As the year starts to wind down to the Christmas shutdown please note Uni Pharmacy will be closed from 22 December to the 7 January (inclusive), if you will require your repeats or a new prescription filled during this time come in before the 21 and we will supply these to you early to get you through to the New Year (please note you won’t be able to collect repeats from another Pharmacy whilst we are closed).
Sneezing season – advice from Uni Pharmacy
As the year starts to wind down to the Christmas shutdown please note Uni Pharmacy will be closed from 22 December to the 7 January (inclusive), if you will require your repeats or a new prescription filled during this time come in before the 21 and we will supply these to you early to get you through to the New Year (please note you won’t be able to collect repeats from another Pharmacy whilst we are closed).
Meanwhile – if you find yourself in sneezing season…
Although spring is now behind us and we are enjoying a fantastic start to summer, the triggers that cause sneezing, itchy throats, runny or blocked noses and itchy, watery eyes are stubbornly hanging around. It’s called hayfever, although the correct term is seasonal (or perennial) allergic rhinitis.
The seasonal variety is an allergic reaction to substances such as pollens, which get into the upper respiratory passages – the nose, sinuses, throat and also the eyes.
The perennial variety is a similar allergy, but it occurs all year round and is caused by allergy to things such as house dust mites, moulds and animal dander.
There is no cure for hayfever, but it can be controlled with the correct combination of medicines to suit your symptoms and lifestyle.
The range of treatments continues to grow – antihistamine tablets, nasal sprays, eye drops – but don’t be daunted by the choice. David and Lisa at the Uni Pharmacy can guide you through the remedies available to ensure you get a tailor-made solution to your hayfever symptoms.
Antihistamine tablets reduce the histamine your body produces to the allergen, from causing the allergic symptoms.
Some of these products can cause drowsiness, but newer generation antihistamine medicines have been developed that cause less, or no drowsiness.
Nasal sprays help clear a stuffy, runny, or itchy nose and stop sneezing. But there are many choices.
Antihistamine nasal products work quickly to relieve sneezing, itching and runny nose but have no effect on other symptoms such as itchy eyes.
Nasal corticosteroids reduce inflammation in the nose and will relieve most nasal symptoms as well as eye symptoms.
Nasal corticosteroids should be started a week before the pollen season, but its not too late to start now for a more comfortable Christmas.
Eye drops – antihistamine eye drops give quick relief from itchy, red, watery eyes and are best if eye symptoms are your biggest problem.
Cromoglicate eye drops need to be used regularly to prevent the allergic reaction occurring.
With so many options and everyone’s symptoms affecting them differently, have a chat to us about the best approach to managing your hayfever.
We would like to thank everyone for making us feel so welcome since we have taken over the Pharmacy and would like to wish everyone a Happy Christmas and a great New Year.
David & Lisa Erdman
The Henry Field Education Library
At 6pm on Thursday 16 November, the Henry Field Education Library (Te Puna Ako) closed its doors for the final time for service in its Dovedale location. The Education Library was an integral part of university life for many students and staff with its own unique, relaxed vibe. A mix of UC students, staff and members of Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery school and CCEL were among those who used the space for both study, leisure and inspiration. The atmosphere at the library was always one of staff working together with the students to help them fulfill their needs. Animated conversations on level 1 contributed to a welcoming atmosphere and discussion rooms were consistently full on both floors.
The college library was officially named the Henry Field library in 1984. Henry Field was a prominent New Zealand educational psychologist, educationalist and university professor born in Christchurch. Henry Field was closely affiliated with the college from his days as a student in the 1920’s, then in 1968, he became the first chairman of the Christchurch Teacher’s College Council. His contribution to teacher education in New Zealand is widely recognised and his chairmanship of the College Council until 1976 concluded an association with the college which spanned five decades. On 1 January 2007, the Christchurch College of Education merged with UC and the Henry Field library was added to UC’s collection of wonderful libraries. The Education library hosted collections that support research and teaching in Education, as well as children’s literature titles, including a Māori Classroom Collection and a dedicated reader room filled with school journals.
The space was very open and sunny, with its glass walled walkway on level 2 and arched glass ceiling, an excellent place to gaze upwards for inspiration. The mezzanine floor was built into the north side of the library in the 1990s due to the need for more student study spaces. Upon entering the library, visitors were greeted with the familiar sculpture of a father and son relaxing on a bench. This Donald Petersen sculpture was commissioned by the Christchurch College of Education Council to mark the colleges 125th Jubilee in 2002 and became a trademark of the library since its installation.
The Education Library is now in the process of moving into Te Puna Mātauraka: Central Library. The classroom, Māori classroom, Māori and fiction collections are moving to Level 4 of Central and the academic education collections will be shelved predominantly on Level 7. To recreate the library’s atmosphere from its original location, level 4 at Central will replicate the Education library’s school library look and be presented in a welcoming bicultural space. The Education Library space at Dovedale will become a storage facility, housing art collections.
*For more history on the College, including the library, read W. John Fletcher’s “A sense of community: The Christchurch College of Education 1877-2000” and his subsequent “The End of a Chapter” chronicling the years from 2000-2006. *