Men’s Health still at the heart of the OTGA community

For the month of May, a SiSU Health Station was onsite at Trinity, offering the wider community the opportunity to get a free health check.

The machine measures important health metrics and risk factors for heart disease and Type 2 Diabetes, including height and weight, body fat, blood pressure, resting heart rate and Type 2 Diabetes Risk.

Men’s Health continues to be a priority for the Old Trinity Grammarians’ Association, which through its initiatives strives to realise a vision of healthy individuals and a healthy community.

To Simon Elliott (OTG 1994), Head of Product Strategy & Major Events at SiSU Health Group, wellbeing looks like a mix of strength and cardio two days a week, a good diet, a good night’s sleep and catching up with school mates every couple of months at least.

“Being males, we don’t often talk about our feelings and things plus increasing isolation and loneliness has been shown to increase not only mental ill-health but also heart disease risk. So regular social connection instead of digital channels in this day and age is paramount,” he said.

At first, Simon wasn’t sure what his dream career looked like. He started out with a “generalist” Science Arts degree at the University of Melbourne, before making a course change for Exercise Science. This led him down the path of health promotion, where he has flourished in the years since.

In his role now, he oversees the strategy for the SiSU preventative health platform. His aim is to help develop data-proven scalable models to improve the health of customers that “ultimately positively impacts our healthcare system”. Notably, the machines have been used in partnership with Shane Warne Legacy to provide free health checks at the Boxing Day Test and the AFL Gather Round, and have now delivered over 5 million health checks.

Having the health station on-site at his alma mater has been a special milestone for Simon.

“From a personal perspective, it’s great being able to provide some free health checks for Old Trinity Grammarians and hopefully current staff, who might struggle to get to the GP regularly enough for a general check-up, and we can reinforce that as needed,” he said.

A health-based career isn’t an unusual choice for Old Trinity Grammarians.

Jack Stewart (OTG 2020), Vice President of the Old Trinity Grammarian’s Association, is studying medicine. He is currently completing a year of research at the Victorian Heart Institute, focused on using non-invasive CT imaging to better identify patients at risk of heart attack.

To him, keeping healthy means staying physically active, eating and sleeping well, engaging in intellectually stimulating activities, spending time with friends and family, and taking time to relax and rejuvenate.

“I also recently read the book Breath by science journalist, James Nestor,” he said.

“The book is about how humans have lost the ability to breathe properly. I’m now trying to do some breathing exercises every day, concentrating on slow, deliberate nasal breathing.”

Jack notes that cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Australia.

“We can all take steps to reduce the risk of developing this condition,” he said.
“Keeping a check on these allows us to address any problems promptly and reduce the risk of developing complications”.

Fellow OTG and OTGA Committee Member Leigh Hodges (OTG 1976), is equally passionate about men’s health as one of the OTGA’s key focus areas.

Regular exercise, including swimming and golf, shared experiences with family and friends, and mentoring and coaching the next generation of corporate leaders are what he says are sustaining him during this phase of his life.

To him, keeping well means “living my best life and not letting an arbitrary number dictate what I can and can’t do”.

Over recent years, the OTGA has organised mental health first aid training programs, and promoted Movember, R U OK? Day and Push Up Challenge campaigns. Men’s Health Week is also annually recognised as another example of positive health promotion across the OTG community.