RETIRED GREYHOUNDS JOIN THE POLICE FORCE
RETIRED greyhounds will be retrained as PTSD companion animals for the Australian Federal Police in a world-first initiative.
The program is a collaboration between the Australian Federal Police Association, Greyhound Racing NSW, and Greyhounds Australasia.
The benefits of pet ownership and support animals for people with PTSD are significant. Police officers are at a higher risk of acquiring mental health injuries and PTSD due to their busy work life, isolation, and on-call rosters.
Bonding with a support animal can provide independence, routines, exercise, and social independence. The announcement of this partnership is less than three months after GRNSW and GA's announcement to supply greyhounds as pets to the Police Association of NSW, which has already shown successful adoptions and a demand for PTSD dogs.
The retraining of greyhounds opens a new career for non-racing greyhounds and highlights the therapeutic benefit they can bring to those suffering from anxiety disorders.
WARNING OVER SMOKING HARM RESEARCH
THE Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has warned that funding of smoking harm research by Philip Morris International (PMI), the world's largest cigarette company, reflects Big Tobacco's attempt to gain a new generation of users.
PMI, the sole funder of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW), which claims its mission is to end smoking, contributed the vast majority of the FSFW's $166.2M income from 2019-21.
RACGP President, Dr Nicole Higgins, has previously called for a crackdown on nicotine vaping products, which are often marketed to young people and sidestep regulations. She says that the FSFW is just a front for PMI's real business, nicotine addiction.
The RACGP supports nicotine vaping with GP supervision but warns that the industry is already lobbying for unrestricted sales in Australia, which would lead to a new generation of young users struggling to stop. Dr Higgins calls the FSFW research a continuation of Big Nicotine's fight against public health.
PRAISE FOR PAID DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LEAVE
THE Workers Lifestyle Group, based in Blacktown, has praised the Fair Work Commission for the recent mandate of 10 days of paid domestic and family violence leave for all businesses.
The group, which operates several clubs and sports facilities, was an industry leader 10 years ago by including Safe Family Support Leave in employment agreements.
The group has offered 10 full days of Safe Family Support Leave since 2017 and has funded a $500,000 commitment to local domestic violence support services over the next five years.
The group also recently launched a community-based campaign, Western Sydney Changing Diabetes, supported by a $500,000 donation, to curb the high incidence of diabetes in Western Sydney.
