World Ostomy Day 2009 in Halifax, Nova Scotia
News Release by Joel JacobsonHalifax will be the Canadian kickoff site for World Ostomy Day Saturday October 3 at Victoria Park on Spring Garden Road.
The event, held worldwide every three years, celebrates the success of people with ostomies, which are surgical diversions of the bowel or urinary tract. A number of conditions require an ostomy as part of the treatment and recovery. Included in these are Crohn's disease, colitis, cancer of the bowel or bladder and malformations present from birth.
There are 300 members of the Metro Halifax chapter who meet 2:30 p.m. for speakers and/or entertainment the first Sunday of each month at the Bethune Building, VGH site, QEI Health Sciences Centre.
There are scores more in smaller chapters in Nova Scotia who meet on a regular basis. Canada has more than 30,000 people living with ostomies.
"Most of us are quite happy to be here, functioning in normal daily routines and able to participate in virtually any activity we choose," says Metro Halifax chapter president Dr. Patrick Thompson. "Ostomy surgery does not mean the end of life as we know it, but a new beginning, albeit with challenges, in a life filled with the same activities as someone without an ostomy."
The United Ostomy Association of Canada, a national body with more than 3,000 members. People with ostomies range in age from infants to seniors.
World Ostomy Day activities will begin at 2 p.m. with a walk around the park, highlighted by musical entertainment and refreshments.
Members of the national United Ostomy Association of Canada board will attend, as part of a three-day meeting in Halifax.