Coulton’s Catch-up 7th November

08-November-2011

Through both good times and bad, sport has proven to be one of the great unifiers in Australia. Over many decades the Parkes electorate has produced many of Australia’s most prominent and talented sportspeople. However, the costs of competing at an elite level are quite often prohibitive and can be restrictive to many people seeking to advance their sporting career. The cost for young regional athletes and their families to attend state and national sporting competition often creates a barrier to participation.

To make it just a little easier for our young sports men and woman the Government has announced it will continue the Local Sporting Champions program grant which provides funding assistance to young sportsmen and women who are participating in a state or national sporting competition.

The grants can contribute towards the cost of travel, accommodation, uniforms and equipment to support participation in an official state or national sporting competition or national school sport competition. Recipients must be between 12 and 18 years of age and travelling more than 250 kilometre return to compete at these competitions.

For application forms and more details about the Local Sporting Champions initiative please go to www.ausport.gov.au or contact my office on 02 6882 0999 or 02 6751 1251.

I would also like to take this opportunity to promote the upcoming Dubbo Sports Awards. Dubbo has always punched above its weight on the sporting field, which is evident in the number of professional sportspeople that the town has produced. On Thursday the 17^th November the 9^th Annual Dubbo Sports Awards will be held at the Dubbo RSL Theatrette to recognise the outstanding achievements of Dubbo’s most talented sportspeople of 2011.

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November is Lung Health Awareness Month and the Lung Foundation is calling on Australians to “Show Us Your Lungs!”. Lung Health Awareness Month aims to raise awareness of lung disease among Australians, promote the importance of lung health and motivate people with lung disease symptoms to seek diagnosis and treatment.

Lung disease is a significant and growing health issue in Australia. Each year lung disease places a considerable burden on Australia’s hospital system, resulting in nearly 350,000 hospitalisations and, sadly, causing 19,000 deaths. While many lung diseases are incurable, if identified early there are things that can be done to improve quality of life.

Lung Health Checklist

Do you:

·         Have a new, persistent or changed cough?

·         Cough up mucus, phlegm or blood?

·         Get out of breath more easily than others your age?

·         Experience chest tightness or wheeze?

·         Have frequent chest infections?

·         Experience chest pain, fatigue or sudden weight loss?

·         Are a smoker or ex-smoker, or

·         Have worked in a job that exposed you to dust, gas or fumes

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, your lung health could be at risk and I recommend you recommend you speak with your doctor about your symptoms.