Ideas for podcast about work and breast cancer
Hello everyone, We are going to be taping a podcast about work and breast cancer. We are keen to hear from anyone who was self employed. What tips would you give others regarding work and any questions you may have for a webcast. We would love your input into the questions you would have liked to have asked regarding work. The questions you asked that gave you the most useful information and those questions you didn't even know that you needed to ask. Thanks!
Do you have a work colleague that supported you after your breast cancer diagnosis?
Hi everyone We are developing an information hub on BCNA's website, focusing on work-related issues after a breast cancer diagnosis. We would like to include some personal stories from colleagues of people that have been diagnosed with breast cancer, that we can publish on our website, or in BCNA publications. These stories can provide other colleagues with new ideas and perspectives on how they can support someone diagnosed with breast cancer during their return to, or continuation of their work. If you know someone that is interested in sharing their story, please ask them to email it to contact@bcna.org.au. Stories should be about half a page long (200-300 words), and the person may remain anonymous if they wish.
Friday Update!
A big hello to everyone. Welcome to the Friday Update. This week we have 24 new members. Please welcome @weaver, @Tilley, @DMaree, @Colette, @KezMac, @HealingPower and all our new members. Community highlights Each week we have lots of different discussions take place in the online network. These can include questions, updates, celebrations and so much more. Here are some conversations this week you may have missed: @ScorpionQueen - This Community @maggie001 - To work or not to work? @JulieP - Coping with implants @Tweezer - Just diagnosed stage 1- feeling scared A special shout out to boob in a box for her story - Not just 1 in 8. To read her story click here. Have you seen this beautiful piece of art by @Ne Have you seen this incredible cake that @ScorpionQueen shared with us? News & events BreaCan - Decision Making for Women with Advanced Cancer. This session will be facilitated by Dr Michelle White, Medical Oncologist at Cabrini and Monash Medical Centre. World Cancer Congress - Head of Quality Practice at BCNA Danielle Spence along with our CEO Christine Nolan joined more than 3000 cancer experts and leaders at the WCC in Paris this week. A number of topics ranging from global challenges in cancer care to returning to work and palliative care were discussed. Professor Fatima Cardoso launched the Advanced Breast Cancer Global Alliance in which BCNA will partner in this global call to action. To read more click here. Fernwood Fitness - This November Fernwood Fitness clubs across Australia are turning PINK and setting out to raise an incredible 100k for BCNA! With a range of challenges and ways to get involved, you can walk, lift, run or jump your way to better health, all in support of Australians affected by breast cancer. Fernwood Fitness is also offering special 14 day passes for a donation to BCNA of $20. Find out more at www.fernwoodfitness.com.au Inspired Adventures - Our Steps for Support adventurers have completed the Great Wall of China trek! Here are some photos of the incredible adventure they went on. Dine Pink – We want to extend a huge thank you to South Bank, Brisbane for turning completely pink last week to raise awareness of breast cancer in the community and the work of BCNA! From the Mini Field of Women to the survivor’s gallery to the William Jolly Bridge being illuminated with pink ladies, it was a truly beautiful display of support for the 16,000 women and men who will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year. A special mention goes to South Bank’s restaurants and bars who participated in Dine Pink donating money from specially designed meals, drinks and tables to BCNA. What a wonderful week it was! Our partners & supporters BCNA is fortunate to have partners and supporters that help us ensure we deliver our programs and services free of charge to Australians affected by breast cancer. VIC Tennis – A HUGE thank you to Vic tennis for coming to our office to present a giant $10,000 cheque they raised at their pink sports day this year! What an incredible achievement. Here is a quote for the weekend. Thank you @Ne for sharing this with us! ~Ann-Marie xxFriday Update
Welcome to the Friday Update! Community Highlights We have 35 new members this week. Please welcome Hvm83, SCW101, SandyR00, watto66 and all the other new members. I hope you find the information and support you’re looking for. There were 56 posts and 305 comments this week. Here are some posts you may have missed - Am I overreacting? Post Mastectomy Exercise Physiologist The Journey Begins BCNA News & Events The final coins have been counted and we are thrilled to announce that this year’s Pink Bun Campaign reached its target of $1.5 million! What an incredible achievement and one that could not have happened without the support of Bakers Delight, their franchisees and staff and the whole community. Thank you for helping us sprinkle some change! Watch our thank you message here. First Class Hampers have just gone live with their BCNA range- $5 from each hamper sold will be donated to BCNA. More information here. Are you interested in becoming a BCNA Consumer Representative? Held in rural, regional and metropolitan locations around Australia, our Information Forums are free events for women and men diagnosed with breast cancer, and their partners, family and supporters. More information here. Enjoy the weekend, Ann-Marie x
Are you interested in becoming a BCNA Consumer Representative?
Are you interested in becoming a BCNA Consumer Representative? BCNA Consumer Representatives work alongside researchers, policymakers, clinicians and others to represent the experiences and views of Australians affected by breast cancer in decisions that are made. BCNA will be running three day training in Melbourne on 7 to 9 September 2016. Places are limited and an application process will apply. For those attending, BCNA will cover travel and accommodation expenses. If you are interested in applying, please email BCNA on satt@bcna.org.au by Friday, 17 June 2016. More information is available here.
BCNA is recruiting bilingual volunteers
We are currently looking for bilingual women who have been affected by breast cancer that are interested in becoming volunteer BCNA Community Liaisons. BCNA’s network of volunteer Community Liaisons around the country raise awareness of the impact of breast cancer and the support available for people affected by breast cancer by sharing their personal stories. A current priority for BCNA is to improve information and support available to people affected by breast cancer from diverse cultural backgrounds. Integral to the success of this work is strong connections with the communities. To date we have trained 16 volunteer Community liaisons from 9 different cultural backgrounds. These women have actively raised awareness of BCNA in their communities, assisted with resources development and community events and have shared their stories in the media among many other achievements. We are currently seeking other bilingual women who are interested in becoming Community Liaisons. We invite women from a range of culturally diverse backgrounds who are interested in the role to apply. We are particularly interested in recruiting women from Mandarin, Vietnamese, Serbian, Macedonian and Arabic speaking backgrounds as we will be increasing our engagement with these communities in 2016. Women with experience working in the multicultural sector are also encouraged to apply. You can find out more about the role and view the application form here- www.bcna.org.au/become-a-community-liaison For more information please feel free to send me an email ahiggs@bcna.org.au or give me a call on 1800 500 258. Anna Higgs Cultural Diversity Officer
Making The Breast Of It
I was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2015, three months before my 60th birthday. I consider myself very lucky that it was caught early, through a routine mammogram. I have had a lumpectomy and one lymph node removed (which was clear) and am shortly to start 4 weeks radiation. Every morning I wake up grateful for my early diagnosis. I am also an author of comedy fiction, and looking at the books published on breast cancer (both in bookstores and on Amazon) I noticed a marked absence of books on the lighthearted and humorous aspects of having breast cancer. So I have decided to fill that gap and write one, which I am doing at present. This is not to make light of the difficulties and emotional trauma that many people go through, but I also think we need to be able to laugh as well. It's essential for our physical and mental well-being. My book is called 'Making the Breast of It - breast cancer stories of humour and joy.' It will be a combination of my own experiences and those of as many ladies I can find who are willing to share their experiences with me from a light-hearted, positive point of view. So I am putting the call out here and if you would like your story to be included, please message me on this site or email me at robin@altosoft.com.au. We can talk by phone, Skype or email - whichever is better for you. (I live in Queensland). I will only use your first name and age in the book, but if you would like a pseudonym that's fine as well. My book will be published on Amazon as an e-book and also in print, and you'll get a free copy of the e-book. If you want to check me out, here's my website. http://www.storey-lines.com/ I look forward to chatting with you and have a great day - it's a beautiful spring day here on the Sunshine Coast.
Workforce Discrimination for People with Cancer
Workforce Discrimination for People with Cancer I feel compelled to write about my work experience since I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer some 8 years ago. For the most part of my journey, my employer was very supportive and indeed I worked full-time for 6 years living with cancer. There were periods during those 6 years when I had to draw on my annual leave, sick leave and long service leave due to surgery, radiotherapy and regular chemotherapy. Despite my chronic illness, I was nonetheless still able execute my position well, and those not aware of my personal health challenge were none the wiser. I am a highly skilled person, competent in business and marketing nonetheless given my illness and age, finding new employment is proving problematic. I have now succumbed to be my disease in that I can no longer work full –time. It was this reality that was a game changer for me with my employer in March 2012. This was when relationship and communication problems with my employer became a big issue. In my situation, I know that I was well regarded but because of this, my employer was not honest with me and effectively left me believing that I was still employed, on unpaid sick leave when indeed I had been “struck off the books” 12 months after taking up Income Insurance which precluded me from working. When I was told about this some 21 months after I went on sick leave, the explanation I was given was it was company policy. The fall out of this was extremely upsetting to me and has had a profound effect on my opportunities for employment. In January 2012 I approached my employer to seek approval to move to part-time work, which was agreed in principle but did not materialise which forced me to take my Income Insurance as I could no longer work full-time. Effectively I was treated differently because of my disease which has affected me emotionally and financially. I have always had a career which I identified as a big part of me and I always gave 100% and indeed took on extra curricula activities within the organisation which I enjoyed as it kept me in touch with aspects of the business and allowed me to engage with other colleagues which I would not otherwise. I believe that my employer showed no malice but was inept which has cost me. If they had implemented my part-time role, I could still we working, contributing pro-rata to my superannuation and still have my Income Insurance, I would not be on a disability pension, an independent earner and taxpayer and a contributor to the economy. Because of my early exit from employment, we had to draw on my husband’s superannuation pension which we have paid 15% tax, but the tax office deems it an income stream thereby its added to my husband’s income, forcing him into the next income bracket, so we are paying more tax even though our income has dramatically dropped and this money was only drawn on to pay for Kadcyla, a new drug for me that is not on the PBS. The actions of my employer put my employment opportunities on hold as I believed I was on unpaid sick leave, not being told otherwise, believed I would return in some capacity once income insurance ceased. If an employer doesn’t want someone, let them know so they can seek other options and be prepared to terminate them in a lawful and fair way, not surreptitiously. Certainly do not give them lip service. It is regretful that in my experience, my employer was not prepared to sit down and discuss my situation, so I had no option but to seek legal advice and my case was heard at Equal Opportunity. We came to an agreement but in my mind this should not have gone this far. I understand why people don't make complaints, including not knowing their employment rights and/or not having the time or energy to make a complaint which could take months or even years to resolve. The cost and effort involved in pursuing legal action (or what is perceived to be involved) outweighs any potential beneficial outcome. I would say in my case, even though it was heard at Equal Opportunity, my major gripe was in relation to being entitled to notice of termination of employment which comes under Fair Work Australia wrongful dismissal . Because my employer removed me from the books surreptitiously, the 21 day window to lodge as an Unfair Dismissal could not be done, as I was not aware that I had been terminated. Perhaps this 21 day window to lodge a wrongful dismissal needs to be reviewed. Cancer remains a leading cause of death in Australia but the survival rate for many common cancers has increased by 30% in the past two decades. Screening services and treatment options have improved so people are living longer in relative good health. I am testimony to this and I still lead a full and productive life. I do not completely blame my employer for my predicament, indeed I believe the law needs to work better for people affected by cancer. I believe the extent of employment problems (including discrimination) for people affected by cancer and their carers; people's knowledge and understanding of their employment rights; employers' compliance with employment laws; and whether the existing employment complaints processes are working for people affected by cancer needs to be revisited. Currently cancer is considered to be a disability under anti-discrimination laws, which means that reasonable adjustments are made so people living with cancer are not disadvantaged at work. A diagnosis of cancer has significant implications for a person's work, for example: long periods of leave for treatment; the physical and emotional toll of cancer treatments affecting a person's ability to work; and the potential for unfair treatment on the basis of their cancer diagnosis or history. Through my own experience and talking to fellow cancer survivors, I am aware problems are not uncommon where people with cancer are encouraged to leave their jobs, or having their terms and conditions altered, to their detriment, upon their return. Assessing the extent of employment problems for people affected by cancer is a challenge. Recommendations for Education programs for employers, people affected by cancer and their colleagues on the effects of a cancer is needed. A legal framework outlining the rights and responsibilities that apply when an employee or potential employee is affected by cancer and a need for practical solutions to common problems is needed. I am now on a disability pension, which is something that doesn’t sit easy with me. I have always been independent, I have exhausted my own personal avenues for income to pay the bills, a pension is my last option. I find my situation concerning on many fronts. We are all being encouraged to work till 70, yet people who are surviving cancer or living with cancer are discriminated against, despite their skills. As technology keeps us living well despite our underlying disease, we are finding we cannot work. I know I have something to offer, yet as a society we are currently unable to accommodate anything that is different from common workplace practices. This has to change. As it stands, your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. It would be fantastic to see a flexible workforce, where people who have something to offer in the workplace is encouraged to stay rather than eat away at their life savings and ultimately find themselves prematurely on a pension. For a person who was held in high regard in their workplace and capable contributor albeit in a part-time capacity, this is a hard pill to swallow. I am dealing with cancer and my medical team are doing a fantastic job keeping me well. I can’t say the same for everything else. Karen South Morang, Melbourne Age 57
Seeking Sydney siders for photo shoot
A Sydney designer is looking for breast cancer survivors to take part in a photo shoot in Sydney on 27 August 2014. Ccforme is a lovely range of post-surgery clothing designed for women, especially those who have just had a mastectomy. The designer Gemma is seeking 3 models to take part in the shoot (no nudity, just lovely clothes!) She is after size 10-12 women aged between 20 and 60. No payment but you will get a beautiful photo of yourself to keep (similar to the one above). If you are interested please contact: megs3008@yahoo.com.au Cheers, LauraMedia opportunity: Did you choose not to have radiotherapy due to travel/distance?
Hello, I am looking for women in regional or rural NSW and Victoria who opted NOT to have radiotherapy to avoid spending long amounts of time away from home and their family. I have been appoached by Daily Telegraph newspaper in NSW who is working on a campaign around rural health. They would like to focus on poor access to radiotherapy in rural and remote areas. The journalist I am working with is keen to speak to women in NSW or Victoria who opted to undergo a mastectomy (or double mastectomy) to avoid radiotherapy and having to spend weeks away from home. Ideally they would like to speak to someone this week. If this sounds like you and your comfortable sharing your story, please email media@bcna.org.au Alternatively if you know of someone who meets the criteria, please encourage them to get in touch. It's an important issue and one that we are keen to help raise awareness of. Cheers, Laura - BCNA Media Manager
