Christmas19

Ph'estive LPC Webpage

Welcome to LPC Christmas page. Our traditional Ph'estive page. Following the success of last years page the Comms team decided to again outsource our Christmas content to our committe members!!
The brief was simple submit someting Ph'estive. This year the committee have taken to the internet to find an eclectic mix of festive articles, videos, recipes and images.

The Comms team hope you enjoy the page and would like to wish you all a Merrry Christmas and all the best for the New Year.

Seasonal Greetings and Best Wishes for 2020
From all the members of the LPC

Once again, Christmas has come around again, and on behalf of your LPC, I’d like to wish you all a very happy Christmas, and a peaceful & prosperous New Year.

As I think back and reflect over the past year it’s worth remembering how challenging it’s been for contractors in so many ways. We’ve continued to face extraordinary financial pressure this year due to the flat remuneration package based on the level after the cuts together with spiraling costs.

Hopefully, during the coming year, we should see more national services developed as part of the New Contract that begins to reward us properly for all those clinical interventions we make daily. Locally your LPC will continue to press for more local services, and expand our clinical role to take pressure off the NHS and provide real benefits to patient care.

Your LPC will keep you informed as things develop.

Merry Christmas Everyone, Please enjoy our festive fun website. Please enjoy over a well earned cup of coffee and perhaps a mince pie or two!

Reindeer are prominent in our holiday music and images. They pull Santa’s sleigh, have red noses, have names, and fly. But how much do you really know about this northernmost deer species?

Here are 12 fascinating facts you can use to impress your friends and family:

In North America reindeer are also called caribou.
Both the males and females grow antlers.
Their noses are specially designed to warm the air before it gets to their lungs.
Reindeer hooves expand in summer when the ground is soft and shrink in winter when the ground is hard.
Some subspecies have knees that make a clicking noise when they walk so the animals can stay together in a blizzard.
Some North American caribou migrate over 3,000 miles in a year – more than any other land mammal.
Though thought of as a tundra species, a form of caribou lived in southern Idaho until the 19th century (there are ongoing efforts to re-establish them in the state).
Northernmost species are much lighter in color than species at the southern end their range.
Reindeer have been herded for centuries by several Arctic and Subarctic peoples.
The name “reindeer” is of Norse origin (from the old Norse word “hreinn” for deer) and has nothing to do the reins of a sled. The name “caribou” comes to us through the French, from the Mi’kmag “qalipu,” meaning “snow shoveler.”
Golden eagles are the leading predator of caribou calves in the late spring and fall.
Once the entire body of a reindeer was found inside a Greenland shark (most likely a case of near-shore scavenging, as opposed to a migrating land shark).

What’s so special about Myrrh?

When the 3 wise men found baby Jesus, they bowed down and gave him three gifts: Gold, Frankincense & Myrrh...but why Myrrh, what is is used for?

Myrrh was commonly used as an anointing oil, frankincense as a perfume, and gold as a valuable. The three gifts had a spiritual meaning: gold as a symbol of kingship on earth, frankincense (an incense) as a symbol of deity, and myrrh (an embalming oil) as a symbol of death.

A little bit more about Myrrh...

Myrrh is a waxy resin from small thorny trees with a sweet and smokey aroma. It comes from the genus Commiphora, which grows in the Middle East and Africa.

Throughout antiquity the resin has been used as a medicinal product, as incense and as a perfume, particularly during the embalming process.

Nowadays, It is used topically in medication for hemorrhoids, bedsores, wounds, abrasions, and boils. In foods and beverages, myrrh is used as a flavoring component. In manufacturing, myrrh is used as a fragrance, in incense, and as a fixative in cosmetics. It is still also used in embalming.

In the first hour of pharmacy my assistant gave to me, my first cup of cold coffee!

In the second hour of pharmacy my dispenser gave to me, my first batch of EPS and my second cup of cold coffee!

In the third hour of pharmacy my technician gave to me my first MUR, my second batch of EPS and my third cup of cold coffee!

In the fourth hour of pharmacy my pre reg gave to me, my first Flu jab, my second MUR, my third batch of EPS and my fourth cold cup of coffee!

In the fifth hour of pharmacy I had to ring someone about their new medicine, did my second flu jab, another MUR, cried about the fourth batch of EPS and had my fifth cup of cold coffee!

In the sixth hour of pharmacy I had a customer for EHC, I rang someone else about their new medicine, did my third flu jab, cried more about the fifth lot of EPS and had my sixth cup of cold coffee!

In the seventh hour of pharmacy 111 sent to me, my first CPCS of the day, then I did another EHC, rang another patient about their new medicine, did my fourth flu jab, nearly gave up on the EPS and had my seventh cup of cold coffee!

In the eighth hour of pharmacy my boss gave to me, the annual targets for rest of the year, I did another CPCS, another EHC, another new medicine, another flu jab, gave up on the EPS and had my eighth cup of cold coffee!

In the ninth hour of pharmacy I wondered, when the day would end, had my annual targets to look at, did another CPCS, another EHC, another new medicine, one more flu jab no more EPS and my ninth cup of cold coffee!

In the tenth hour of pharmacy a customer gave to me a box of chocolates, then I wondered when the day would end, looked at my targets, another CPCS, EHC, new medicine, flu jab and my tenth cup of cold coffee!

In the eleventh hour of pharmacy, I thought that was it, then in came someone for an emergency supply of sal-but-a-mol! I ate some chocolate, wondered some more, threw the targets in the bin, did one more CPCS, another EHC, one last phone call about a new medicine, a final flu jab, turned off the computer and had my eleventh cup of cold coffee!

In the twelfth hour of pharmacy, I had enough of cold coffee!!!

So shut the Pharmacy and went home!

In the build up to Christmas, it’s easy to get stressed about creating the ‘perfect Christmas’; however in recent years, we’ve become increasingly aware of the plight of others in the local area. With homelessness on the rise and many families struggling, the concept of a Reverse Advent Calendar has arisen.

How does it work?

Each day in December, an item that could be utilised in a food bank is placed into a box or basket. In late December, it is delivered to a local food bank. Items that can be included are:

• Tinned savoury goods
• Rice and pasta
• Biscuits and long life cakes
• Crackers and crisps
• Chocolate and sweets
• Tea, coffee, sugar and hot chocolate
• Personal care items, such as toiletries and sanitary products.

Where can I take donations?

There are lots of local churches and supermarkets who support food banks, many of which are a drop off point.

If you love eggnog, this is the perfect make-ahead breakfast for friends.

YIELDS:6

PREP TIME:0 HOURS 15 MINS
TOTAL TIME:3 HOURS 40 MINS

INGREDIENTS

Butter, for dish
1 large loaf bread, sliced 1" thick
4 large eggs, whisked
4 c. eggnog
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
Warm maple syrup, for drizzling
1/4 c. chopped pecans, for topping

DIRECTIONS

Butter a 9"-x-13" baking dish and arrange bread slices in an overlapping layer.
In a large bowl, whisk eggs, eggnog, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg until combined. Pour mixture over bread and press bread down, making sure all pieces are submerged in eggnog-egg mixture.
Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and refrigerate, 3 hours, or up to overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°. Transfer dish to oven and bake, covered, until cooked through, 25 minutes.
Serve with maple syrup and pecans.

I	Ingredients 100 g soft butter 100 g caster sugar 2 large eggs 1 tsp almond extract 100 g self-raising flour 25 g ground almonds 120 g mincemeat For the brandy buttercream 75 g soft butter 75 g icing sugar 35 ml brandy To finish Festive sprinkles – optional

Instructions

Pre-heat your oven to 190ºC/170ºC fan.
Beat together the butter (100g) and caster sugar (100g) until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs (2 eggs) one at a time, beat after adding each egg until full combined.
Add the almond extract (1 tsp).
Sift in the self-raising flour (100g) and ground almonds (25g) and mix until fully combined.
Divide the mixture equally between 6 cupcake cases.
Use the back of a teaspoon to make a dip in the centre of each cupcake.
Add a generous teaspoon of mincemeat into the centre of each cupcake (120g in total).
Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top of the cupcakes is golden (sadly the skewer test doesn’t work on these due to the mincemeat centre).
Place onto a cooling rack to cool while you make the buttercream.
Make the buttercream by beating 75g butter until soft. Add the icing sugar (75g) a spoon at a time (as this helps to prevent sugar flying everywhere) and beat until fully combined.
If you’ve been using a mixer you want to switch to doing the next bit by hand. Add the brandy (35ml) very gradually to the butter/icing sugar mix. Beat in each addition until fully combined before adding more.
Place the buttercream into a piping bag and pipe into the cupcakes.
Top with a few festive sprinkles.

As the festive season is fast approaching and with healthier eating becoming a greater concern I thought I would share a festive plant based recipe that we use to make those vegetables that some find less palatable easier to swallow.
I’m not keen on Brussel Sprouts (can’t stand the taste) but typically these cruciferous vegetables like broccoli (another one I’m not really a fan of) are exactly what the body requires for a healthy immune system.

So the pharmacist in me thought they would be more palatable with a better taste to help them go down. With this quick, simple and tasty recipe you no longer have to struggle taking your medicine.

Ingredients

1-1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts
(cleaned and halved)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

Method

Preheat your oven to 425°F / 215oC. Line a baking tray with foil.
Mix 2 tablespoons of the Olive oil, salt and pepper then coat the sprouts with the mixture.
Bake in the oven for 20 minutes (turning half way through) until sprouts are golden brown and tender.
Mix the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and the honey then drizzle over the sprouts. Make sure they are evenly coated and cook for a further 5 minutes or until they are as preferred.

Serve & enjoy!