KILL IT!!! Hands can transfer germs to every surface you touch. Thoroughly wash your hands as soon as you can.
A piece from the Spanish press and TV as advice to help to stop the spread:-
"During this period, it is advised to dispense with the usual Spanish Kisses and Hand Shakes", as of course these are great transmitters of infection.
The following are a couple of links through to websites which you may find useful at this time.
Pandamic Flu Direct - a UK Government website.
UK Public Health Website.
El Pais has an article relating to telephone and web page advice available to the public.
It is in Spanish but the information could be of help and relevant to living here in Spain. A free telephone number -- 900 100 355 manned at the moment by 6 professionals and this number could rise to 16.No mention of other languages being available.
The website is Spanish information website The advice includes how to differentiate between common colds, 'flu and swine 'flu. There is an self evaluation test included.
According to the article, the vaccination for normal 'flu will begin at the end of September and vaccination for swine 'flu will begin in December.
Basic advise is
- Keep at least 1 metre away from anyone if you have or suspect that you have the HINI virus.
- Stay at home if you are contagious.
- Cover your nose and mouth with a disposable tissue or your arm when you cough.
- Wash your hands and those of your children frequently.
- Keep your house clean and well ventilated.
The web page also has information abouthe SIP card being the only card you require to carry when you travel to other parts of Spain and may require medical attention.
There is now a new office in Altea which opened at the beginning of 2009 which deals with the applications of Residencia's, both new and renewals. The directions on how to get to it are:-
"N332 to Altea. There's a turning on the right just before the football pitch, yellow hatch in the road. Do a right down to the bottom do a left. Follow road to "T" junction do a right. Follow road to roundabout do a right. Along this road you will come to a roundabout, before this you can park along this road, loads of parking. At the roundabout cross over and take left turning. Walk along road for about 5-10 minutes it is on the right side of the road. The road you want is Calle San Isidro Labrador and Number 1. The building is the new one on the left hand side of the street and walk round the side of it and go through some automatic doors and you are given a number and go through security, a bit like the airport, and there are plenty of chairs to sit on."
You will need your NIE Number, passport and copy of passport, old Recidencia Card. Once the Form is completed, which is supplied at the desk, you need to copy it. You will be given another form which you take to the bank with your payment of €10 and they will then call you within a couple of days to say that you can return to the office to pick up the document. It is quick, easy and very efficient, very different from standing for hours in a queue in Alicante!
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It has been pointed out to the committee, that those members wishing to send correspondence to the committee who do not have e-mail access have no way of making contact. A new Post Box has now been initialised for this purpose. The address is:- U3A Calpe, Suite No. 416, Total Post, Calle Corebeta 10, Calpe. This will be emptied on a weekly basis. It is hoped that this will now address any issues of being able to send correspondence to the committee outside of the General Meetings.
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Please note that as of 7th March 2010 there is and probably will
be NO CHANGE in the situation. Should this change in the future, then we
will keep you informed.
DIPUTACIÓN DE ALICANTE
EUROPEAN RESIDENT DEPARTMENT
Avda. Orihueala 128, Alicante 03006
Tel: 96 510 74 00
Diputacion Alicante.
email: Residentes Europe ES
This is a special department within the Alicante Provincial Council,
Functions.
- To provide services and resources to municipal councils in order to face the new challenges posed by European immigration.
- To promote spaces for exchange and reflection in order to encourage social and cultural integration, as well as a sense of identity and belonging to the local community.
- To open access to European citizens to all public services and resources, and improve their participation in municipality life.
The activities carried out by the European Residents Department include the programme “Get to know the Culture of Alicante”; the European Residents Convention: “Euromeeting”; the Conference entitled “European Residents Dialogue; the programmes that provide funding to municipal councils that carry out actions that promote the integration of European residents in their municipalities.
INFORMATION ON:
- Social Services
- Buying and Selling
- Education
- Health Care
- Municipal Census
- Local and State Taxes
- Driving Licence
- Constitution of Associations
- Condominium
- Rights of Consumers and Users
- Home Lease
- Last Will and Testament in Spain
- Housing: Duties and rights of the buyer
- European Identification Number (NIE)
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Please Note that as of the 7th March 2010 there is, and probably will be NO CHANGE in the following situation.
The following has been prepared as a general guide, after many enquiries by U3A members.
It is important to remember that it is a translation from Spanish and that the contact details, and address of the local Medical Facility, are your first points of reference.
It was as late as the 17th & 18th centuries that serious documentation of research into the workings of the human body began to be undertaken. How such bodies were obtained for ‘research’ is debatable and questionable in the law of the time, but the research was the foundation for many of today’s textbooks and on-going medical research.
The latter part of the 20th century saw legislation introduced for the provision of human remains for research purposes, and most countries developed schemes whereby people could properly arrange the donation of their bodies, after death, to a teaching establishment.
It should be noted here that –
Only the Donor can offer his or her body for teaching purposes.
Organ donation AND body donation are not possible.
This is an emotive subject, requiring much thought on the part of the donor, as completed documentation in this regard will be regarded as a final intention, and irrevocable.
There are also two other serious considerations:-
Any possibility of the presence of any contagious disease being present, or the body being held for pathological purposes, will make the donation unacceptable.
All family members of the donor, close friends, etc., should be made fully aware of the donor’s wishes, and what will happen following the donor’s death. The body MUST be passed to the teaching establishment within 36 hours to allow the preparation process to proceed.
This of course means that there will be no ‘remains’ to cremate and/or bury, and therefore the ‘normal’ funeral procedure is changed. This has to be discussed in advance with those who care so that they know and understand the wishes of the donor, and are properly prepared.
There is no reason why some form of memorial service cannot be held to give thanks for the life of the donor.
Procedure
Once the above is clear to all concerned, the donor can apply to the local teaching establishment.
Help is available from –
LIONEL SHARPE – Mobile 606 279 132
Or, in Alicante Province –
Departmento de Histologia y Anatomia
Facultad de Medicina
Universidad Miguel Hernandez
Ctra. Alicante – Valencia s/n
03550 san Juan de Alicante
Tel. 96 591 9434 (in Spanish)
The donor will receive self-duplicating forms in Spanish together with a letter possibly in English. The forms should be completed, witnessed by a friend or neighbour, and signed. The top copies should then be returned to the above address.
The final correspondence will be a letter of thanks with contact telephone numbers. These are for contact purposes at the time of death and should be given to those who will act at this time for the donor. They will contact the establishment via the numbers provided, whereupon the remains will be collected and taken to the establishment.
Here, for obvious reasons, the remains become a ‘number’, and pass through a preparation process before being accepted in the teaching areas.
There will come a time when the remains will no longer be of benefit for teaching purposes. They will then resume their proper identity, be taken reverently to a local crematorium, cremated and the ashes strewn on hallowed ground.
Please note.
If it is required that the ashes be returned to the family, this must be made clear when the donation papers are being completed, as they cannot be asked for by the family later.
The only costs in donation are those incurred in postage and telephone calls. The teaching establishment is responsible from collection of the remains through to cremation.
U3A recognises that this is a serious and possibly emotive subject, and that those considering donation fully consult with family, friends, etc., and ensure that their wishes are accurately made known.
We also gratefully acknowledge the help and assistance of Lionel Sharpe.
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Many people are alone and without help when they suffer a heart attack. The person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness. However, the person can help him/herself by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously. A deep breath should be taken before each cough. The cough must be deep and prolonged as when producing sputum from deep with the chest. A breath and a cough must be repeated about every 2 seconds without let up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again. Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and the coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way heart attack sufferers can get to a hospital.
Tell as many other people as possible about this. It could save their lives.
The above is from an article written by Dr. H Superko, published in Yoga and Health Magazine, September 2004 and contributed by Pat Spencer.
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Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.
Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:
*Ask the individual to smile.
*Ask him or her to raise both arms.
*Ask the person to speak a simple sentence.
If he or she has trouble with any of these tasks, call 112 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.
After discovering that a group of non-medical volunteers could identify facial weakness, arm weakness and speech problems, researchers urged the general public to learn the three questions. They presented their conclusions at the American Stroke Association's annual meeting last February. Widespread use of this test could result in prompt diagnosis and treatment of the stroke and prevent brain damage.
Tell as many people as possible about this. It could save their lives!
The above was contributed by Pat Spencer.
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The previous bus route from Calpe to Alicante Airport has ceased. However, you can still get to the airport by catching the bus from Calpe, then changing at Benidorm.
Seats have to be pre-booked at AUTOBUSES GRUPO ALSA Autobuses Grupo Alsa which can also be changed to English. You can also check the timetable
Avd/Diputacion 51
03710 Calpe
Tel: 96 583 9029 / 902 42 22 42
Office open hours: Mon - Fri, 3pm - 8pm
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This service started in April, and is proving to be a valuable service both to users and staff alike. Some of you may have used the service, and so know from personal experience how helpful the service is.
It is manned by Voluntary Interpreters who are doing a sterling job, but as usual we always need more willing people to take up this interesting work.
The service is staffed from 9am until 12noon Monday to Friday, (apart from Fiestas)
If you feel you would be interested in putting your name forward, but are unsure of the commitment or what is required, then you can either ring to have a chat, or perhaps arrange to spend some time with an Interpreter whilst on duty.
In either case, please ring Keith Wildman A.F.P.O.President on 96 583 0106 or Pat Spencer Coordinator on 96 583 4586
Please do not make direct contact with the Interpreters whilst on duty.
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The Voluntary Interpreting Service at the Cento de Salud, Calpe, started on 10th April 2006. The Association of Foreign Property Owners, Calpe (A.F.P.O.), have been working for some time to achieve their objective of providing such a service for their members and other foreign users who have difficulties in communication when using the Centro de Salud.
Considerable work has been undertaken with the staff, to ensure that the service is fully integrated with other services provided at the Centre. The
scheme has the full support of the Doctors and staff at the Centre, without which we could not function.
The Service consists of a number of volunteers, with language and interpersonal skills. All the English speaking volunteers are able to communicate in Spanish, some have additional language skills in German, French and Danish. Although the service has only been running a short time, the response from the users of the service, and the Doctors and staff has been very positive.
The service operates from 9am until 12 noon, Monday to Friday (not fiestas).
The volunteers wear identification badges and are situated in the main entrance hall at a small desk. There may be times when only a limited service can be provided.
The service is voluntary and the interpreters are aware of the need for confidentiality, and whilst every possible care will be given to ensure accuracy, the A.F.P.O. Committee and the volunteers cannot be held liable for any circumstances arising out of inaccuracies or ambiguities. The service is entirely at the personal risk of the user.
We would welcome still more volunteers; if you are interested please give us a ring.
Keith Wildman, President A.F.P.O. 96 583 0106
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Booking Appointments:-
This is the website for booking appointments (please click on the following link) Centro Salud, Calpe
Typing in your name and SIP number, or -
First register by phoning 900 662 000, cost 15 cents per message, 30 cents in total to ask for and confirm your appointment.
This next part is unavailable at the moment but should come into operation soon....Text message, the word cita and your SIP number to 7373 and within 5 mins you will receive a reply with the date and time. The next step is to confirm by 'OK' and you will get an immediate confirmation by return of text. If you don't OK it, the appointment will not be logged.
The service is in Spanish.
The service is also used to text you with the result of tests, reminders about vaccinations etc, and make you aware of any health campaigns.
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