Ostomyland is pleased to announce that Active Support Belts has joined us on our manufacturer – accessory pages.

Founded by a cancer survivor and Crohn’s patient not satisfied with the support garments available for his stoma appliance, he created an ostomy support belt that better fit an active lifestyle and realized that the design would benefit many other ostomates. And so the company was born.

For more information on Active Support Belts please visit their new page on Ostomyland which can be found in our sidebar menu under Manufacturers – Accessory, or by clicking here. You can also visit their website directly at http://www.activesupportbelts.com

Useful Links:
Ostomyland’s page for Active Support Belts:
http://ostomyland.com/mainsite/manufacturers-accessories-active-support-belts/
Active Support Belts Website:
http://www.activesupportbelts.com

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I’m very pleased to announce that our certification has been once again confirmed and renewed for a TWO year period – which I’m taking a sign that were doing something right. This will be our fourth and fifth year on the HON code register. Time does fly quickly these days.

Whilst the HONcode does not really bring us any readers/members of any noticeable numbers, I do nevertheless feel it is important to keep the certification as its a stamp of approval from an independent medically-based body that our information, advice and interactive services are professional, accurately presented and meeting a high level of medical and personal responsibility (i.e. we’re not in this to show off at what we think we know but that we genuinely *want* to help, and in a caring and medically sound way.

Our HON Code certificate can be viewed here, and the HON Code badge is displayed in the footer of every page on Ostomyland.com.

So my thanks goes out to the whole community, to Sarah and especially Kathy for all your combined hard work and commitment to Ostomyland as a whole – this achievement is as much yours and the community’s as it is mine.

Thanks folks. Have a good weekend. I hope you’re all keeping well or as well as can be.

External Links
The Health On the Net Foundation website: http://www.healthonnet.org
The HON Code Principles:  http://www.healthonnet.org/HONcode/Patients/Conduct.html
Ostomyland’s HON Code Certificate Page: https://www.healthonnet.org/HONcode/Conduct.html?HONConduct533886

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Ostomy Lifestyle - the UK-based charity that supports all Ostomy types

The results of the Ostomy Lifestyle 2012 Awards have been released and you can find out who won what at this page.

Ostomyland offers it’s heartiest congratulations to all the winners and the runners-up, but especially to our Sarah Squire for winning 1st runner up in the Volunteer of the Year award. You may not have won the award Sarah, but you’re a winner in our eyes as Oland wouldnt be the same with you.

Ostomy Lifestyle is a UK charity that was established in 2007. They provide support, advice and information to anyone affected by stoma surgery on their bowel or urinary system. For further information please visit their website.

External Links:
Ostomy Lifestyle Awards 2012 Results Page: http://ostomylifestyle.org/content/awards

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The Ostomyland Stand at Breakaway - May 2012 Event

We’d just like to take this opportunity to thank Breakaway very much for hosting our stand during their May Day Weekend event over the last three days. Our very own Sarah was there to fly the flag for Ostomyland, which also attending the Colostomy Association stand in her role as CA Facebook Group admin.

We hope all the kids who attended the weekend had a great time and made lots of new friends, and the Mums and Dads too managed to get some mud on their faces too.

And to all the kids, Mums and Dads who are visiting Ostomyland for the first time as a result of the event’s exhibition, welcome! We hope you enjoy your stay with us, and if you need any help with the site please feel free to message me.

Finally, for more information on the excellent Breakaway charity please visit their website linked below. Julie, Hannah and everyone there do a fabulous job.

External Links:
Breakaway‘s website: http://www.breakaway-visits.co.uk
Colostomy Association Website: www.colostomyassociation.org.uk

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Breakaway is the UK charity for kids with ostomies and bowel & bladder problems which offers quarterly activity break weekends for the kids. Parents are welcome, and a Stoma Care Nurse is always in on hand in case of emergencies.

Ostomyland would like to wish all the Breakaway kids and admins a fantastic weekend and we hope that the weather is kind! It’s looking glorious outside the window here, but that means nothing!

For more information on Breakaway please visit their website.

External Links:
Breakaway Website: http://www.breakaway-visits.co.uk

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All the large ostomy companies were present and correct in the exhibition held in the Washington Suite of the Barceló Imperial throughout the three days of the meeting, of which the friday evening was set aside for them to set up their stands.

The official start of the conference was on the Saturday morning. From 9am to 11am the exhibition was open for attendees and delegates to get their first look of this years exhibitors. Following this at 11am was the official welcome and opening speech, given by Mr Nigel A. Scott BSc MD FRCS, President of the North West Lancashire & Cumbria IA & President of the Association of Coloproctology of GB and Ireland (ACPGBI).

After this, and throughout the weekend, a number of guest speakers and delegates were lined up to give speeches and presentations on a number of important issues based around ostomies , bowel diseases and their healthcare.  Mr Scott also gave this years Bryan Brooke Lecture, titled Roadblocks and Assumptions as part of his role as President of the ACPGBI.

On the Sunday two more presentations were given. Sarah Hannam, Community Care Nurse, gave a 25 minute presentation on behalf of Salts Healthcare about Parastomal Hernias: A Survey of Experiences at 9.30am, followed at 9.55am by the Coloplast presentation, The Ostomy Skin Survey presented by companies ostomy care marketing manager, Natalie Lispcombe.

Also held throughout the weekend were a series of business meetings for IA representatives and various workshops. Catering and entertainment was also provided through the weekend, and the meetings appeared to have been a huge success. Photos of the event can be found below.

For more information on the Ileostomy Association, their events or their services please contact them via their website, or email: info@iasupport.org or over the phone on their freephone helpline 0800 0184 724

External Links: 
Ileostomy Association Website: http://www.iasupport.org

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I’d be really appreciative you could take a minute out of your day today to complete the following survey on Ostomy-related community and social networking opinions. It’s 8 questions, all of which are point and click answers with no typing.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q3NHXFJ

One of the major ostomy companies has contacted us to ask our help. They would like the Ostomyland member’s opinions on social networking and online communities for ostomates.

It’s the first time we – as a whole community – have been asked our opinions on such things and I think it’s really very nice of them to ask us as it shows their commitment towards the ostomate in their communities creation and It also shows that they respect us, as a community. As we’ve been given a voice in this early research stage I sincerely hope that lots of you will be up for completing this short survey and showing the company that they were right to have that faith in us by looking for our collective opinion.

I’ve completed the survey, and I hope you will too!

Thank you very much everyone for your help with this!

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The newly re-launched and re-invigorated title features more pages, more articles and more fun. The 16 page edition features:

• Cover story: Dancing Queen – Isa explains the joy of attending her first disco
• News and Views
• Our Story – Isa and Susan
• Salts of the Earth – Key one step ahead of MRSA
• Charity Corner
• … and much more!

Also making her Linkline debut is the shy, but ever so cute Madibear, that latest in the Medibear family.  Joining the company mascot – MediBear – the cuddly duo visit children’s hospital wards around the country, and even recently joined in with the Breakaway adventure holiday weekends for kids with bowel and bladder problems. If you’ve ever visited the Salts Facebook page then you’ll know about the impact Medibear has had on Facebooking ostomates both old and young around the world!

To get your copy of Salts Linkline magazine, please phone 0800 626 388 or visit the Salts website where you can read the majority of this issue’s content in blog format, as well as read past issues too.

External Links & References:
Salts Company Website: http://www.salts.co.uk
Salts Linkline Website: http://www.saltslinkline.co.uk/

It’s not the most frequently posted-to blog but it is quite a compulsive read. Tinylittlelifeform also has posted some wonderful ideas on ostomy fashion, along with photos of herself in her own creations. She’s very pretty, and her fashion design’s could not look any less like there was an Ileostomy pouch holder built into them!

Tinylittlelifeform’s blog contains an infectious amount of energy, and when you come away from it – as an ostomate – you feel invigorated and like you want to take on the world with her! Check it out, but be warned, the blog is loud and proud, and so some language contained within may offend! The title and sub-title says it all:

• Girly-Girl’s ileostomy Blog
• A no-nonsence explanation of life with an Ileostomy, as told by a foul-mouthed individual with no shame

LOL. Great title! Keep up the great work, Tinylittlelifeform! The ostomy world needs more proactive ostomate advocates like you showing how an ostomy can give you life, also how in most cases it doesnt take it away from you, unless you let it.

External Links: 
Girly-Girl’s Ileostomy Blog: http://girlgirlsileostomyblog.blogspot.co.uk/
- Her “More Bag Hiding Fashion for the Femininely Inclined” posting:
http://girlgirlsileostomyblog.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/more-bag-hiding-fashion-for-femininely.html
 

Phoenix Cover Spring 2012 Edition

The March 2012 edition of the United Ostomy Association of America’s very own official ostomy magazine The Phoenix was mailed out to their subscribers on February 28th. However, copies are still available for those who have not yet acquired it.

At a whopping 72 pages, this is by far the largest of the ostomy groups & companies magazines that I’ve seen over the year. Being a British ostomate myself, and The Phoenix itself being a subscription-based magazine, it isn’t very often I get to see a copy of the magazine but when I do I am always very impressed by the quality of the presentation and the amount of useful information contained within it’s many articles.

The March 2012 (Vol 7 #2) edition of The Phoenix magazine has lots of interesting features crammed into it, including the following:

• Back in the Rink
  - Returning to the sport of Ice Hockey after colostomy surgery
• Peristomal Skin Lesions
  - Objectively classifying common skin problems
• Erectile Dysfunction
  - The physical and emotional causes following surgery
• Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence
  - Solid advice and concrete steps to keep cancer at bay
• Ostomates in Uniform
  - The history, policy and reality of ostomies and the military
• … and lots, lots more!

Annual subscriptions are $29.95 and include a free New Patient Guide as well as a free sample of Ostofresh deodorant. You can get your copy via the UOAA’s Phoenix website at: http://www.phoenixuoaa.org/

Digital back issues are also available from the same website at $4.95 – a 50% reduction on the cover price! Digital back editions are available for International download too, you don’t have to be located in America. Payments are taken via credit card, but please be aware that there’s no paypal option during the checkout procedure.

External Links & References:
The United Ostomy Association of America:
http://www.uoaa.org or http://www.ostomy.org 
The Phoenix Magazine Website:
http://www.phoenixuoaa.org/ 

The Phoenix Spring 2012 Cover Photo
© Liam Richards photography

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