YORK IA

Registered Charity Number 1039683

SECRETARY'S REPORT 2007

This year’s attendance at our two meetings was much improved, especially at our A.G.M. when our President Dr C.C. Lyon, York District Hospital’s Consultant Dermatologist, and our local Stoma Nurse Sister Jackie Clemit, answered questions relating to stoma and skin-care problems. We then presented £1000’s worth of equipment for use in York’s Stoma-Care Department. We have already applied for the matching-funding offer from our National Treasurer having provided £1000 worth of equipment to the Stoma-Care Departments of York and Harrogate Hospitals. We bought a number of special cushions for use post-operatively by stoma patients, a digital camera to enable the Stoma Nurses to send photographs of problems through to the specialists when doing home visits, and a portable D.V.D. player to demonstrate procedures when necessary. All of these should prove very useful before and after the operation, and during home visits to their patients. We plan to do the same for Scarborough and Northallerton Hospitals as soon as we can. This help with equipment, and the attendance by some of our members at the various Stoma-Support Group meetings, has helped to build up a good relationship with the Stoma Nurses for our mutual benefit.

Next year we will be celebrating our fortieth year as a Division, and are planning a free lunch with entertainment for our members. We will also have the added attraction of Mrs Anne Demick, our National Secretary, who has kindly agreed to attend. I have served on the Committee since the start, along with present members Mrs Margaret Allinson and Mrs Daphne Smurthwaite, and am hoping that our original Secretary Mrs Joyce Gallon, now living in Wales, and our first President Mr Tom Matheson F.R.C.S., will be able to come and meet up again with some of our other early members. We are looking forward to a memorable occasion on April 19th 2008.

Our Annual Coffee morning was again very successful, raising £212 mainly through the efforts of the Committee ladies, whose cakes were quickly snapped up. The most remarkable fund-raising event of the year however was achieved by Stuart Bradley, our Young IA Committee Member, and his wife Nichola. They completed a sponsored climb of the famous Three Peaks in North Yorkshire which has to be done in under 12 hours. Not only did they succeed in doing it in under 11 hours, but they raised almost £1200. Not bad for someone about to have Pouch Surgery! Well done, and thanks to both of them.

During the year, a number of successful social get-togethers were organised by our hard-working Treasurer John Mullins, with members attending from all around the area. He is hoping for more of the same next year. Thanks should go to him and to all the other Committee members for their hard work this year. Our membership is up from 105 to 121, so overall, I’m happy to report a fairly successful year.

Brian Turner

Hon. Secretary