Menu Masakan Nusantara

Menu Masakan Nusantara

Makanan merupakan salah satu sumber energi yang paling utama untuk menunjang berbagai aktivitas kita sehari – hari. Untuk itu, makanan yang kita konsumsi tentu harus sehat dan bergizi agar tubuh kita tetap sehat dan bertenaga. Beberapa menu masakan memang saat ini kebanyakan tidak melihat bagaimana kandungan gizi yang ada di dalamnya, bahkan saat ini sudah banyak sekali makanan yang dicampur dengan berbagai bahan kimia yang sangat berbahaya untuk kesehatan tubuh kita. Nah, untuk itu anda harus mengenail seperti apakah makanan sehat yang layak dikonsumsi dan berikut adalah beberapa masakan nusantara yang bisa anda ketahui :

Gulai Kambing Istimewa

 Ayam Goreng Kecap Wijen

Bawal Bakar Bumbu Rica

 Mie Ayam Lezat

Iga Goreng Kuah Barbeque

Urap Istimewa

Masakan Nusantara

Itulah beberapa masakan nusantarapaling populer dan banyak orang konsumsi karena rasanya yang lezat dan nikmat. Selain itu, kandungan gizi nya juga terjamin dan sangat baik untuk kesehatan tubuh kita. Apalagi jika menu masakan nusantara tersebut kita buat sendiri, tentu kebersihan dan kesehatannya sangat terjamin dan baik untuk tubuh kita.

Kata kata indah : Bersungguh-sungguh dalam meraih dunia dan akhirat

Kata mutiara :

Beribadahlah seakan-akan engkau akan mati besok pagi dan bekerjalah seakan-akan engkau akan hidup selamanya

Kata kata indah dan kata mutiara : Bersungguh-sungguh dalam meraih dunia dan akhirat
Kata kata bijak,Gambar Islami

Kata kata indah : Bersungguh-sungguh dalam meraih dunia dan akhirat

Beribadahlah seakan-akan engkau akan mati besok pagi dan bekerjalah seakan-akan engkau akan hidup selamanya

Kata Mutiara : Agama Yang Allah Ridhoi

Kata kata Indah :

Sesungguhnya satu-satunya Agama yang Allah Ridhoi hanyalah Islam

Kata kata indah dan kata mutiara : Sesungguhnya satu-satunya Agama yang Allah ridhoi hanyalah islam
Kata kata bijak

Kata mutiara : Agama yang Allah Ridhoi

Sesungguhnya satu-satunya Agama yang Allah Ridhoi hanyalah Islam

Itulah kata bijak motivasi pada pagi ini,yaitu "Lebih mudah untuk melawan ribuan orang bersenjata lengkap dibandingkan melawan kesombongan diri sendiri"
Jangan lupa, terus kunjungi blog wallpapermotivasi.blogspot.com untuk wallpaper motivasi,kata bijak,video motivasi,artikel motivasi,cerita motivasi terbaru.

Kata kata Indah : Berusahalah meraih surga yang Allah janjikan

Kata kata Indah :

 Saat kita berusaha meraihnya belum tentu berhasil.

Namun, jika kita berusaha meraih Akhirat, maka Allah janjikan Surga

Kata kata indah dan kata mutiara : Berusahalah meraih surga
Kata kata bijak

Kata mutiara : Inilah Dunia.

Saat kita berusaha meraihnya belum tentu berhasil.
Namun, jika kita berusaha meraih Akhirat, maka Allah janjikan Surga

Lake County Health Department: The extremes to which faith-based informatics beliefs can drive healthcare facilities - Depression era soup lines at the clinic?

Here is a story exemplifying the extremes to which faith-based informatics beliefs can drive healthcare facilities, to the benefit of IT companies and at the expense of patients.  This is occurring a bit north of the Chicago area:

County Health Department clinics moving to electronic records

By Judy Masterson

Last Modified: Sep 11, 2012 02:43AM

People who rely on Lake County Health Department clinics for their health care have found cuts in service during walk-in hours as the department began implementing a new electronic medical record.

 That, as is explained further in the story, is an understatement.

The massive shift to electronic storage of medical data by the department has been underway for about two years, at a cost through April 2012 of $3.8 million, according to department spokeswoman Leslie Piotrowski.

During the first phase, appointment-taking, laboratory, financial and demographic information and billing were transferred from paper records to electronic storage. Under the newest phase of the project, physicians and staff are being trained to use new computer software to electronically gather health histories and record information on tests, treatments and prescriptions.

Are they using the software to record health histories, or to gather them?  There is a difference, and I believe this passage exemplifies that these "EHRs" are no longer innocuous filing systems, but are interfering in and regulating the information gathering process from patients itself (i.e., the physician-patient relationship) itself.  More on that issue below.

Denise Koppit, Health Department associate director of primary care services, acknowledged the training has temporarily cut by half the number of walk-in patients seen at the department’s clinics in Waukegan, Zion, North Chicago, Highland Park and Round Lake Beach.

Cut by 50%?  That is remarkable.  That an electronic record system could be so hard to learn and use that patient count has to be halved is stunning - and outrageous.

It suggests a fiasco in the making in terms of care quality when the clinicians are asked (and probably forced) to get back to more traditional volumes.

Similar situations are noted here:  

"Avatar fails - No, not the Cameron movie, but yet another lousy EMR system implemented by amateurs." http://hcrenewal.blogspot.com/2010/11/avatar-fails-no-not-cameron-movie-but.html

and here:

"Contra Costa's $45 million computer health care system endangering lives, nurses say." http://hcrenewal.blogspot.com/2012/08/contra-costas-45-million-computer.html

“We’re learning new systems which totally change the way we gather information about patients,” Koppit said, noting “it was a little bumpy” the first day, Sept. 5, but Sept. 6 “it was a little better.”

"Totally change the way we gather information about patients?"  (As opposed to "the way we record information?")

This is concerning to me, as it suggests interference (ill-conceived and deleterious interference is probably more accurate) in medical processes by technology.  To my knowledge, there's been no revolution in clinician history taking and performance of physical exams.  The state government needs to examine exactly what is being referred to.

Also - add "a little bumpy" to the list of banal excuses for toxic software such as - it's a rare event, it's just a 'glitch',  it's teething problems, it's a learning experience, we have to work the 'kinks' out, it's growing pains, etc.

I'm actually surprised not to see the usual refrain in this article, that "patient care was not compromised."

... “We want to improve quality of care and increase efficiency so patients don’t go through multiple tests and so everyone can see medications,” Koppit said. “This will allow ready access to patient information. Patients will receive a printout of their diagnoses, medications and lab work.”

As described in other posts (query link here), these are "faith-based informatics beliefs" (i.e., enthusiasm and technology-deterministic statements of fait accompli not driven by robust evidence, especially considering the state of health IT in 2012).

Patients who transfer to different providers, will receive their medical history and information in a paper file or on a flash drive.

Paper file?

The reductions in number of walk-in patients accepted hit the Zion clinic especially hard. One user, who contacted the Lake County News-Sun, said patients waiting outside the clinic “on any given day” look like “a Depression-era soup line” that snakes around the corner of 27th Street.

Koppit said that the Zion clinic, which also serves patients from Winthrop Harbor, Beach Park and Wadsworth, relies on just two physicians who typically treat between 12 and 15 walk-ins per day.

Health IT project managers whose plans caused “a Depression-era soup line” of sick patients should be sanctioned, in my opinion. 

When an EMR implementation causes "Depression-era soup lines" at the clinic, one can reasonably conclude project mismanagement is occurring.

This is entirely unnecessary, and endangers patients dependent on the care provided in these clinics.  This project as structured, in fact, violates patient's rights in my opinion.

She admitted that regular appointments can take two months to schedule. “If somebody comes in very sick, we’re trying to get them squeezed in,” she said.

We're "trying to get them squeezed in"?  And, if they are harmed or die because they can't be "squeezed in", or because the clinicians are up to their necks in cybernetic frenzy, who's liable?

I suggest the implementation leadership team should, in that case, find themselves as defendants.

-- SS

How Big Health Care Charities Rely on Lying Telemarketers

A modern day Diogenes searching for an honest organization in health care would have a very hard time.  Close to the "you can't make this stuff up" category is a new investigative report from Bloomberg on deceptive - to use a polite word - practices at some of the US' biggest health care charities.

Using Commercial Telemarketing Firms that Keep Nearly All Money Raised

The report showed how major US health care charities use privately held for-profit telemarketing firm InfoCision Management Corp to raise money, but most of the money raised went back to InfoCision.  The opening example was of a particular telemarketing call:

A woman named Robin said she was representing the American Diabetes Association.

Robin didn’t ask for money. She asked Patterson to stamp and mail pre-printed fundraising letters to 15 neighbors. Both of Patterson’s parents and one grandmother had been diabetic, so she agreed to do it, Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its October issue.

'I thought since it does run in the family, it wouldn’t hurt for me to help,' says Patterson, 64, a retired elementary school teacher. She guessed, based on what she knew about charity fundraising, that about 70 to 80 percent of the money she brought in would be used for diabetes research.

The truth was almost the exact opposite. The vast majority of funds Patterson, her neighbors and people like them throughout the country would raise -- almost 80 percent -- would never be made available to the Diabetes Association. Instead, that money collected from letters sent to neighbors would go to the company that employed Robin and an army of other paid telephone solicitors: InfoCision Management Corp.

Just 22 percent of the funds the association raised in 2011 from the nationwide neighbor-to-neighbor program went to the charity, according to a report on its national fundraising that InfoCision filed with North Carolina regulators.

So while some American health care charities boast that most of the money they receive goes to programming, not management or fund raising, in this case, the opposite was true.

Many of the Biggest US Health Care Charities Were Involved

As the article stated,

Many of the biggest-name charities in the U.S. have signed similarly one-sided contracts with telemarketers during the past decade. The American Cancer Society, the largest health charity in the U.S., enlisted InfoCision from 1999 to 2011 to raise money.

Also,

In the past decade, many of the nation’s biggest health charities have hired InfoCision, including the American Heart Association, American Lung Association, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, March of Dimes Foundation and National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Note that the Bloomberg article was focused on InfoCision. I suspect that if one were able to look at arrangements with similar telemarketing firms made by all US health care charities, the results might be even more extreme.

The Fund Raisers and the Charities Lied

The article contained instances in which the telephone callers lied about who they were or about where the money they were trying to collect would go.

First, regarding who the callers were:

The ruse begins with the name that flashes on your caller ID when a telemarketer is phoning on behalf of a charity. It’s the charity’s name that often shows up, not that of the telemarketing firm.

The misrepresentation can continue on the call itself. Solicitors in recordings obtained by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office sometimes identify themselves to potential donors as 'volunteers.' They’re not; they’re paid employees of InfoCision.

Second, regarding where the money would go:

The bigger lie telemarketers tell is what they say about how much money will go to the charities they’re working for.

According to documents obtained through an open records request with the Ohio attorney general, the Diabetes Association approved a script for InfoCision telemarketers in 2010 that includes the following line: 'Overall, about 75 percent of every dollar received goes directly to serving people with diabetes and their families, through programs and research.'

Yet that same year, InfoCision’s contract with the association estimated that the charity would keep just 15 percent of the funds the company raised; the rest would go to InfoCision.

This deception appears to be sanctioned by the leaders of the charities for whom InfoCision worked,

[American Diabetes] Association Vice President [Richard] Erb offers no apologies for the script, saying the association runs many fundraising campaigns and, overall, about 75 percent of the money goes to its programs. He acknowledges that the contract with InfoCision estimated that the telemarketer would get to keep 85 percent of the funds it raised.

Erb also says he isn’t happy that volunteers are upset upon learning the truth.

'Obviously, if people feel betrayed or that we’re not being honest with them, it doesn’t make me feel well,' he says.

The American Cancer Society similarly seemed to sanction deceptive fund raising practices.

The Cancer Society, in a Sept. 1, 2009, contract with InfoCision, estimated that the charity would get 44 percent of the amount the company collected in the following fiscal year.

The telemarketer script for the same year approved by the society for InfoCision asks solicitors to say something different: 'Overall, about 70 cents of every dollar received goes to the programs and services that we provide.'

Predictably, an executive for the society dodged responsibility for such lying:

[Greg] Donaldson, the society’s senior vice president, declined to comment on the contradiction between the contract and the script, saying the society doesn’t provide 'proprietary competitive information regarding individual programs.'

The Telemarketing Firm Stonewalls

While the Bloomberg reporters were able to get some health care "charity" executives to respond to the issues, InfoCision was not even slightly forthcoming. The best they could do was get an InfoCision executive to protest the company's importance for charity:

InfoCision Chief of Staff Steve Brubaker says his company is vital to the success of charity fundraising. Many nonprofits have stayed with InfoCision for more than 20 years, proving the firm offers value and integrity, he says.

'We’ve developed that high level of trust by being good stewards of their money and mission,' he says. Campaigns to develop new donors are more expensive than those seeking money from previous supporters, he says. He declined to answer specific questions, saying such information is proprietary to the company or its clients.

He turned down a request for interviews with Taylor and InfoCision executives.

Previously, the company owner had taken on the mantle now familiar in the current US election campaign, "job creator,"

[InfoCision founder Gary] Taylor was an outspoken opponent of efforts by the Federal Trade Commission in 2003 to begin the National Do Not Call Registry, allowing people to block calls from for-profit solicitors. In an interview with Customer Interaction Solutions, a trade journal, he said:

'The most pressing issue, without a doubt, is excessive governmental regulation. It seems that the politicians and regulators are ignoring the significant benefits we provide through job creation, economic growth and the goods and services we cost-effectively market for our clients.'

Keep in mind that the article documented how much of those jobs are minimum wage, and they may involve lying.

Note further that Taylor "got his start raising money for evangelical preachers." The company also " did fundraising for Citizens United, the conservative group best known as the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that allowed unlimited independent spending by corporations and unions on behalf of political candidates."

Health Care Charities are Really Just "Businesses"

Underlying all this seems to be the transformation of health care from a calling to a business. While US health care charities have reputations as organizations out to do good, one executive, the American Diabetes Soceiety's Mr Erb, admitted that doing good was no longer really the focus,

'But the thing is, we’re a business. There has never been a time or a place where we said, 'Most of this money is coming to us.''

An expert the Bloomberg reporters interviewed said that the fund raising tactics these organizations used meant they were no longer charities. Per Ken Berger, "who runs Glen Rock, New Jersey- based Charity Navigator, the nation’s largest nonprofit watchdog group,"

'These organizations were created to provide public benefit,' he says. 'The fact that the vast majority of money is instead lining the pockets of telemarketers defies the whole reason behind the very creation of these charities.'

The Experts Say It's Fraud

Bloomberg reporters interviewed several experts on philanthropy and law. They were not amused. One suggested that the fund raising tactics described in the article were fraudulent:

Charities should be held accountable for deceptive fundraising done in their name, says James Cox, a professor at the Duke University School of Law in Durham, North Carolina, and co-author of 'Cox and Hazen on Corporations' (Aspen Publishers, 2003).

'If that’s what they do systematically, then they’re obtaining money under false pretenses,' he says. 'I don’t just think it’s incredible. I’d be surprised if it isn’t criminal.'

Another labeled the practices "deceitful."

Bloomberg cited a 2003 US Supreme Court decision:

While telephone solicitors have no obligation to volunteer what the firm’s cut is of each donation, they don’t have a constitutional right to lie, the court ruled in a 2003 Illinois case.

'States may maintain fraud actions when fundraisers make false or misleading representations designed to deceive donors about how their donations will be used,' the court said.

Summary

This horrendous story illustrates how the mission of health care has been undermined by the last 30 years' push to turn health care organizations into businesses at a time managers were indoctrinated that they only thing that matters is short-term revenue (that is, they have become "financialized," look here). Here we see ostensibly charitable organizations that solicit donations from the public supposedly to aid patients and support medical education and research willing to do whatever it takes to raise money, including deception, and what might be fraud. This is just disgusting.

In my humble opinion, patients, health care professionals, and the public should insist that health care non-profit organizations disclose their fund-raising tactics, and abandon any that are dishonest. Law enforcement should investigate to see if prosecutions for fraud or related crimes are warranted. Organizations that refuse to change their ways should lose their tax exempt status.

Meanwhile, I would suggest that everyone should be extremely skeptical of fund raising by major health care charities. In no instance should anyone give money solely based on telephone solicitations.

If we, health care professionals, patients, the public do not take our heads out of the sand and realize how dishonest health care has become, we will have only ourselves to blame when it collapses.

Walikota Termuda Usia 15 Tahun Terinspirasi Soekarno

Bashaer Othman menjadi satu-satunya Wali Kota termuda dunia. Di usianya yang masih 15 tahun, pelajar yang masih duduk di kelas 1 SMA Palestina ini sudah diberi jabatan publik sebagai Walikota Allar, Tulkarm, Tepi Barat, Palestina.

Bashaer diberi kesempatan mempimpin Kota Allar selama dua bulan, di bawah bimbingan Sufian Shadid, Wali Kota Allar sebenarnya, setelah ia terpilih dalam program pemberdayaan kaum muda Pemerintah Palestina.
Tentu unik sebuah kota dipimpin oleh perempuan yang masih berusia dibawah 17 tahun. Apalagi Bashaer harus memikul sejumlah tanggung jawab berat mengatasi semua hal terkait Kota Allar, termasuk mengawasi karyawan dan menandatangani semua dokumen resmi, kecuali dokumen keuangan.

Bertempat di kantor Kedutaan Besar Palestina untuk Indonesia di Jl Pangeran Diponegoro, Jakarta, Rabu (12/9) siang, Tribun mendapat kesempatan mewawancarai perempuan jelita ini dengan nuansa santai namun obrolan serius.

Basher menerima Tribun dengan senyuman manis. Sapaan dengan menggunakan bahasa Arab makin menambah keakraban. Di sela-sela obrolan Bashaer bahkan sempat bercanda bertanya-tanya tentang merk handphone yang Tribun pakai. Apa saja pengalaman Basheer menjadi walikota termuda dunia.

Berikut petikan wawancaranya:
Selamat siang, selamat datang di Indonesia. Bisakah Anda bercerita bagaimana Anda jadi walikota di usia

Anda yang masih muda?
Selamat siang juga senang bisa berada di Indonesia. Pada awalnya saya mengikuti program pemerintah Palestina untuk pemberdayaan kaum muda. Saya lalu bersaing dengan ribuan anak muda yang mengikuti seleksi program tersebut, walikota seperti saya dipilih tidak melalui proses pemilihan umum yang dilakukan masyarakat tapi dipilih oleh walikota sebenarnya berdasarkan atas kompetensi atau kemampuan dalam berbagai hal.

Apa pertimbangan terbesar Anda terpilih?
Saya dinilai memiliki kemampuan individual diantaranya wawasan tentang kenegaraan, politik, sosial, ekonomi. Saya juga memiliki kemampuan leadership. Sebelum ini saya telah memimpin sebuah organisasi kepemudaan di sekolah. Saya juga punya visi dan misi yang jelas untuk kemajuan rakyat Palestina.

Anda sudah menjabat dua bulan, apa yang Anda lakukan selama periode itu?
Saya berusaha memecahkan berbagai masalah rakyat, salah satunya adalah ketersediaan lapangan pekerjaan. Beberapa waktu lalu saya keliling ke beberapa negara luar dan sepulang dari sana saya mengajak para investor serta meyakinkan mereka agar mau berinvestasi di Palestina. Hasilnya lumayan, ada tiga proyek yang saya dapatkan dan saya pikir itu akan membuka lapangan kerja baru.

Ceritakan masalah tersulit yang Anda hadapi selama jadi walikota?
Melayani rakyat Palestina terutama dalam masalah hukum. Sebenarnya mereka sudah tahu hukum tapi biasanya mereka tidak puas jika tidak langsung bertanya kepada walikota, jadi saya harus sabar melayani mereka. Kesultian yang saya alami adalah bisa memuaskan seluruh rakyat, juga saat membuat rakyat menjalani ketentuan Dewan Kota. Beruntungnya saya punya kemampuan komunikasi yang bagus sehingga bisa mudah menjawab pertanyaan dari mereka.

Palestina identik dengan daerah konflik, tidakkah Anda takut dengan keselamatan jiwa Anda?
Daerah Tepi Barat yang saya pimpin relatif aman, tidak ada kontak senjata disana. Pertumbuhan ekonominya juga bagus, penghasilan rakyatnya di atas rata-rata. Jadi saya tidak pernah merasa takut untuk memimpin, ini semua untuk kemaslahatan umat.

Apa yang Anda pikirkan tentang konflik dengan Israel?
Saya datang kesini tidak untuk membahas konflik dengan Israel, itu sudah ada bagiannya tersendiri. Saya hanya ingin menjadi inspirasi generasi muda Palestina bahwa konflik bisa melahirkan pemimpin- pemimpin handal. Saya ingin pemuda Palestina punya sikap dan membangun peradaban mereka.

Apa perubahan yang Anda rasakan dalam diri Anda setelah menjadi walikota?
Tentu ada yang berubah dari kepribadian saya. Sekarang, saya lebih memikirkan kepentingan umat.

Bisakan Anda ceritakan kehidupan keluarga Anda?
Saya lahir dalam keluarga yang hangat, saya hidup dengan Ayah, Ibu dan lima orang saudara, saya anak keempat. Kami hidup dalam satu rumah dan kakak-kakak saya masih belajar di perguruan tinggi. Saat jadi walikota saya mendapat dukungan penuh dari keluarga, mereka sangat mensupport karier politik yang sedang saya jalani. Kami hidup dalam keluarga yang harmonis dan bahagia.

Apa reaksi kawan-kawan Anda setelah jadi Wali Kota?
Mereka sangat apresiatif dan mendukung, kami tetap berhubungan bahkan mereka sering memberikan masukan dan berkomunikasi dengan saya melalui internet. Kami chating setiap hari dan berdiskusi banyak hal untuk kemajuan Palestina.

Apakah Anda punya pacar?
Tidak, Islam tidak memperbolehkan hubungan laki-laki dan perempuan tanpa status pernikahan apapun bentuk hubungan itu. Dan generasi muda Islam tidak seharusnya memikirkan hal itu. Generasi muda Islam harus cerdas membangun peradaban dan kemajuan bangsanya. Terus terang saya tidak punya akun facebook sebab kadang itu mengganggu aktifitas saya dalam berpikir tapi saya tetap mengikuti perkembangan global lewat internet.

Bagaimana Anda melihat masa depan pemuda Palestina?
Saya optimistis kami punya masa depan lebih bagus. Saat ini memang ada banyak pemuda Palestina yang berusaha keluar ke negara lain misalnya ke Saudi Arabia, Mesir atau negara Timur Tengah lainnya untuk mencari pekerjaan dan mencari wilayah aman. Tapi mereka semua punya komitmen besar untuk tetap jadi warga negara Palestina, artinya mereka akan kembali lagi. Kami juga meyakini bahwa Palestina suatu saat akan merdeka dan berdaulat.

Di Indonesia sering ada demonstrasi dukungan terhadap Palestina biasanya memakai tagline "Save Palestina". Apa tanggapan Anda?
Saya sangat mengapresiasi perhatian Indonesia terhadap negara kami. Indonesia adalah saudara setia kami sejak tempo dulu. Saya pribadi sangat terinspirasi dengan Ahmad Soekarno (Presiden Pertama Republik Indonesia, Soekarno). Sebab beliau adalah tokoh yang pertama kali bersuara Palestina adalah negara berdaulat tanpa peduli dengan negara lain yang tidak mengakui kami.

Apakah Indonesia terkenal di negara Anda?
Iya terutama dengan tokoh Ahmad Soekarno Soekarnp), kami memanggil Ahmad Soekarno sebab orang Palestina mengenalnya dengan nama itu. Indonesia juga negara muslim terbesar dunia, dukungan dan suara dari Indonesia sangat memberi kami kepercayaan diri. Kami mendapatkan energi lebih ketika Indonesia bersuara lantang dan membela Palestina.

Apa pesan terakhir Anda untuk pemuda Indonesia?
Pemuda Indonesia harus terus maju kedepan. Maju Palestina! Maju Indonesia

Sumber : Tribunnews.com

Life after London: Our Legacy in Wales

London 2012 has been special for Wales. We sent a record contingent of 68 athletes to the Olympics and Paralympics. They duly repaid us with a tremendous haul of seven medals at the Olympics (three gold, three silver and a bronze) and 15 Paralympic medals. Welsh sport is firmly on the map. Simon Grant takes a look at just where that could lead us in terms of a meaningful lasting legacy.

If ever there were a physical conduit for bringing Sport Wales’ ambitions to fruition then London 2012 is it. How many youngsters will have been hooked on sport for life after seeing Jade Jones high kick her way to an exhilarating gold medal and then bound joyously round the ExCel Arena with the Welsh flag billowing behind her and a stellar future ahead of her?

How many future champions will be inspired by the superhuman triumphs of Geraint, Tom, Hannah, Chris, Fred and Sarah? At the very least they’ll know them on first name terms after sharing in the exultation of their achievements. And what will our inspired generation have made of those who struggled on defiantly, despite injury; the Helen’s and Dai’s? They’ll surely have learnt that inherent Welsh trait of ‘never say die…Dai!’

History will be the ultimate judge but several themes have emerged as the potential legacy highpoints for Wales following these epic home Games.

Emerging Talent
The future is bright. The future is Wales. You might not know it but 18 of the 30 Welsh Olympians were making their Olympic debut and 12 of those were under the age of 23. A staggering 50% of our 38 Paralympic athletes are making their debut, including 15-year-old swimmer Morgyn Peters.

Aled Davies: Winning gold in the F42 Discus © Roger Bool   

“Essentially, these Games have shown that there is a plethora of young talent emerging, and waiting in the wings, that can and will be nurtured to ensure that we continue to see Welsh athletes standing proud on podiums at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and beyond,” says Sport Wales chair, Professor Laura McAllister.

“These have also been dubbed the ‘Girls’ Games,’ with the unprecedentedly high proportion of success coming from female athletes who, for the first time ever, competed in every event. Girls across Wales now have more inspiring role models to look up to than ever before and we hope that this can spark a chain reaction of lots more participation and enjoyment of sport.”

Finding the next tier of athletes to follow in the footsteps of our elite athletes begins now by translating the interest in the Games into mass participation at the grassroots level.

“London 2012 has undoubtedly been a huge advertising campaign for sport,” Laura adds.

“The sheer numbers of people supporting Team GB and getting into the Olympic spirit are testament to that. We’ve been working with our partners to ensure that interest has been – and continues to be – harnessed here in Wales; to ensure that any child who has been inspired by what they have seen is able to get involved in their chosen sport, and ultimately, stay hooked for life.”

Sustained Investment

Funding: Available for local legacy

Steps have already been taken to ensure that the Games are maximised in Wales with extra Lottery funding, including new Calls for Action funding which can grant awards of between £50,000 and £150,000 for projects that make a real impact in the community.

“Through our Community Sport Strategy we have already committed an additional investment of £9million from the National Lottery to help develop much wider opportunities for not just children and young people, but adults, to access both formal and recreational sport,” says Professor McAllister.

“In total this means that we will be injecting a total of almost £32m a year into community sport in Wales. We’re also in a fortunate position in that the Welsh Government are committed to our vision for sport in Wales and see London 2012 as a golden opportunity to get the nation involved.”

Quality Education
That grassroots momentum is hugely dependant on the education system and its vital role in nurturing positive first experiences of sport.

Laura adds: “We cannot underestimate the importance of schools in getting Wales’ children hooked on sport, and in particular the influence of head teachers.

“Those that embrace the importance of vibrant school sport - and are passionate about it - place sport high on the agenda, ensuring that opportunities reflect the needs of children and link with their communities and local clubs to keep them engaged once their school days are over.

School sport: Vital for positive first experiences of sport

“There are some fantastic examples of where this is working and working well but we need to see it across the board if Wales is to witness a significant increase in the numbers of young people playing sport. Whether it is through two hours of high quality PE every week, an improvement in teacher training or priority placed on developing basic skills from the earliest age, a significant shift is needed and we’re committed to making that happen.”

Our Paralympians and Olympians can deservedly bask in the glow of adulation that will undoubtedly outpour from the amassed Welsh AMs and adoring public, at the Senedd homecoming on 14 September.

They can be doubly proud of not only their own stellar achievements but also to consider themselves part of an unashamedly ambitious Welsh system that will keep building on their successes for many years to come.

For more information about Sport Wales and how to apply for Calls for Action, or any other, funding visit www.sportwales.org.uk.