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Author: James Wagner

News from Drouin and Jindivick

Posted on by James Wagner

Moving From Drouin to Jindivick

Now that our clinic at Drouin has closed, our Drouin staff, Toria and Dr Sheetal Karande have relocated to the Jindivick clinic. The move has enabled us to expand our quality services at this clinic.

In addition to booking consultations with a GP at Jindivick, we also provide pathology services, COVID-19 testing and a new podiatry service. Book an appointment at Jindivick online.

Jindivick is Now AGPAL Accredited

This general practice is AGPAL accredited – what does this mean?

Being accredited means that our general practice is committed to a comprehensive program which involves:
• Engaging our whole practice team to review our practice’s systems and processes
• Opening our practice doors to allow a team of independent surveyors to assess how our practice operates
• Assessment of our practice, and achievement of the nationally recognised Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Standards for general practices, that focus on health care quality and patient safety.

As a member of the community you may be surprised to learn that general practice accreditation is a voluntary process – which means not all practices undergo an independent on-site assessment on a regular basis. Congratulations Jindivick!

Toria’s Raffle Win

Toria's Raffle Prize.
Toria’s Raffle Prize.

A quick shout out to Toria. Since her arrival at Jindivick, Toria, the senior receptionist won the 1st prize for the Drouin West CFA Raffle, held at the Jindivick market.

Come visit Jindivick, soak up the gorgeous views at the back of the clinic. While in Jindivick, taste the food, coffee and desserts at the Jindi Caf’ just next door to Atticus Health. There is an interesting story about how the Jindi Caf’ and Atticus Health partnered together. Learn more about the story in our Diamond Kind video.

Dratticus Labs Comic Book Store Now Open!

Posted on by James Wagner

About the Store

Dratticus Labs is a comic book store located at 264 Highett Rd, Highett, next door to Atticus Health. The store has now opened as of Christmas Eve! It is a comic book store focused on supporting local independent comic artists and works. We sell locally made comics, e15 energy drinks and hold drawing workshops and other events that are upcoming. At the forefront is Dratticus, our in-house superhero doctor who has his own comic book. He is the face of the e15 Healthy Energy Drink and Atticus Health. Dratticus Labs with e15 are subsidiaries of Atticus Health. Like the Avengers or the Justice League, these three forces come together to work as a fusion project to empower the health and wellbeing of humankind!

Dr Floyd Gomes is the chief architect of this multi-verse, however when visiting Dratticus Labs, you will most likely find Dratticus Illustrator Nathan or James, the super dude in store.

Who is Dratticus?

Dratticus is a superhero doctor, created in order to get people more interested in their health and their body while also entertaining them. Dratticus originated as a comic book. Read it online! The comic titled ‘Dratticus’ has two chapters, written and illustrated by Nathan Onias from right here at Dratticus Labs. Dratticus was co-created by Dr Floyd Gomes of Atticus Health.

The comic is published by Atticus Health who, as a medical company, aspire to motivate people to better health through traditional as well as alternate avenues. The story follows a GP who acquires superpowers through an experimental gene therapy treatment. Through this, he uses his powers to help others and continue to learn more about himself.

e15 Healthy Energy Drink

Dratticus Labs is the home of the e15 Energy Drink. The drink was designed by Drs Nathalie and Floyd Gomes of Atticus Health with 15 healthy key ingredients to help unlock your natural energy. As a GP, Dr Floyd Gomes found that too many patients are drinking unhealthy energy drinks and lacked many of the essential vitamins needed in the body, therefore the idea for the drink was born.

The drink started with flavours such as Passionfruit and Pomegranate but we have now unlocked Blood Orange, a new and exciting flavour of e15.

Opening Date and Events

Dratticus Labs the Comic Book Store officially opened on Christmas Eve, 2021. The store’s opening hours are yet to be announced however will be closed on weekends and public holidays and will resume on December 29th. Stay tuned. We have spent the last few months getting the store prepared and are excited to finally start this journey!

We have recently held a few events here including a Drawing workshop with master artist Nathan. We also held a book club here as part of the e15 COVID R.I.P program, a program designed to empower people’s mental and physical health during COVID-19. We will continue to hold more programs like this in future so keep an eye out!

Follow Dratticus Labs and e15 on Facebook to keep up to date with any events that will be happening at the labs! Alternatively, sign up to the Atticus Health email newsletter at the bottom of the page to recieve any news of upcoming events.

Find out more about the drink on the e15 website where you can also purchase the drink online.

Foot Health: Injury Season with Podiatrist David Lee

Posted on by James Wagner

Hello readers,

This is my first contribution to The River’s Mouth – an exciting moment.

‘Tis the season! The injury season that is.

Every year around this special time, we see a spike in injuries at our clinics. Research suggests that heel pain is the most common overuse injury for people over 30. In fact, nearly 10% of the population will experience limiting heel pain at some point in their lives. This is especially true for those of us who love to remain active.

With Christmas looming and stockings to stuff, let’s spend some time talking about athletic footwear. When running, we can put between 7-10 times our body weight through our feet! No wonder runners (or sneakers for our American friends) are a huge market space and account for over 14 billion USD of sales each year. With the sheer amount of information and products out there, it’s easy to become lost.

I have spent the last 9 years working as a podiatrist with a large focus in athletics. I am personally a keen runner and spent a time writing ‘footwear reviews’ for an online publication. During this time I can honestly say that I have spent more time talking about shoes than any single other topic (with the Mighty Hawks coming in at a close second).

The most common questions I get are how do we know what we need? What is important? How much do we need to spend? The answers to these questions are predictably, “it depends, depends and depends.”

Footwear ‘science’ is unfortunately slow and is always a slave to the market share that drives its direction. As soon as a new technology comes out it normally takes 2-3 years for the researchers to catch up and validate or refute any claims, by which time the manufacturers have already moved on to a new ‘next big thing’.

So, let’s ignore the sales pitch and market hype. Here are my 4 basic rules to follow to keep you all running happy and healthy into next year:

1. Change your shoes! We all hang on a lot longer than we should. Most runners should get you 750-800kms before they need replacing, they may look similar but if the sole has compressed by more than 20% it changes in viscoelastic properties, meaning that it doesn’t protect you from the ground.

2. Fitment is key. Everyone knows that shoe ‘length’ is important. Most of us forget about the width, depth or instep height. A shoe should fit from the first try, you shouldn’t have to ‘wear it in’. When you are trying on shoes in the shop, if it’s not a ‘Cinderella moment’ then do not buy it.

3. Lace it up. No matter how good your shoe is, if you don’t tie them up firmly to hold your foot, you have just wasted your money on fancy new runners.

4. Rest your…… shoes? Yep, you read correctly. When a shoe compresses to absorb those kilometres, the material heats and swells, changing its properties. EVA (the traditional material used to make runner soles) can take up to 24 hours to fully recover from your run. So those of us who run daily may be better off with a second set. This will not only allow the shoe to return to its pre-use quality but also means that your shoes will not wear out as quickly (the old rule is 1+1 makes 3).

Book an appointment online with David at your local Atticus Health Clinic and learn more about your foot health:

Bittern

Carrum

Hastings

Highett

Jindivick

Somerville

By David Lee – Podiatrist, Atticus Health.

 

e15 and Atticus Health go to Oz Comic-Con

Posted on by James Wagner

On December 11th to 12th, there was an idea to bring together a group of remarkable people to run the e15 stall at Oz Comic-Con. No, they weren’t the Avengers, they are the team at e15! You may also know them as part of another team, Atticus Health!

Oz Comic-Con is one of the largest conventions in Australia that celebrates comics, movies, games and pop-culture as a whole. The event also marked the debut of the new tasty Blood Orange flavour of e15!

The e15 team were giving out free e15 energy drinks and blood pressure checks with Drs Nathalie and Floyd Gomes. This enabled us to connect with a wide range of people to talk about their health who would otherwise not have stopped to think about it.

Floyd performs blood pressure checks at Oz Comic-Con.

Our in-house superhero doctor, Dratticus was also there in the flesh along with Nathan, the artist behind the comic and James who is behind the marketing and media. All were there to get people thinking more about their health all while having a tonne of fun!

As part of the blood pressure checks, if you guessed your blood pressure correctly, you win yourself a prize. Jonathan here (seen below) was a lucky winner who guessed his correctly! He won himself a Dratticus shirt and comics!

(Left to right) Dratticus, Jonathan and Floyd.

Overall, it was a triumph, connecting with this amazing community of people. Many people loved the drink (even Wonder Woman) and we even sold some Dratticus comics too!

This was the first appearance of e15 to a convention like this, but it won’t be our last. Supanova commences in March 2022 and it is approaching fast. Who knows who will be there?

Keep an eye on future events by liking us on Facebook at Atticus Health, e15 or our comic book store, Dratticus Labs.

Diamond Kind: Episode 4 – With Jonathan

Posted on by James Wagner

In episode 4 of Diamond Kind Podcasts, Floyd and Brett are joined with our special guest, Jonathan. Jonathan is an Architect by day in the city and a Freeskater by night.

Freeskating is a form of skating that has helped Jonathan keep active and meet new friends in the city. He talks about how he got into freeskating, getting a job during a pandemic and being part of a community in the city.

You can also watch the video we did while recording the podcast.

Get a Health and Wellness Check With Your GP

Posted on by James Wagner

What is a Health and Wellness Check?

A health and wellness check is a preventive health assessment based on expert evidence-based guidelines. It is aimed at optimising a person’s health and wellness. The exact check will depend on factors like the person’s age, other medical problems and their family history, and will involve an examination that covers most of the basic systems of the body, including the heart system, lung system, gut system and nervous system examination. Additional examinations can be added depending on the clinical scenario.

COVID-19 has significantly impacted people’s ability to feel safe in accessing preventive health measures through their GP. With eased restrictions and heightened safety measures in place in our clinics, now is a great time to put your health first and book in.

You can book your health and wellness check online. If you’re a new patient, choose a long consultation. If you’re an existing patient, pick the short consult.

Who Should Get Their Health and Wellness Check?

Whether you are young or old, have pre-existing conditions or feel healthy and fresh, every adult can and should get a health and wellness check from their GP. The regularity varies from person to person. Reasons to get your health and wellness check:

  • Regular health checks are essential if you have a history of health issues within your family, especially cancer, heart disease or other serious illnesses
  • If you experience ongoing symptoms that concern you
  • You haven’t had an appointment with a GP in over 2 years.

Please note that if you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, please get a COVID-19 test before visiting a doctor. In the meantime, you can book a Telehealth consult.

Telehealth Consultations

For a Telehealth consultation, you can talk to a GP over the phone. We have our own Telehealth service called Doctor in My Pocket. This is a service for those who are unable to visit a clinic in person or have COVID-19 symptoms but wish to talk to a GP as soon as possible.

Preventative Health

Getting a health and wellness check is an important step to maintaining your health but you can also do a lot for yourself outside of the doctor’s office. Reduce your risk factors and prevent health complications later on. Here are some things you can do to help maintain your health:

How to Effectively Change Your Diet

Posted on by James Wagner

Making a change to your diet always sounds like such a great idea in your mind, but when it comes to implementation, it is slightly harder. You seem to find barriers everywhere, and it can take your motivation away. A change many people often make is towards a more plant-based diet – eating more vegetables and less meat. If this is something you are thinking of doing, then read on to see some tips that might be helpful in sticking to the change!The first tip is to start small.

Change only one or things that you are eating each week so that the changes feel much easier! Maybe try having one or two meat free meals a week to start with, and slowly increase that number if your goal is to cut out meat. Another good idea is to swap your processed snacks (chips, chocolate, etc.) for fruit. If you eat multiple snacks a day, just change one of them so that your body isn’t left craving the sugars it normally has. Remember, when changing your diet, you want it to be a lifestyle change, not a three week change. These things can take a lot of time to become accustomed to.It is also helpful to plan ahead of time, and to prepare your meals ahead of time, too. Take one day a week to grocery shop and prepare all of your meals for the rest of the week. This allows you to cook in bulk, saving you time later in the week, and gives you no excuses to not stick to the meals you had planned. If all your food is already sitting there perfectly prepared in the fridge, cheating on what you wanted to eat becomes that much sillier of a notion! Read more on meal prep for further needed!

The third tip is to create a variety of flavours in your cooking. If you are trying to enjoy more vegetables in your diet, adding different salad dressings to your foods works perfectly well to keep them new and exciting! Beware with salad dressings, though, that many store bought varieties are full of additives and added sugars as well. It is always best to make your own, which can be done quite easily with only a few ingredients. Have a look here for some quick and easy dressing recipes that can help to spice up your plate!

The last tip, and probably the easiest one to follow, is to start with foods you already love to eat! Massive fan of sweet potato? Have it in a stew or in place of chicken in a curry! Could nibble on carrots or celery all day? Then do! Use them as your snack foods! Don’t underestimate the power of the foods you really do like. It’s great to try new things, because you might find something new you like, but if zucchini just tastes so much better to you than brussel sprouts, then use it to your power! This may sound like common sense, but many people starting a new diet throw all of their old habits out of the window, when this shouldn’t necessarily be the case.

Hopefully these tips have helped you, and if you do decide to make a change to your diet in the future, good luck! And remember, all changes can start off small! This does not mean that they are insignificant.

Happy eating! Ebony

How a Daily 30 minute Walk Can Boost Your Wellbeing

Posted on by James Wagner

How does a daily 30 minute walk boost your wellbeing? 30 minutes isn’t a long time – most of us spend that much time on Facebook or Snapchat, just doing nothing anyway. There’s something really simple we can all do to give our energy levels and our overall physical and mental well being a much needed boost – walking! All you need is your body and some shoes and you’re good to go.

  • Weight Loss + Stronger Muscles
    Walking for 30 mins burns about 150 calories (it may be more depending on your weight), about that of a muffin. Regular walking can help improve your body’s response to insulin and boost your metabolism, which can help reduce belly fat. It also strengthens the muscles in your upper legs and calves – this is great especially if you’ve been sitting down for a while. When it comes to muscles, the saying  goes: “use it or lose it”
  • Improved mood
    Research shows that regular walking actually modifies your nervous system so much that you’ll experience a decrease in anger and hostility. Exercise releases endorphins which make you feel calmer and happier. If you’re walking outside, being exposed to the sun helps to stave off Seasonal Affective Disorder (the winter blues) and may even help you sleep better at night by encouraging melatonin production.
  • Healthy Digestion
    After eating a heavy meal, don’t flop down on the couch in front of the TV. Two different studies have shown that a post-meal walk can aid in digestion. One study in 2008 showed that walking sped up the rate at which food moved through the stomach. Other studies have shown that walking also decreases blood sugar after meals, which decreases your risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. A 30-minute walk will help clear that excess glucose and get things moving in the GI system.
  • It’s Great for Varicose Veins
    A 30 minute walk is the perfect exercise for people with varicose veins because it’s extremely low impact. It may also help to improve the appearance and pain of existing veins by increasing circulation in the legs.

Everyone should be getting outside at least once per day, according to our expert at Atticus GP clinics. A 30 minute walk is also a great chance to be social and catch up with friends and family – either on the phone or in person. Also, even if you do nothing else that’s productive that day, you can still feel a little better at the end of it.

Clara

Dratticus Labs: A Drawing Workshop

Posted on by James Wagner

Want to learn how to draw?! Dratticus Labs will be open for a drawing workshop on Wednesday, November 24th from 4:30pm to 6:00pm! Purchase your tickets here.

In this 90 minute drawing workshop for kids, participants will design and create their very own superhero. We will discuss character design and practise various art skills as we take our superhero from concept to finished artwork.

 

 

This workshop is for kids aged 8-12 years. All art materials will be provided. Tickets are $15 dollars and can be purchased online at Eventbrite. Our comic book store, Dratticus Labs will be opening exclusively to those who join. Come on down, grab a free e15 energy drink and draw!

 

 

You will be taught by our master superhero comic illustrator, Nathan Onias from Crispy Cola Studio, the illustrator behind the Dratticus comic books!

Click here to purchase your tickets.

 

Check out the Dratticus comics here.

Prevent Skin Cancer. Visit a Skin Check Clinic

Posted on by James Wagner

Living in Australia puts us at a higher risk of developing skin cancer. That is why, whether you are young or elderly, it is important to watch out for the early signs of skin cancer, visit a skin check clinic and help with early detection and prevention of the disease.

About our Skin Check Clinics

Atticus Health Bangholme is pleased to offer its patients a monthly skin check clinic. The clinic has acquired exciting new screening technology and will be run by Dr Carl Fernandes who has a special interest in skin cancer prevention. We also have skin check clinics at Somerville and Hastings, installed with new skin cancer treatment technology.

Skin checks with Dr Carl are available anytime at Atticus Bangholme on Wednesdays and Fridays.

Dr Carl Fernandez with Atticus Health patient, Kathryn. In the Bangholme skin check clinic.

Hastings and Somerville Skin Check Clinics

Dr Varun Deepak is another doctor at Atticus Health with an interest in skin health. He’s ramping up skin cancer work at Hastings and Somerville with new equipment installed for skin checks and treatment.

Risk Factors

Two in three Australians will be diagnosed with skin cancer by 70 and about 95% of skin cancers are treatable if found early. It is recommended by the cancer council that people at higher risk should discuss a skin check plan with their doctor. A full skin examination, supported with photography and dermoscopy, may be necessary every six months. Risk factors for skin cancer include:

  • Previous skin cancer, including melanoma
  • A family history of skin cancer
  • Fair or freckled skin, especially those with skin that burns easily
  • Red or fair hair and light-coloured eyes (blue or green)
  • Lots of moles on their body
  • Current or previous occupation involving outdoor work
  • A weakened immune system
  • Certain skin conditions, including sunspots.

Consult a doctor if you notice any new spots or changes to existing freckles or moles, including the shape, colour or size of a spot. Read more about prevention here.

Book Now

Embrace summer with confidence! Book your skin check appointment with Dr Carl Fernandes at Bangholme. Skin checks with Dr Carl are available anytime on Wednesdays and Fridays. You can call on 9706 5560 to book.