AIDS Uganda

Posted on 30. May, 2007 in Education, Health, HIV/Aids

Since 1987 Uganda has been struggling against AIDS.   After 17 years of war the country is still fighting this ongoing battle, trying to cope with the problem and to educate the people about how to control the disease.  Sr. Miriam Duggan spoke to Peter O’Connor about her experience there and the solutions that are being […]

Eating Distress

Posted on 30. May, 2007 in Eating Disorder, Health, Mental Health, Young people

Eating distress has the highest mortality rates of all mental illness and causes serious psychological distress, yet it is often seen as a “fad” or a fashion driven desire.  The key to understating eating distress is that food and size are used as a way to control or deal with emotions and this can take […]

Famine Walk 2007

Posted on 16. May, 2007 in Charity, Health, Poverty

Every May for the past 18 years Afri (Action from Ireland) have walked a road of particular importance, a road that was walked in 1849 during the worst of the famine years by people in search of food.  This year on the 26th of May, Afri will do that same walk in memory of the […]

Hospice Care for All

Posted on 16. May, 2007 in Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Family, Health, Hospice

Some 30,000 people die each year in Ireland. While the vast majority of people want to die at home, two-thirds die in hospitals of one sort of another and 40% die in acute hospitals. The Irish Hospice Foundation has undertaken a hugely important project to introduce Hospice Principles into Hospital Practice.  Fr. Brian Nolan, a […]

World Day of the Sick Reflection

Posted on 07. Feb, 2007 in Cancer, Chronic illness, Church Teachings, Faith and Justice, Health, Spirituality

Pope John Paul the second instituted World Day of Prayer for Sick People in 1992 when he set aside February 11, Feast of our Lady of Lourdes, as a day of prayer for the sick and for those who care for them. The day has continued to be celebrated annually. The theme for this year […]

Bodywhys

Posted on 27. Dec, 2006 in Addiction, Eating Disorder, Health, Mental Health

Christmas is a season associated with wining and dining, but this can be a nightmare for those suffering with eating disorders such as Anorexia and Bulimia. Often seen as ‘fashion victim’ diseases associated with a desire to be thin, it is actually a great deal more intricate and complicated than that. Miriam Gormally asked Catherine […]

Keep Well and Warm

Posted on 13. Dec, 2006 in Community, Faith and Justice, Health

Staying warm is not just a matter of comfort, in fact for older people, it is life critical. Age Action Ireland is launching a campaign to spread the message that older people need to keep war. Miriam Gormally asked Eamon Timmons from Age Action to tell her about the campaign.

Christians in Palestine

Posted on 13. Dec, 2006 in Death, Faith and Justice, Health, Mental Health, Poverty, Suicide

The very first Christmas took place in Palestine, but today it is no longer a place for celebration. Rev. Fadi Diab is a Christian Rector who works in Palestine and is witness everyday to the injustices and horrific actions that take place there, particularly at the border crossing. Miriam Gormally first asked him about the […]

Aid for Aids

Posted on 15. Nov, 2006 in Health, HIV/Aids, Humanitarian Aid, Poverty

AIDS is the leading cause of death and low life expectancy in Africa.  In Zambia, where Michael Kelly SJ worked with people suffering from AIDS, the life expectancy is 37 years.  Even a small donation could make a huge difference and with the right political will, the problem could be controlled.   Yet often we are […]

The Vocation of Nursing – Una O’Doherty

Posted on 18. Oct, 2006 in Church Teachings, Faith and Justice, Health, Vocation

Una O’Doherty, a former nurse, firmly believes that nursing is a calling and that  Florence Nightingale and Louise de Mariac, the founder of the Sisters of Charity, are largely responsible for the ethos of care enshrined in nursing. Eileen Good asked her about patient care and if she believed that nursing is a vocation.