember are: <ul> <li>Avoid sun exposure in the peak danger times of 11am -3pm (daylight saving time)</li> <li>Wear a broad brimmed or legionnaires’ hat, long sleeved collared shirts and longer trousers/skirts</li> <li>SPF 30+ sunscreen applied 20 minutes to exposure and reapplied every two hours</li> <li>Close fitting sunglasses - Australian Standard AS1067.</li> </ul> Get familiar with your own skin Even the most cautious sun-smart habits, however, do not eliminate the risk of potentially dangerous skin cancers occurring. Skin cancers rarely hurt and are much more frequently detected by visual checks, rather than any specific pain or discomfort. That means it is essential to be vigilant in inspecting your own skin every three months to keep a track of anything suspicious and to notice any changes in skin blemishes, moles or spots. Some advice on how to do this by yourself (or with the help of a friend or partner) can be found here <a href="http://%20www.cancer.org.au/preventing-cancer/sun-protection/check-for-signs-of-skin-cancer.html">cancer.org.au/preventing-cancer</a> Jot down the dates of inspection and any observations on abnormalities or changes. Particular issues that need further investigation by a medical professional include: <ul> <li>a new spot that is different from other spots around it</li> <li>change in shape, size, or colour of a spot, mole or freckle</li> <li>spots, sores or moles that are not healing, itch, tingle, bleed or weep</li> <li>a spot that becomes raised or develops a lump</li> </ul> Regular professional check-ups are essential If you are concerned about any abnormalities you should see your usual doctor, but even if you don’t detect anything yourself it is important to get regular inspections from your doctor on an annual basis, or at more frequent intervals that they recommend if they believe you are higher risk. Skin cancer clinics are also quite prevalent and may be an option for these check-ups. These are usually operated by GPs, but make sure you check up on the qualifications and experience of the person who will examine you. Such examinations will often identify scaly growths or lesions caused by sun damage particularly on the face, scalp, lips, and the back of the hands. While the majority of these are not cancerous and can be treated quickly and simply with a freeze spray or topical creams, they can eventually become cancerous if left untreated. For further information on screening and for details on the various types of skin cancers, visit: <a href="http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/skin-cancer/">cancercouncil.com.au/skin-cancer/</a> Written by Tom Raeside. Republished with permission of <a href="https://www.wyza.com.au/articles/health/skin-checks-dont-neglect-your-skin-this-summer.aspx">Wyza.com.au.</a>

Art

Ideas of home and ownership in Australia might explain the neglect of renters’ rights

In Australia, when we think of home, we think of ownership. This normalisation of home ownership is reflected in the “Great Australian Dream”, the belief that it’s the best way to achieve financial security. This “dream” is based on the premise that if you work hard you will one day be able to buy a home. Home ownership is an important goal for many Australians. Home ownership implies success. Linked to the importance of home ownership are our conceptions of home – what home means and the ways home can and should be made. Popular understandings of home suggest that feelings of home are most easily created between a house and the person who owns it. What is home? So ingrained is this relationship between home and ownership that in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/gec3.12354">my recently published paper</a> I argue that research rarely considers the ways non-owners make and think about home. This is problematic, given recent housing trends. Recent changes in housing, particularly the increased cost of home ownership and <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-needs-to-reboot-affordable-housing-funding-not-scrap-it-72861">curbing of public housing</a>, have created a greater demand for rental housing. As a result, there is an undersupply of privately rented housing in Australia. Australian tenancy laws add to the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-insecurity-of-private-renters-how-do-they-manage-it-77324">insecurity of the private rental sector</a>. Tenancy laws and policy reflect cultural norms in Australia, where private renting is seen as a form of short-term, transitional housing. Recently, significant media and public <a href="https://theconversation.com/an-open-letter-on-rental-housing-reform-103825">attention</a> has been directed at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/life-as-an-older-renter-and-what-it-tells-us-about-the-urgent-need-for-tenancy-reform-103842">impact of state-based tenancy legislation</a>. It is argued that tenancy laws need to be changed to reflect current housing trends and the needs of many tenants to have long-term, secure housing. Rental insecurity is a persistent source of stress for many tenants. It’s a key reason that many tenants struggle to feel at home in their rental property. A person’s ability to identify feelings of home with their dwelling has been shown to impact <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14036090120617?casa_token=norku4gEmtoAAAAA:VN2dQFxec3pdp9jtLzo6TrUmE3Us7oa_-mZq0wZRRwSTAep3DjdqdaCc_hFARNCALCZWta1jDQ83Nw">psychological health and overall well-being</a>. My research findings suggest that while tenancy law affects the ways we understand and make home, likewise, our meanings of home affect how we shape and understand tenure and policy. Australian tenancy law reflects broader cultural values that associate the meaning and making of home with home ownership. While researchers and policymakers focus on how tenancy law can negatively affect or restrict renters within their homes, the actual practices of home-making by renters are often overlooked. Current understandings of home typically reference what home means to home owners. My research points to the importance of understanding the ways private renters make home – and make home meaningful – so that any changes to tenancy law reflect the needs of tenants. Is having a home a right or a privilege? While there is no doubt that small changes are being made, perhaps the <a href="https://theconversation.com/dickensian-approach-to-residential-tenants-lingers-in-australian-law-65146">lack of consideration for tenants in tenancy laws and policy</a> is indicative of our larger beliefs about what it is to “feel” at home and make a home. The “Great Australian Dream” is based on the belief that hard work will eventually lead to home ownership. Yet owning a home is becoming impossible for many people, irrespective of how hard they work. If we understand home to be a basic right, then we will have policies that reflect this. If we understand home to be a privilege, reserved only for those who manage to achieve home ownership, then we will forever live in a country where tenure security and a feeling of being “home” are reserved for those who are able to buy a house. Consequently, our policies will continue to support the idea that, ultimately, a rental property cannot be “home” to a tenant. The question then remains: do we consider home a right or a privilege? This issue is at the very heart of Australia’s housing crisis. Until we change our meaning of home by separating it from ownership, we will never be able to “fix” Australia’s housing crisis. Written by Bronwyn Bate. Republished with permission of <a href="https://theconversation.com/ideas-of-home-and-ownership-in-australia-might-explain-the-neglect-of-renters-rights-104849">The Conversation</a>.

Home & Garden

Neglected dog’s own fur killing him

When Charlie was brought in to the Animal Welfare League his fur was in such a terrible condition that none of the veterinarians could initially identify his breed. Dr Simone Maher’s team took two hours to shave Charlie’s fur to discover he was a poodle. His fur was in such a uncontrolled condition that it had left him temporarily blind, deaf and disabled. “His hair was so knotted we had to anaesthetise Charlie to get rid of his coat as it would have been so incredibly painful for him otherwise,” Dr Maher explained. “His coat was just soiled thick matting, as he couldn’t even lift his tail properly to go to the bathroom due to the weight of the coat.” The previous owner of the seven-year-old poodle had completely neglected him. Underneath the state of his fur, Dr Maher soon found out that Charlie suffered from an old fracture in his hind limb. “The chronic nature of the old injury left me concerned about post-op, because there was a lot of muscle wastage and weakness to his leg,” Dr Maher said. “To get a good result, a considerable amount of physiotherapy was required and I wasn’t prepared to do the surgery until we could offer post-operative care.” Vet nurse trainee Maxine Saliba offered to foster Charlie which saved him from potential amputation. <img width="316" height="421" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/33905/cahrlie-after.jpg" alt="Cahrlie After"/> Charlie now lives with Maxine, her husband and their other dog Jerry who is Charlie’s new play mate. Charlie’s health is improving and after the initial 14 weeks of fostering, Maxine couldn’t give him up. “I didn’t want to get rid of him, but I thought being a foster mother I should. And then when he came back for another week of fostering I thought ‘I can’t get rid of him, I have to keep him’,” Maxine said. Dr Maher is so impressed with Charlie’s transformation as he is acting like a new dog. Images: Sam Ruttyn Related links: <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/news/news/2017/02/students-raise-600-dollars-in-single-night-for-dogs-surgery/">Students raise $600 in a single night for dog’s surgery</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/tv/2017/02/what-dogs-see-when-they-watch-television/">What dogs see when they watch television</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2017/03/tips-to-fight-ccd/">How you can fight this canine brand of dementia</a>

News

“Free range” parenting: neglect or common sense?

It is my 6-year-old daughter's greatest wish to walk home from the park on her own. It's just 100 metres of wide pathway, which turns into our quiet little street. My catastrophising mind says: "Forget it kid, walking all that way is a dangerous prospect, what with all those child-catchers and heavy traffic to contend with." But I say: "Sure." And then I tail her up the path as though at least one of us is playing What's the time, Mr Wolf. This is my small foray into "free-range parenting" - a style of parenting that is supposed to give your littl'uns freedom to learn self-reliance by being allowed to test limits out in the real world. We can call it free-range parenting but really, it's just a dinky title for how we grew up - and I'm talking the 1970s here, when certainly at the age of 8 or 9 my siblings and I, along with our mates, would roam a neighbourhood consisting of beach, bush tracks and all that lay in between. Home time was when dusk fell and we could smell dinners being cooked as we meandered home for our own. The only time I recall my mother being remotely worried was when a friend and I were a tad late for dinner and I told her it was because we'd got stuck several metres up on a shed roof, where we'd been playing, naturally. And all this is to say nothing of our exploits "nicking out" at night to do what, I can't exactly recall. Now that I'm a parent I have grasped firmly the adage "do as I say, not as I did". If I had it my way, I'd probably tether my daughter to me. For life. At the moment, she quite likes the idea of living with mummy and daddy till she's 40. But then she's also told us she'd like to marry us, so that's where she's at right now. All this free-range malarkey has reared its public head with the story from Montgomery County, Washington, about the parents of a couple of free-range kids – a 10-year-old and a 6-year-old - who were allowed to walk a mile to their home unsupervised. The police stopped them halfway, took them home and got the child protection service involved. The parents are determined their children will continue to range freely. Meanwhile, outraged comments from both free-range and conservative parents ensue online. Tracey McLeish, mother of four, made headlines recently after her 7-year-old son, Jacob, fell several metres off a rock in White's Bay, near Blenheim. He was not seriously injured but her and husband John's parenting has been criticised online in social media. Tracey and John responded to the backlash by saying their son was just being a boy. They are firm believers in giving kids scope to be independent. Their three older sons – aged 10, 7 and 5 – all walk 1km to school together crossing two roads to get there. "We taught them from a young age that roads and cars were dangerous so they are really on to it," Tracey says. "We gave them rules and we gave them our trust and they have not betrayed that trust. "There's no reason kids can't do this on their own. By giving them independence to walk to school they gain confidence in themselves, self-reliance and self-worth." Safer world today Russell Ballantyne, co-director and teacher at Early Childhood on Stafford, in Dunedin, has long been an advocate of free-range parenting. The father of three grown-up free-range kids runs what he terms a "risk-taking centre". That is to say, they have ropes and swings, kids leap from great heights and ride their bikes fast. Ballantyne says today's world is safer than the one he grew up in "but the mentality is that we are under siege". "We think risk is hiding behind every lamp-post in the neighbourhood. Fear has become the dominating young parent's response. "Those parents who let their kids walk home from the park in Montgomery County made the conscious effort of giving their children responsibility but they're being punished for it. We should be aspiring to do what they did." If you give your children freedom, he says, these same children will not be scared to make decisions in life, they'll know their capabilities. They are the people who will become our future leaders. "Ninety-nine point nine per cent of people are good and yet we treat them as if they are evil and that's where we have lost the plot. "We have to have faith in our children. We have to have faith in our society, in our villages. If you do not have faith in your village then as a community, we do not exist." Sure, he says, we have to monitor our children and make sure they are OK but we should not always be the source of their entertainment. <img width="498" height="280" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/33605/image__498x280.jpg" alt="Image_ (73)"/> "That's not healthy. The way for children to know themselves is to have the freedom to try." Lenore Skenazy would have a field day with my parenting style. Skenazy, to her naysayers' chagrin, embraces rather self-deprecatingly the title of "World's Worst Mum" bestowed on her after she let her kid take the subway home by himself at the age of 10 in New York's Manhattan. The backlash from this act was huge and enough for her to launch the Free-Range Kids website, write a book and star in her own TV show. So, what would a free-range parent let an almost 6-year-old do? Skenazy, mum to two boys now aged 16 and 18, reckons we could let them walk down the street and knock on a friend's door to play or maybe walk to school with a friend, depending on the area you live in and how far away the school is. Heart palpitations kick in. It's OK, Skenazy says. "Take a moment to think back to your own childhood. "Think back to when you were a kid and try to recall the times you enjoyed the most. "A lot of people recall making forts, playing ball with their buddies. Most recall doing these things without a parent. "You might be giving your kids organic bananas and violin lessons but you could be missing the one thing that you recall so fondly. Why would you keep that precious thing from them? Give them the free-range childhood you had." Skenazy says by giving the reins on our kids some slack, we're giving them the knowledge that their parents believe in them. "If you're doing everything with, and for, your child, they get the message that you don't believe in them. "I'm trying to restore perspective on the fact that our children are not in constant danger. We shouldn't have to make our decisions based on that premise." But how has it come to this, I wonder. Why are we so freaked out by every conceivable danger for our kids? The fact that we live in a fairly litigious society means we see everything through the lens of danger, Skenazy says. "In America, recently a school got rid of all its swings because they read a study that said swings were the most dangerous equipment in the playground. If you look at everything like 'what terrible thing could happen?' nothing seems safe enough." She coined the phrase "worst-first thinking", which means coming up with a worst-case scenario first and perceiving that it's likely to happen. "It drives us crazy and it has no relation to reality. It has relation to fantasy. "The fact that you can dream up something terrible doesn't make it more likely to happen." The number of horrifying TV shows and 24-hour news add to our paranoia. So does the culture of "experts" where parents are fed so much information on how to do everything from hugging their own kid to how to have fun in the sun. It's got to the point where we don't even trust ourselves to make our own decisions without going to some expert to tell us what to do, she says. Skenazy also points to the exploitation of parental fear - the easiest way to make a buck is from a terrified parent, she says. "We live in constant fear of two things: One is that your child will be kidnapped and eaten and the other is that they won't get in to the best university. So, all these products and services exist to make them safe and make them get ahead." Basically, Skenazy says, giving your child a free-range childhood gives them a place in the world, not just inside our homes. But whether you're letting your 8-year-old walk to school on his own or letting your 6-year-old daughter walk up the path by herself, wannabe free- range parents might consider the story of a 10-year-old kid who rode his bike across the George Washington Bridge to New York City on his own. He pedalled 30 kilometres down unfamiliar roads and busy streets, past neighbours and strangers, out into the unknown. "I didn't need help from anyone. It took me all day, but I found the way and did it myself," he recalled. This free-range kid went to the moon. His name is Buzz Aldrin. Tell us in the comments below, what’s your take on so-called “free-range” parenting? Written by Bess Manson. First appeared on <a href="http://www.stuff.co.nz">Stuff.co.nz</a>. Related links: <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2017/01/photos-show-what-kids-do-when-left-alone/">15 hilarious photos show what kids do when left alone</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2017/01/signs-your-grandchild-is-being-bullied/">4 signs your grandchild is being bullied</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2016/12/teach-grandkids-mindfulness/">3 ways to teach mindfulness to your grandkids</a>

Family & Pets

Signs your elderly loved one is suffering abuse or neglect

No one wants to imagine that their elderly loved one would ever suffer abuse or neglect by the person designated specifically to care for them, but the sad fact is that it does happen. The <a href="https://aifs.gov.au/publications/family-matters/issue-37/abuse-and-neglect-older-people" target="_blank">Australian Institute of Family Studies</a> has reported that up to five per cent of people aged 65 and over have experienced some form of elder abuse. So, how can you tell if a loved one is being mistreated by a carer? The World Health Organisation defines elder abuse as “a single, or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person.” It varies from person to person, but typically the following signs should raise some red flags. Patient signs: <ul> <li>Poor hygiene</li> <li>Malnutrition or dehydration</li> <li>Dirty living conditions</li> <li>Unexplained injuries</li> <li>Lack of proper care for injuries</li> <li>Depression and withdrawal</li> <li>Anger and irritation</li> <li>Confusion</li> <li>Sunken or discoloured eyes and cheeks</li> <li>Missing personal items</li> </ul> Carer signs: <ul> <li>Unwilling to allow visitors to see the patient</li> <li>Aggression and lack of affection towards the patient</li> <li>History of mental illness, criminal activity, violence or drug use</li> <li>Conflicting accounts of how a patient sustained an injury</li> </ul> If any of these signs are ringing a bell, it could be time to intervene. Thankfully, each state, territory and New Zealand has a designated organisation to provide information, resources and help to those affected by elder abuse. ACT: Older Persons Abuse Prevention Referral and Information Line, 02 6205 3535 NSW: NSW Elder Abuse Helpline, 1800 628 221 NT: Northern Territory Police, 131 444 QLD: Elder Abuse Prevention Unit, 1300 651 192 SA: Aged Rights Advocacy Service and Alliance for the Protection of Elder Abuse, 08 8232 5377 (Adelaide), 1800 700 600 (rural) TAS: Tasmanian Elder Abuse Helpline, 1800 441 169 VIC: Seniors Rights Victoria, 1300 368 821 WA: Advocare Inc., 1300 724 679 (Perth), 1800 655 566 (rural) NZ: <a href="https://www.ageconcern.org.nz/" target="_blank">Click here</a> to visit the Age Concern website Source: Advocare Related links: <a href="/health/caring/2016/04/why-men-dont-go-to-doctor/">Why won’t my husband see the doctor?</a> <a href="/health/caring/2016/04/why-women-need-other-women/">Why women need other women</a> <a href="/health/caring/2016/03/care-options-for-elderly-loved-ones/">The best-kept secret for caring for older loved ones</a>

Caring

Neglected puppies rescued in major RSPCA operation

Thank goodness for organisations like the RSPCA. A major RSPCA operation has recently seen dozens of frightened and neglected dogs saved from a puppy farm.Acting on a tip, RSPCA inspectors together with the police raided a regional property on January 20 and rescued 48 dogs and 21 puppies.As an investigation into the puppy farm continues, thankfully the dogs – including Cavalier King Charles spaniels, kelpies, poodles and a heavily pregnant spaniel – are now in the RSPCA’s care.RSPCA inspectorate manager Allie Jalbert said she had “significant welfare concerns” about conditions at the “intensive breeding operation”. “We certainly take a strong stance against inhumane conditions for any animal,” Ms Jalbert said.As the illegal breeders tried to avoid detection, Ms Jalbet warned this raid could be “the tip of the iceberg”.“We believe that there is a number of underground breeding establishments and they’re moving between properties,” Ms Jalbert said.The rescued dogs will remain in the good care of the RSPCA’s at their Burwood East shelter as evidence until they are surrendered by their owners or taken from them in court proceedings.And in good care these rescues dogs are as it has been reported that the carers at the shelter played them classical music and gave them new toys to help them feel comfortable in their new home. Although the investigation was ongoing and Ms Jalbert could not identify the exact location of the breeding facility, she said puppy farm operators faced jail time, fines of up to $75,000 and court orders banning them from owning pets.The RSPCA has launched an online tip-off service in a bid to find and shut down more puppy farms and Ms Jalbert urged people to come forward with information.

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