Ballina Information Blog

We are a healthy lot here in Ballina Shire, according to North Coast Area Health Service (NCAHS) research.
The NCAHS says people living in its region — from Tweed Heads to Port Macquarie — are the State’s highest consumers of fresh fruit and vegetables.
It says that 195,900 North Coast residents aged 16 and over eat the [...]

Member for Ballina Don Page has welcomed the announcement of the site for the new Byron Shire Central Hospital, saying it would complement the planned expansion of services at Ballina Hospital.
Mr Page said a six-hectare parcel of land on the southern side of Ewingsdale Road, near the intersection of the Pacific Highway, had been chosen.
“It’s [...]

Professor Paul Clark, pictured, suspects that like himself, most men think they are bullet proof.
But Southern Cross University’s Vice-Chancellor realised what a very tenuous grasp on life we all have when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year. He has since had treatment and the cancer has not spread to other parts of his body.
“It [...]

Eighteen Rehabilitation/Transition Care beds will be established at Ballina Hospital under a revamp of services.
North Coast Area Health Service chief executive Chris Crawfored said that from mid-January 2007, the NCAHS will assume direct responsibility for providing rehabilitation beds and Aged Care Assessment Team services in the Richmond Valley, following a decision by St Vincent’s Hospital [...]

When Jan Barling lost her teenage son to cancer, she came face to face with the glaring inadequacies of the health system in dealing with the special social and emotional needs of teenagers.
The Southern Cross University researcher discovered that her son, Anthony, like all teenage cancer patients, was caught between two worlds.
Anthony was too old [...]

A natural seaweed extract – which might help protect against inflammatory conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease and arthritis and assist in the breakdown of dangerous blood clots – is being studied by Southern Cross University researchers.
The research is being conducted on behalf of the Australian Centre for Complementary Medicine, Education and Research (ACCMER).
Professor Stephen [...]

The NSW Health Winter Preventable Illnesses Campaign aims to reinforce health messages to keep people well and avoid illnesses such as colds and flu this winter, the North Coast Area Health Service says.
“Public health experts estimate that each year at least about one in 10 people in NSW will get seasonal influenza – that’s at [...]

Following the success of the trial earlier this year, another ‘Healthy Parents/Happy Kids Program’ will be held in Evans Head from today.
The North Coast Area Health Service says the six-week, yoga-based program is aimed at boosting the health of parents and improving their ability to care for 0-12 year old children.
The weekly sessions will be [...]

More Pacific Highway funding, construction of the Alstonville bypass, the return of train services and capital expenditure for Ballina District Hospital were they key ‘ingredients’ as Shadow Minister for North Coast Don Page today unveiled the key elements of the NSW Nationals’ North Coast policy.
In an address to the NSW Nationals Annual Conference being held in [...]

If you are healthy and have an interest in natural medicine, Southern Cross University (SCU) invites you to join an important clinical trial of a natural product, which may protect the body from harmful oxidation and stimulate the immune system.
The study on antioxidants is being conducted by the Australian Centre for Complementary Medicine, Education and Research [...]