My name is Patrick McCartney. In 2000, 2005, and 2007 I was involved in three separate work related incidents. The first involved being hit by a forklift in a warehouse. In the second I was crushed by 5 tons of grapes while working in a winery. The third was a result of another high impact collision due to weakness caused by repetitive strain. Each time serious rehabilitation that lasted for more than a year was required. From all three accidents I am left in constant chronic pain that has impacted on many areas of my life. The internal dialogue that one enters into with their chronic pain is difficult to express. It can become all consuming. Combined with this I have been battling with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome since 2001, which initially left me bedridden for over 1 year before being diagnosed. At the age of 27 and again at the age of 30 I was put on the disability support pension as I was not able to work. Each time I have refused to give up and continue to work towards my goals. Now I am working on a Phd in anthropology and hope to become a lecturer some day. 

One of the most beneficial treatments I have found to alleviate the pain caused by the accidents and the fibromyalgia + other symptoms related to the auto-immune disorder is use of a sauna. In fact, I place it as # 1 on my management program. The high temperatures stimulate my immune system, release toxins and stress, and allow for pain relief inducing a good nights sleep, which is something I don't always get due to the pain. 

The Australian Institute of Sport has recently announced that it will close public access to its sauna within a couple of weeks. This is the closest and best facility to my home in Canberra, which has a significant lack of similar premises to patronise. For many patrons of this facility, who suffer from a wide array of physical complaints including cancer, arthritis, chronic illness and pain, the sauna not only provides relief and healing, it is also a valuable social network. 

Since opening a few decades ago there have been only a couple of relatively minor incidents regarding health and safety of patrons around the sauna. When compared to the gym or swimming pool that have had ambulances called on many occasions and deaths occur, the 'concern for public safety' logic applied to closing the sauna to the public is flawed. Especially when it will remain open to elite athletes. Either athletes are better able to look after themselves in the sauna or the AIS does not care about their safety. If the closure is actually about public safety then why are the pools and gym not being closed? They are considerably more dangerous than the sauna! 

The AIS claim one reason for the sauna's imminent closure is due to a patron being found after 2-3 hours of laying unconscious in the sauna, however, according to their own rhetoric and 'award winning' safety guidelines, the staff check the sauna every hour...

Regardless, who is at fault here? Why does the larger public have to suffer because one individual failed to use the sauna according to the guidelines and due diligence?

If litigation is the concern then making people sign a waiver is the answer. Yet the AIS refuse to entertain such an idea when it is what they insist people using the gym do who are also generally unsupervised.

The AIS is funded by Australian taxpayers and should be promoting health and recreation not denying the public access to its facilities, which will also hit them in revenue as it will be left on regardless of people using it. Also, each use of the sauna costs an average $10.

This is not just about access to a sauna, it extends to a discourse regarding the overprotective 'nanny state' that seeks to regulate how people live their lives by suggesting they know what is best for us. All of this, of course, is driven by a desire for administrative and operational convenience with an economic rationalist agenda to secure a better profit margin and reduce costs.

Whether you enjoy the benefits of sauna and hydrotherapy for fun and relaxation or rely on it several times a week like myself and others instead of resorting to pain killers; as a tax payer funded institution, the AIS should not be restricting public access to the sauna, especially for those individuals who rely on it as part of an effective chronic pain/illness management program. 

We call upon The Hon Peter Dutton MP - Minister for Sport and Health, Mr Simon Hollingsworth - CEO of the Australian Sport Commission, and Mr Ali Parvizi - Assistant Director of the Australian Insititute of Sport to keep the AIS sauna open to the public. 

You can contact Mr Dutton on Minister.Dutton@health.gov.au (02) 6277 7220

You can contact Mr Hollingsworth on simon.hollingsworth@ausport.gov.au  (02) 6214 1111

You can contact Mr Parvizi on ali.parvizi@ausport.gov.au (02) 6214 1111

 

Sincerely, 

Patrick McCartney and the AIS Sauna Collective