Swine flu claims two more Lives in Greater Manchester

According to reports in the Manchester Evening News two more people have died from swine flu – and a child with the virus is fighting for life.

A woman from Bolton and a man from Manchester have become the latest victims. The man had been treated in North Manchester General Hospital.
A child from Bury is critically ill with the H1N1 bug.
As reported in the M.E.N. two men from Oldham and a man from Rochdale have died in recent weeks.

Health bosses are urging vulnerable people – such as pregnant women and the elderly – to have the jab which this year combines the swine flu and seasonal flu vaccine for the first time.

Dr Kevin Perrett, consultant in public health at NHS Manchester, said: “A man died in the intensive care unit at North Manchester General Hospital on December 8 with swine flu as part of the cause of death. Our thoughts are with his family as they come to terms with their loss.”

A spokesman for NHS Bolton said: “We can confirm that a patient from Bolton has died after suffering complications from the H1N1 strain of flu, which is commonly known as swine flu. While deaths from swine flu are rare, it is one of the main strains of flu around this winter, and, unfortunately, that means some deaths will occur.”

In the North West, just 28 per cent of vulnerable people – including those with respiratory and immune conditions – have had the vaccine while only half of over-65s have had it.

Anyone who is over 65, has a serious long term condition or is pregnant can contact their GP to have a vaccine. For the majority of people the advice is to stay at home, contact NHS Direct on 0845 4647 or visit the NHS Choices website www.nhs.uk to check your symptoms. If you are still concerned, you should telephone your GP who will be able to give you advice.

For further information on how to treat the Swine Flu Virus please click the following link about Tamiflu.

Pharmacist avoids jail for illegally advertising prescription-only Viagra

A Pharmacist from Manchester, who advertised Viagra illegally, has luckily avoided an immediate jail sentence.

Mr William Parsons advertised Viagra and other prescription medication used to treat male impotence on his website Potency.co.uk which has now been removed from the web.

Parsons, who also ran a pharmacy in the Peak District, was given a suspended nine-month jail term at London's Southwark Crown Court on Thursday after previously being convicted of three counts of advertising prescription-only medicine.

Passing sentence, Judge Peter Testar said: "This defendant has behaved in a way that he knows was illegal. That's the mischief of what he has done. He sought to defend the indefensible."

The court heard Parsons ran the website and the Hayfield Pharmacy in Derbyshire from 1999 until he sold the combined businesses and premises for just under £500,000 in 2007.

Parsons used blank prescriptions obtained from a doctor in Cyprus to prescribe the drugs himself to customers visiting the website. The site boasted "special offers" on the drugs. Kennedy Talbot, prosecuting, estimated Parsons made more than £1,000 a month from sales.

An inspector from regulatory body the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) visited the pharmacy in 2006 where the blank prescriptions were discovered. The inspector subsequently visited the website where he discovered the illegal offers.

Parsons was warned by the MHRA he would have to change his website in order to comply with the law, but the pharmacist refused.

Judge Testar said: "He carried on with the plainly illegal activity of advertising prescription only drugs. He simply decided he wasn't going to comply with the law. He thought if he carried on he wouldn't be stopped. These are regulations that are there for the protection of the public. The requirement of a prescription is there for a good reason."

The Judge said he had intended to pass an immediate custodial sentence but had decided not to as Parsons was the main provider of care for his sick wife. The nine-month sentence was suspended for two years. Parsons was also ordered to carry out 150 hours unpaid work in the community.

Social services boss spent £5,000 in sex shop after plundering bank accounts of his patients

A social services manager spent £5,000 in a sex shop after stealing from the bank accounts of people in his care.

Edward Leavy stole about £94,000 from seven people in his care while working as a senior manager with Manchester council's physical disabilities team.

He was in charge of three accommodation complexes for people with special needs - but used his position to steal bank cards, PIN numbers and cash.

Leavy spent thousands in the sex shop - where staff nicknamed him the 'Golden Root Man' after the large quantities of the 'herbal Viagra' that he bought there.

It is thought his bulk buying at the Private Shop on Oldham Street in Manchester city centre was a money laundering operation, with the sex-enhancing product then being sold on.

Other people are believed to have been involved in the scam, although nobody else was arrested.