It is always easier to draw attention to a mistake than an success. Doctors are amongst some of the most highly scrutinised professionals in society, but do we give them the credit they deserve? According the British Medical Journal, british newspapers publish twice as many negative stories about doctors than positive. After the intense media coverage of Dr Edward Erin poisoning his wife last month, it is not surprising that a negative attitude has been adopted. The new Gala awards by the Royal College of General Practitioners aim to fix this.

Due to be held in Edinburgh in December, the RCGP awards are the first of their kind in Scotland and will honour Britains’ unsung heros. A number of awards will be presented, including “GP of the year award”, and it is a chance for patients to give something back to their GPs. Dr. Ken Lawton, chairman of the RCGP recognises this as an opportunity to focus positive attention on doctors and recognise the commitment they give endlessly to society: “Quality of patient care is a priority for GPs in Scotland and it is important to recognise the success stories of General Practice at its best” These are the grass routes of general practice, and there is a worry that they have unfortunately been lost somewhere along the way.

The awards are will not only recognise the hard work of doctors. The “Practice Team Award” will praise the work of everyone from administrative staff to nurses who have demonstrated excellent patient practice in their community. Furthermore, the winner of the “GP of the year award” will have been nominated by the patients themselves, making the reward truly reflective of patient community care.

With the swine flu threat still at large, it would seem now, more than ever, we need to put faith in our NHS. The black tie event will also raise money for Depression Alliance Scotland and Cancer Research UK.

Home should be a place of safety for children, but unfortunately this is not always the case. During Child Safety Week in June this year the Child Accident Prevention Trust reported a 50% rise over the past ten years in the number of children under five admitted to hospital with burn injuries sustained in the home.

In an attempt to prevent accidents, this week the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents are hosting the European Child Home Safety Conference. RoSPA will be working directly with the European Child Safety Alliance addressing such questions as the safety of television in the home and what part do school science lessons play in safety in the home.  With the school curriculum changing and developing each year perhaps there is a need or more focus on health and safety in the home.

Janice Cave, RoSPA director of public affairs, who represents the charity in the European Child Safety Alliance, part of EuroSafe, said: “Most children have very little choice about the homes they grow up in, so society has an obligation to help reduce the dangers they may face there.”

Every year over 67,000 children experience an accident in the kitchen – 43,000 of these are aged between 0-4 years, 58,000 children have accidents on the stairs. Furthermore, it is difficult for parents to keep on top of all the new technologies and the treats they can cause to home life.

This week’s conference will not just see a discuss of how to improve child safety in the home. Errol Taylor, RoSPA deputy chief executive will be introducing a Government funded programme called Safe at Home will be introduced. Safe at Home will be supplying home safety equipment and advice to disadvantaged families in the 141 areas of England with the highest accident rates.

There is a danger that as a society we become too over protective of our children. The experience of growing up would be not be complete without a few bumps and bruises along the way, and it is often these mistakes that make us wiser and more cautious as a result. At the end of the day this weeks European Child Home Safety conference aims to educate and not scare parents. The UK accident rates for children in the home remain some of the lowest in Europe, and RoSPA aim to keep it this way.

Courtesy of static.guim

The British Royal Legion expected almost 90% of people in British to observe some kind of service this year, so the immense turnout at the Edinburgh Service came as no surprise. Hundreds of people lined the streets outside St Giles where the service was taking place, and the crowds continued along the Royal Mile. Reverend Dr. William Mackie, chaplain to the Scottish Veteran Association spoke of the overwhelming support: “There were a lot of youngsters there, some not even affiliated with a youth organisation, just there to pay their respects. They hopefully took something away from the service, it was nice to see.” 

As a veteran of the Irish conflict Rev. Dr. Mackie saw the service as more important than ever before, and noted that it was not just an opportunity to reflect on the first and second world wars, but to think of those fighting for their country today. Mackie, along with other war veterans and representatives of the armed forces, watched with pride as the city’s Lord Provost made a special mention of the city’s most recent casualty of war, Edinburgh-based father of two Serjeant Phillip Scott of the 3rd Battalion the Rifles, who was killed by an explosive device blast in northern Helmand province on Thursday.

Remembrance Sunday also marks the end of the annual Poppy Appeal, which last year raised up to 2 million pounds for the Scottish Veterans cause. The Poppy Appeal, which is part of the Royal British Legion, is the leading charity in providing financial, emotional and social for those who have served, or are still serving, in the armed forces. There is also a strong network available for families of service men or women, all funded by the Poppy Appeal.

Younger generations are now taking notice of the conflict concerning their country and their peers. Support can be seen through social networking groups such as Facebook’s “Help for Heros” page which currently has over 87,000 members. Youngsters have left posts expressing their support and honour for the British Troops, and share links to other charitable organisations all rooting for same cause.

More than 80% of students at school throughout the UK consider the career advice services “a little bit” or worse, “not at all helpful”. At this time of year when UCAS deadlines are creeping closer, it is more important than ever that young adults receive the correct guidance for their futures.

Barbara Hearn, deputy chief executive of the National Children’s Bureau (NCB) understands the importance and pressure upon young adults today: “At this time of unprecedented youth unemployment it is essential that we understand the factors that influence young people’s job and career choices and provide them with useful and effective guidance”.

A report published by the British Youth Council (BYC)  has confirmed the fears that a record number of young people are not employed, in education or training. Rajay Naik, aged 22, Chair of the BYC, highlights the action that the younger generation must take in order to survive the recession and come out fighting: “We must invest in developing the potential of our younger generation if we are to sustainably grow our economy out of recession, and part of that depends on providing personalised career guidance.”

However results of a BYC report show hope and direction coming from Britain’s youth. When asked what they wanted to do, the majority of answers fell in the law, media or teaching sector. There was a lack of the stereotypical, and somewhat unrealistic answer of a celebrity, or “famous”. and instead an impressive array of professions including “professor of bone disease”, “trade unionist”, and an “ordained minister”.

There is certainly no lack of imagination or drive, and it is clear that young people today are taking their futures seriously. The older, wiser generation are falling short of what Britain’s youth expects from them, and they are being left to pick up the pieces of a broken nation, unaided and unaware.

250 years later, is appears that Scotland still holds as much intrigue as did back in the era of Robbie Burns. The homecoming came from the Scottish Government’s aspiration to increase Scottish Tourist by 50% by 2015.

There has been public outcry at the amount of tax payers money that has been spent on these patriotic celebrations. According Visit Scotland, the core budget of £5.5m, includes £3m for programme, £1.75m for marketing and communications and £0.75m for operational costs. In response to the success and reasoning behind this particularly fat budget s spokesperson for Homecoming Scotland 2009 said, ‘Several factors have indicated that the celebration has been a success and is well on its way to meeting its targets.  An extensive evaluation and report will be available after Homecoming Year, in Spring 2010.” Furthermore, the target is to deliver an 8:1 return on the core investment of £5.5 million by generating £44 million of tourism revenue for Scotland in 2009.

So with all this money being spent, it is comforting to know that people are acutally aware of the homecoming taking place. According to a YouGov poll (July 09), 87% of Scottish people are aware of Homecoming, and this figure has grown significantly from the 29% reported in August 2008.

A spokesperson for Historic Scotland also views the Homecoming as a success by the tourism sector: “Overall the Year of Homecoming has proved very positive for Historic Scotland and we hope to build on its success for the future”.

Perhaps in a time of such economic unrest there is no better way than to pull together as a nation and make the most of our valuable and historic resources.

Coupled with the ever increasing “be green” attitude, it is no surprise that shoppers are becoming more ethical on how they spend their money.

Edinburgh plays host to Scotland’s oldest charity shop, The Thrift Shop. It was started back in 1908 by four women who used to take their wares down to the docks to sell them to the sailors - quite a different method of trade than we see today in the cosy Edinburgh shop lined with second hand goodies.

Situated in the area of Bruntsfield, The Thrift Shop is proud to announce that sales have not deteriorated over the past few months. Manager Dorothy MacAlistair suggests that the success of the store could be due to the independent nature of the shop. Unlike other larger charity shops, not one single item found in the store is bought, everything has been donated. Furthermore, this treasure trove has a number of loyal customers and donators who have grown in number over the year.

There is no doubt that over the past decade Edinburgh has become a very cosmopolitan city, and those who would previously turn their noses up at the idea of shopping “second hand” may find themselves drawn to every charity.

Charity shop shopping requires a keen eye and bargain senses, and it may not be everyone’s cup of tea.  However it must be stressed that these shops are not filled with the junk that no one else wants. As The Thrift Shop point out, their biggest problem is certainly not a drop in sales, but a rise in the amount of “junk” being donated.  The key motto to keep in mind when giving your clothes to charity seems to be “if you wouldnt wear it yourself, don’t let other people wear it”.

So don’t be embarrassed to pass over your usual high street store in favour of a more ethical way of shopping, the chances are your not the only one doing it!

Courtesy of www.usu.usyd.edu.au

Next month from 2nd – 8th November British Sausage week is teaming up with Cystic Fibrosis Trust (CFT) in an effort to help raise funds for one of Britain’s most common life-treating inherited diseases. Cystic Fibrosis affects over 8000 people in Britain and each week five babies are born with Cystic Fibrosis.Katie Burr from

Cystic Fibrosis Trust says that “the partnership with British Sausage Week is a perfect fit, as people with CF often have poor apetites and require diets high in calories and protein to maintain a good body weight which helps fight infection”. What’s more, Celebrity Magicians Paul Daniel’s is looking forward to the weeks events – “I can’t wait to start tasting the nation’s best bangers!  British Sausage Week is a national institution and an event I am proud to be involved in”

The theme takes form of the Magic of the British Banger. Eight separate competitions will be run thorough the country to determine the Best British Banger. Whilst entries have already closed for the competition, you can still get involved by ordering a fundraising pack from events@cft.org.uk. The Cystic Fibrosis Trust are hoping to raise an impressive £12000 as this year celebrates 12 years of British sausages. British Sausage Week is only one of the many national events that help raise awareness for CFT. Other events include Dance for CF, Big Bounce and Great Strides.

Fund raising for the CFT can help  families coping with a child or relative with Cystic Fibrosis, and the CFT’s Support System provides both physical and emotional support.

CFT would like to urge you get involved in fundraising this November and help make a difference to the lives of the those suffering with Cystic Fibrosis.