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GuestVlad Melnik
Paul Gascoigne V Snoop Dogg: Is Cannabis Or Alcohol Worse For You?
~1.1 mins read
An unlikely debate has broken out because of Snoop Dogg and ex-footballer Paul Gascoigne over what's worse - cannabis or alcohol?

It's after the rapper posted a photo of himself and the former England midfielder on Instagram - comparing how they've aged after 27 years of using the two different drugs.

Speaking to Good Morning Britain, Gazza - who has spent years battling alcoholism - said: "For him to attack someone like myself, with the trouble I've put myself through, for him to do that is really bang out of order, I was upset at the time.

"Normally I'd probably drink but now I try to look at the funny side of it. But there wasn't much of a funny side to that."

He also challenged Snoop to a charity boxing match, adding: "Cannabis vs booze - bring it on."


It's thought Snoop posted the photo to try to show that alcohol is worse for you than cannabis.

They both can affect the body and mind differently depending on the person. But is one worse than the other?

How does cannabis affect you?
Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug in the UK and research shows 10% of regular cannabis users become addicted to it, according to the NHS.

Nikki Thorne from Addaction, a service helping young people who've misused drugs and alcohol, believes the "mental impact" of cannabis is the most dangerous part.

"We increasingly encounter young people, who've started using cannabis to self-medicate when they are unable to regulate their emotions, that go on to develop mental health issues."
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GuestVlad Melnik
Causeway Hospital In Coleraine Criticised For 'serious Failings'
~3.0 mins read

Repeated failures around the care of a patient in the Causeway Hospital in Coleraine meant she was not given the best possible chance of survival.

That is according to an investigation by the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman.

It found that the Northern Health and Social Care Trust (NHSCT) failed to provide adequate care to the patient, who died in September 2015.

The trust said it apologised unreservedly to the patient's family.

The daughter of the 61-year-old Marion Di Maio, Rebecca Funston, said they "do not want to see this happen to any other family".

She told BBC News NI that the family had been "robbed too early of our mum".

The ombudsman, Marie Anderson, described it as a sad case.

'Limited chances'
She said the patient's limited chances of survival from her illness, liver disease, were dependent on her receiving timely and appropriate care.

The NHSCT said the patient's treatment had fallen short of the accepted standard and it will learn from the mistakes.

Marie Anderson advised the trust to provide a £10,000 payment to the family
The woman's husband wished to remain anonymous but said he wanted his wife's story to be told so lessons can be learned.

An investigation found "multiple failings".

These included:

A lengthy delay in carrying out critical tests and prescribing antibiotics;
Inadequate nutrition and hydration during her time in hospital.
An examination of hospital records disclosed that the woman was not referred for review by a dietician until 10 days after she was admitted.


'Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong'
Speaking to BBC News NI, Rebecca Funston, daughter of the 61-year-old patient, explained how things deteriorated for her mother in hospital.

"Everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong, and we fought each step of the way to mitigate it any further but at that point it was really too late," she said.

"Quite often we would go to the hospital, as would relatives, and they would see food lying on her tray not being touched.

"There would be no effort to ensure that mum was actually able to physically swallow the food or physically able to sit up and eat it."

She added: "The trays were quite often just left, and it wasn't unique to mum."

"There were other patients around the ward where trays of food were just left sitting. To the point where my sister would come in in the morning and make sure she at least got a breakfast."

Mrs Funston said while the anger at what happened to her mother had "dissipated" somewhat, the pain of what happened was still raw four years on.

"It's very hard to put that aside and focus on the mum you remember."


Antibiotics
With regard to antibiotics, the woman's husband said he had complained to the health trust that a check to see whether his wife had a bacterial infection was not carried out quickly enough.

An independent advisor informed the ombudsman that despite the patient's ill health upon admittance to hospital, a vital procedure known as paracentesis, where fluid is taken from the stomach, was not performed until 12 days after the woman was admitted.

While that procedure was not successful, notes show that doctors felt another attempt should be made, but the procedure was not carried out.

Liver failure
The investigation also found that the patient was not given an antibiotic until almost two weeks after admission.

This was despite three potential sources of infection having been identified earlier and against a background of worsening liver failure.

Ms Anderson told BBC News NI that given the "serious failings", her office has advised NHSCT to provide a £10,000 payment to the family in recognition of the upset, frustration and distress caused.

The Ombudsman suggested an apology be offered by the trust's chief executive and each of the clinicians involved in the patient's care.

In a statement, NHSCT said it had accepted the recommendations and issued a payment and an apology.




By Marie-Louise Connolly
BBC News NI Health Correspondent

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