The Plymouth Laryngectomy Club (PLC)

– A Charitable Support Group for Plymouth Cancer Laryngectomees –

The Voice of PLC

October 2010
Address: 80, Warleigh Avenue, Plymouth, Devon PL1 2DH
Tel: (01752 ) 563800 Mobile: 07749819828 (text only) Email: saudigeoff@yahoo.co.uk Website: http://plymouthlc.webs.com

OUR VERY FIRST ISSUE

Written by Geoffrey N. READ
F RIENDS. I’m delighted to welcome some Friends to
our Club. ‘Friends’ are guests who are not
Laryngectomees but who support the Club and its aims in

W
ELCOME to our very first issue of the PLC monthly
newsletter. The Voice of PLC. Now that the Club
has been formally set-up with a properly-elected
Committee, a formally-adopted Constitution and the
acceptance of our Affiliation to the National Association of
Laryngectomy Clubs, we thought it time to relax the
formalities a little, and begin to have fun! This brand new
some way. Friends are every bit Club Members except
that they have no right to vote at our meetings. We are
particularly thankful to Mr. W.M. BRIDGER and Mr. T.
MALIK for becoming Friends of our Club and also for
allowing us to use their names (see the foot of this page).
Any Club Member can nominate someone to become a
Friend of our Club... indeed we hope they do so!

monthly newsletter will complement our website and will
carry any decisions and / or announcements made at our
monthly Club Meetings. We intend to use this instead of
issuing formal Minutes of Meetings.
FOREWORD BY THE CHAIR
Written by Edward (Ted) BURNETT
M
EMBERS. The Club is open to anyone who has
undergone a Laryngectomy and their partners. All
known Laryngectomees in the wider-Plymouth area have
now been contacted and invited to join our merry band.
There’s an application form on our website.
Alternatively, please contact Geoff whose details are at
the top of this Newsletter.

W ELCOME to the Plymouth Laryngectomy Club!

I should like to welcome all our readers, whether
M EETINGS. Club Members meet on the first
Monday of each calendar month, usually at 11 a.m.
The venue will usually alternate between the Mustard
they’re Club Members, Friends or Supporters. Our Club
Tree at Derriford Hospital one month, and an outside
was formed at the
location the next. Please keep watching this newsletter
instigation of Emer
and our website for current details.
SCANLON (our former

N
Speech & Language
EWSLETTER. Geoff READ is the Editor of this
Therapist) and Maggie
Newsletter and his contact details are shown at the
JARVIS (our Clinical
top of this page. Geoff will be relying on you all to provide
Specialist Nurse at ENT). It
him with articles, reports and newsworthy items to make
was those two who initially
this Newsletter interesting. So... do please start sending
brought us all together! The PLC was founded at it’s first
th him your contributions! Contributions can be submitted
meeting on Tuesday, 29 June 2010 and we adopted our
th at any time and we intend to publish each Newsletter as
current Constitution on Monday, 6 September 2010.
soon as possible after each monthly meeting.

C OMMITTEE. I was elected Club Chair at our first

meeting and I should like to thank Jean READ for
volunteering to be our Club Treasurer and Geoff READ as
C ALENDAR OF EVENTS. A copy of the Club’s
Calendar of Events for the next 12 months or so is
available on our website and Geoff (our Secretary) intends
our Secretary.
to give a forecast in each edition of our Newsletter.

The Plymouth Laryngectomy Club (PLC) is an Affiliated Member of: The National Association of Laryngectomy Clubs (NALC)
In Association with Macmillan Cancer Support
Registered Charity Number: 273635

A Member of The Plymouth Third Sector Consortium (PTSC)

Patrons & Medical Advisors : Mr. W.M. BRIDGER, FRCS - Consultant ENT Surgeon,
Mr. Tass MALIK, BSc FRCS (Gen), FRCS (ORL H&N) - Consultant Otolaryngologist, Head & Neck / Thyroid Surgeon, Derriford Hospital, Plymouth.
 CONGRATULATIONS!
Written by Geoffrey (Geoff) N. READ
N ATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LARYNGECTOMEE
CLUBS (NALC). NALC sent a letter to us recently to
say that a General Committee Meeting would be held on
th

C
Monday, 11 October 2010. I replied saying that our Club
ONGRATULATIONS! Very best wishes to Ted & Liz
had only just been set up and that this is the first
BURNETT on the occasion of their Anniversary on
st notification we’ve had. I therefore sent our apologies for
Thursday, 21 October 2010. Ted is the current Chair of
non-attendance and said we hoped to send delegates in
PLC but its Liz who does all the work behind the scenes!
the future.
Oh yes it is!

WELCOME!
Written by Geoffrey (Geoff) N. READ
O CTOBER 2010 CLUB MEETING. Our Fourth
Meeting was held as a Luncheon at the Peter Tavy
Inn on the Okehampton road, just outside Tavistock.
http://www.petertavyinn.com/ Although only six

S PEECH & LANGUAGE THERAPIST. We welcome

Julia POCKET who’s joined us from Cornwall to replace
Emer SCANLON who’s moved to Exeter. We’re hoping
Julia will put in an appearance at our November Meeting to
give everyone an opportunity to meet her. Welcome to
Plymouth Julia!
THE TREASURER’S REPORT
Written by Jean M. READ
members attended, it was a thoroughly enjoyable time in
a beautiful Devon setting! Liz won the Raffle Prize of a tin
of Roses Chocolates.
P LYMOUTH THIRD SECTOR CONSORTIUM. Our
Club’s Membership of this Consortium was approved
th
on Monday, 6 September 2010 and our Letterhead and
Website have since been updated by Kanda (our
webmaster). For further information please visit:
http://www.plymouthtsc.org.uk/

M ONTHLY REPORT. I aim to keep all Members

updated on the financial aspects of our Club but I P RESS RELEASE. I issued a Press Release to the
Devon & Cornwall media in September to advertise
the fact that our Club is now up and running and asked for
don’t think it would be prudent to include specific figures
in this newsletter nor on our website. I will of course all Laryngectomees in the area to contact us!
present all the necessary figures at our monthly Club
Meetings and Club Members are at liberty to contact me
at any time should they have a query, or should they wish
to inspect the books.

THE SECRETARY’S REPORT

Written by Geoffrey (Geoff) N. READ

F LYER. We’re in the process of producing a Flyer /

Poster with our Club’s Contact details. It will be
S TRAP-LINE. Our Members agreed that our Club’s
strap-line should be:

strategically posted onto Notice Boards and copies will be
passed to Maggie and Julia so they can point out the Club
and its benefits to prospective new Members. When it’s
finalised a copy will also be posted on our website.
PLC… A Charitable Support Group for Plymouth Cancer
Laryngectomees.
This will be used on our Letterhead, Website and anything
else we publish. This strap-line can be changed at any time

M EMBERS & FRIENDS. Our current Membership

Status is shown in the table below. As you see, we
have 15 not on email which means we’re incurring
so do please send any suggestions to me.

A STRAP-LINE? A good strap line makes you think,

postage charges. The sooner individuals obtain access to promises something, provides a guarantee of performance
the internet the sooner our Club can save a few pennies! or confirms your identity. The strap line is the pithy
statement that reinforces your position and states a claim
POSTAL EMAIL TOTAL
Confirmed Members: 4 11 15
for your differentiation. At different stages of a business
Confirmed Friends: 9 6 15 life and under different leadership your strap line reveals
TOTALS: 13 17 30 the inner focus of the organisation or product by focusing
either on the emotional, ideas, and concepts or the

M EMBERSHIP LIST. We’ve separated the details of

all individuals who’ve not acknowledged our
invitation to join the Club, from the main Membership List.
We’ll not be sending them any further correspondence due
to the cost of postage. The invitation to join us however,
stands!
rational, performance claims and statements of fact. The
choice of strap line is not a matter of right or wrong, it is a
question of positioning. However, it is a matter of good and
bad. Whichever option you choose, above all avoid the
wishy-washy, undifferentiated platitude that adds nothing
to the reader’s experience.

2
 FORECAST OF EVENTS
Written by Geoffrey N. READ
O CTOBER 2010
NOW! Send you Menu Booking Form and a non-returnable deposit of
£5 per person to Geoff (the Secretary) if you wish to attend our
Christmas Dinner.
Monday, 18th: Geoff (the Secretary) will send out an Agenda for the
November 2010 Meeting. If you haven’t received a copy before the
November Meeting then do please get in touch with Geoff!
Monday, 25th: This is the last day for submitting your names to Geoff
(the Secretary) if you wish to partake in Lunch at the Jack Rabbit
immediately after the November Meeting.
N OVEMBER 2010
Monday, 1st: Club Meeting at the Mustard Tree (Room 11).
Followed by Lunch at the Jack Rabbit.
This will include a Talk about the Mustard Tree services by Ms. Pat
STAPLETON, who is the Mustard Tree Supervisor.
We’re also hoping that Julia will find the time to come along to say Hello!
Monday, 22nd: Geoff (the Secretary) will send out an Agenda for the
December 2010 Meeting. If you haven’t received a copy before the
December Meeting then do please get in touch with Geoff!
Wednesday, 24th: This is the last day for paying the full balance for those
attending the Christmas Dinner. Cash is to be paid to Geoff (the
Secretary).
Monday, 29th: This is the last day for sending you Menu Booking Form
and a non-returnable deposit of £5 per person to Geoff (the Secretary) if
you wish to attend our Christmas Dinner.
D ecember 2010.
Monday, 6th: Club Christmas Dinner at:
The China House,
Sutton Wharf,
Plymouth, PL4 0DW.
Telephone: (01752) 661592
For those of you who don't know the China House, please take a look at
the website at: http://www.vintageinn.co.uk/thechinahouseplymouth/
Their Festive Season Menu, with sleigh bells and whistles, costs £19.95 for
a Three-Course Menu.
Drinks of course will be extra.
We'll need to make a block booking as soon as possible.
We’ve already sent out a copy of the Menu & Booking Form. Would you
please send Geoff (the Secretary) the completed form with your choice of
menu?
[If you prefer you can go on-line and download a Booking Form by just
clicking on the website, then click on Christmas Bookings in the left-hand
column and then download the Festive Menu.]
Geoff will need to take a £5 non-returnable deposit from you as soon as
possible, with the full balance to be paid by not later than Wednesday,
24th November 2010.
Each person attending is requested to bring a wrapped gift on the
evening, costing no more than £3.
Monday, 27th: Geoff (the Secretary) will send out an Agenda for the
January 2010 Meeting. If you haven’t received a copy before the
January Meeting then do please get in touch with Geoff!
LARYNGECTOMY RELATED BITS
Written by Geoffrey N. READ
B LOM-SINGER BRUSHES. Some of you may have
noticed that these brushes have been out-of-stock
for a while. When I
asked Countrywide
Supplies Ltd. if this
line had been
discontinued, they
replied:
The Blom-Singer brushes have not been discontinued but have been
redesigned and the new versions are not yet on prescription. We’ve
been waiting around six months for them to come on prescription and
have been told they will be from November this year.
Let's hope this happens!
C LAN MAGAZINE. CLAN is the official quarterly
magazine of the National Association of Laryngectomy
Clubs (NALC). Club Members can contact NALC direct to
ask for a copy. Simply email: info@laryngectomy.org.uk We
have however, asked NALC to send us a few spares of each
issue.
L
ARYNGEAL TRANSPLANTS. One of our Club
Members recently asked if we could possibly find out
more information on this topic. I contacted the National
Association of Laryngectomee Clubs (NALC) who said:
We do not hold information in this office but we’ve found lots of
information by using a Google search engine.
So there you go! If anyone is interested please use the
Google Search Engine… just tap in Laryngeal Transplants.
S
AFE JOURNEY CARD & LIBERTY WALLETS. The
Cancer Laryngectomee Trust, www.cancerlt.org, has
informed us that a number of bus companies have
introduced Safe Journey Cards to help disabled passengers
to communicate any problems they might have to the
driver.
The card, produced by First, has a number of pre-printed
messages such as Please be patient… I have difficulty
speaking to show when getting onto a bus.
Apparently, in East Yorkshire, an orange Liberty Wallet can
similarly be used to alert the driver that the passenger
might have problems.
I’ve recently written to Plymouth Citybus to ask if they
have any such system in place. If not, I’ve respectfully
suggested that they might like to investigate the matter.
The outcome is awaited!
3
T EXTING IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS. A texting
service for people with speech or hearing difficulties
to use in emergency situations is currently on an extended
trial. To be able to make use of the service you must first
register your mobile phone by either going on-line to
www.emergencysms.org.uk or by texting the word
register to 999 then following the instructions you
receive. It's quite painless... I just registered! If an
emergency occurs
once you have
registered, you can
then send a that safety and high quality
message to 999
stating what the
problem is and you
will receive a reply
within two
minutes.
NEWS & GOSSIP
Written by Geoffrey N. read
6
27-SPACE DERRIFORD MULTI-STOREY CAR
PARK WORK SET TO START THIS YEAR. This
th
article was published in The Herald on Friday, 24
September 2010:
WORK is expected to start this year on a 627-space multi-
storey car park for Derriford Hospital.
The car park is the first phase of development of a new
shopping street and 'care square' in the northern part of
the city.
Plymouth City Council Planning Committee yesterday agreed changes to
the design they approved last year.
The seven-storey building will now include offices instead of a children's
nursery, as originally approved.
Cathy FRANCIS, from agents King Sturge, told councillors on the
committee the developers had already provided a new bus lane as part
of the scheme.
She was speaking on behalf of developers Plymouth Hospitals Trust and
Wharfside Regeneration (Devon) Ltd.
Ms. FRANCIS said the car park and a new entrance to the west of the
hospital would allow visitors to find parking much more easily.
"Funding is in place and they are looking to start work in the next few
months," she said.
The existing car parks would eventually be redeveloped. Ms. FRANCIS
said the hospital trust was looking for another site for a nursery.
The master plan for the North West Quadrant site next to Derriford
Hospital includes 356 dwellings, along with a supermarket, shops,
restaurants, cafes, bars and a hotel.
The £150million development, which has been described as a 'new heart'
for Derriford, would also include offices, takeaways and public open
space, and a second multi-storey car park.
The development would also include sizeable residential institutions such
as care homes and other healthcare facilities.
Developers have said up to 1,500 jobs will be created on the 120,000sq
m North West Quadrant site when the scheme is completed.
The original intention was to complete by 2016, with the car park built by
the end of this year. That schedule has now slipped.
In time, the developers say, they intend to add another four or five
storeys over the roof of the car park on the western and eastern sides.
The extensions could be used as a nursing or care home, flats or offices.
H OSPITAL BOSSES MAKE PLEDGE ON PATIENT
CARE. This article was published on Saturday,
25th September 2010:
(Photo: CUTBACKS: The
Herald's front page on
st
Wednesday, 21 September
2010.)
By Diana Prince Health Reporter
HOSPITAL bosses have pledged
patient care will remain their
"prime purpose" amid
"immense" financial challenges.
Achieving multimillion-pound savings while maintaining
and improving services will require huge effort from every
member of staff, they said.
Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust this week revealed it needs
to hike this year's savings target from £27.5million to up
to £40million: more than 10% of its budget.
Plans include asking staff to resign, putting senior
managers at risk of redundancy, limiting agency staff and
restricting external recruitment.
Speaking at the hospital's annual general yesterday, Plymouth
Hospitals chief executive Paul ROBERTS said: "Our commitment to
quality and to safety remains at the heart of what we do for patients.
"Most of the headlines and debate is about money but as a board we
won't forget that our prime purpose is to provide safe and high quality
care for our patients.
"We have to understand there's both a national and local context of
major financial challenge, however, and we will no doubt hear much
more about that in the next year or so.
"What we need to get through is the real commitment and
involvement of our staff. So we can continue with improvements in
safety and quality within the money available."
Mr. ROBERTS said the Financial Internal Turnaround programme is a
"service by service" piece of work, taking a "hard look" at overheads,
back office and administrative functions.
"There's a lot of work to do and we've got to get a lot of detail into
that plan," he said.
"It's a major change in the way we are going about this because of the
scale of the problem and because we are behind. That's why we've
chosen to change gear."
Reflecting on the past year, he said achievements reflect the efforts of
staff.
Highlights included the hospital lowering mortality rates to well below
expected levels, bringing down rates of C difficile to one of the lowest
in the country and improving results of the annual patient survey —
particularly around satisfaction and perceptions of cleanliness.
Professor John BULL, Plymouth Hospitals chairman, warned the public
sector and Derriford will be under "enormous economic pressures" for
several years to come.
He said: "I hope we see what we have always seen in the NHS: an
absolute commitment to safety and quality of patient care.
"The scale of the challenge is something that's going to be repeated for
the next three, four, five years in the public sector.
"It's a serious position and is going to require a huge amount of effort
from everyone throughout the trust.
"It's just so vital because the pressures of the next two or three years
mean it's not going to get any easier. We will monitor it with
enormous care."
4
Joe TEAPE, director of finance, added the hospital faces an "extremely
challenging financial picture" but still expects to make a £1 million
surplus.
T HE FUTURE OF THE NHS. The Government has
set out its proposals for the future of the National
Health Service which means radical changes in how your
The latest figures show the trust has slipped almost £7 million behind
NHS will be run. There’s been many related papers
on its savings target.
published but we’re attaching the following PDF
The savings plan aims to cover rising costs, including agreed NHS pay
rises and more expensive medical supplies, as well as achieving the
documents to this Newsletter for your information:
surplus.
It comes amid massive structural change in the NHS due to  A leaflet for patients and the public which simplifies the
White paper;
Government policy and plans to make efficiency savings across the
health service.
 An easy read version of the White Paper; and

I T'S A VERY SIMPLE OPERATION. A man was wheeling himself

frantically down the hall of the hospital in his wheelchair, just before his
operation.
 The summary document relating to the proposed changes
to Local Involvement Networks (LINks) which will evolve
into Healthwatch.
A nurse stopped him and asked, "What's the matter?"
He said, "I heard the nurse say, 'It's a very simple operation, don't worry,
I'm sure it will be all right.'" ACKNOWLEDGMENT
"She was just trying to comfort you, what's so frightening about that?" Written by Geoffrey N. READ
"She wasn't talking to me. She was talking to the doctor!"

I S IT ALL TAKING ITS TOLL ON CATHERINE ZETA

JONES? The strain shows on Michael DOUGLAS' ever-
supportive wife. By Simon Cable. This article was published
O ur grateful thanks to The Devonport Regeneration
Community (DRC) Partnership for their assistance in
reproducing copies of this Newsletter.
in The Daily Mail on Wednesday, 22nd September 2010:

She is supporting her husband through a gruelling fight

against throat cancer, while keeping life as normal as
possible for their two young children, one of whom has
special educational needs.
So it would be no surprise if the strain of the last few
months was beginning to take its toll on Catherine Zeta
JONES.
Rushing into her New York apartment yesterday, after running yet another
errand, her mouth was set in a tight grimace, her figure unmistakably
slender.
But while Catherine is obviously undergoing a difficult time, she is doing her
best to keep herself together for her
family.
Last night she put on a brave face to
support her husband as he walked
down the red carpet the new York
opening of the sequel to Wall Street, THIS SPACE
one of his biggest films.
The Oscar-winning actor and producer, COULD HAVE BEEN USED
who will turn 66 this week on the same
day his wife turns 41, recently revealed TO PLACE
how the treatment has left him with
sores in his mouth which make it YOUR NOTICE!
extremely difficult to eat and swallow.
Although Douglas braved Monday
night’s premiere of Wall Street: Money Why not contact the Editor?
never Sleeps, in which he reprises his
role of hard-nosed financial trader
Gordon Gekko after 23 years, he has had to axe plans to travel to the UK
for the film’s British premiere next week.
Earlier this month, Douglas appeared on David Letterman’s U.S. chatshow,
where he revealed that the cancer had spread beyond its original tumour
and was now worse than first feared.
He admitted that his illness was now stage four – which can often prove
fatal – claiming that a lifetime of drinking and smoking had been the most
likely cause..
However, he said he still had an 80% chance of beating the disease.
DOUGLAS also revealed he and his wife had asked their children, son Dylan,
ten, and daughter Carys, seven, to see him undergoing radiotherapy,
saying: ‘They actually thought it was cool, like a video game or Star Wars.
'They were very impressed when the doctors let them press the buttons.’

Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1314143/Strain-shows-
Michael-Douglas-wife-Catherine-Zeta-Jones.html

5
The Plymouth Laryngectomy Club

(PLC)

– A Charitable Support Group for Plymouth Cancer Laryngectomees –