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Nasty virus taking Sydney people down
Dr Gordian Fulde From: The Daily Telegraph March 15, 2010 12:00AM SYDNEYSIDERS are being hit by a virus that is not only taking down people but also hospital staff.
It is an unseasonal virus, not the swine flu, that is really nasty and the emergency department has been flooded by people coming in sick with it.
It has caused some people, even young ones, to get pneumonia.
This is not the right time of the year but it is amazing how it is spreading. It seems to be attacking the head so people feel like they are getting the flu.
They will have a nasty cough and we are seeing a lot of sore throats and infections that are so severe we have to admit people.
Some patients have had throats so swollen they can't swallow or breath properly and even their neck is swollen.
In stark contrast to the past few weekends, Sydney seems to have calmed down and really stopped partying.
However there will still be silly people around every weekend who will perhaps drink too much or try stupid things.
Over Friday and Saturday nights there were a few people, in my opinion, who were very lucky they did not injure themselves more seriously.
We saw a lot of women, younger women, who had come to grief in their high heels.
These heels are not getting any shorter and women are injuring themselves.
One woman fell face forwards, breaking her jaw and causing a nasty cut on her face.
It's the younger girls who maybe haven't learned how to balance in those silly heels.
In the end the high heels are providing no shortages of fractures and sprained ankles in our emergency department.
On Friday we had an incident that proved that Sydney can still be silly.
Some guys decided it would be fun to play a joke on their friend and throw him in the air before spear-tackling him to the ground.
He now has multiple broken bones in his arm and is very lucky he wasn't hurt more.
A man in his 50s who had enjoyed a few too many drinks tripped out of a club and caught his ankle on something so sharp that it sliced right through his achilles heel.
He will now need an operation.
On a slightly more sombre note - but something that is very important - I want to remind Sydneysiders to get to know their neighbours.
As a part of my job, I often have to sign the death certificates for people who are deceased before they arrive at emergency.
Sometimes they are usually older people who have died alone and who have not been found for a few days.
It really makes you think about life and also loneliness.
Maybe these people were too afraid to ask for help or perhaps they didn't any have family.
With the increasing ageing population, I would like people to take some time to think about this.
Dr Gordian Fulde From: The Daily Telegraph March 15, 2010 12:00AM SYDNEYSIDERS are being hit by a virus that is not only taking down people but also hospital staff.
It is an unseasonal virus, not the swine flu, that is really nasty and the emergency department has been flooded by people coming in sick with it.
It has caused some people, even young ones, to get pneumonia.
This is not the right time of the year but it is amazing how it is spreading. It seems to be attacking the head so people feel like they are getting the flu.
They will have a nasty cough and we are seeing a lot of sore throats and infections that are so severe we have to admit people.
Some patients have had throats so swollen they can't swallow or breath properly and even their neck is swollen.
In stark contrast to the past few weekends, Sydney seems to have calmed down and really stopped partying.
However there will still be silly people around every weekend who will perhaps drink too much or try stupid things.
Over Friday and Saturday nights there were a few people, in my opinion, who were very lucky they did not injure themselves more seriously.
We saw a lot of women, younger women, who had come to grief in their high heels.
These heels are not getting any shorter and women are injuring themselves.
One woman fell face forwards, breaking her jaw and causing a nasty cut on her face.
It's the younger girls who maybe haven't learned how to balance in those silly heels.
In the end the high heels are providing no shortages of fractures and sprained ankles in our emergency department.
On Friday we had an incident that proved that Sydney can still be silly.
Some guys decided it would be fun to play a joke on their friend and throw him in the air before spear-tackling him to the ground.
He now has multiple broken bones in his arm and is very lucky he wasn't hurt more.
A man in his 50s who had enjoyed a few too many drinks tripped out of a club and caught his ankle on something so sharp that it sliced right through his achilles heel.
He will now need an operation.
On a slightly more sombre note - but something that is very important - I want to remind Sydneysiders to get to know their neighbours.
As a part of my job, I often have to sign the death certificates for people who are deceased before they arrive at emergency.
Sometimes they are usually older people who have died alone and who have not been found for a few days.
It really makes you think about life and also loneliness.
Maybe these people were too afraid to ask for help or perhaps they didn't any have family.
With the increasing ageing population, I would like people to take some time to think about this.
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