Lyndon Barends (photo: hamishNIVENPhotography)
As part of the new revitalised NHA, Lyndon Barends and his team have implemented monthly newsletters titled “From The Horse’s Mouth” to keep us up to speed with news and developments at ‘Head Office’.
Thank you and well done to Mr Barends and his team for this excellent and informative initiative!
The first newsletter was issued in August to coincide with the start of the new season and includes a brief report from Mr Barends, setting out some of the new look NHA’s vision (“to create the environment in which the sport of horseracing, the people can thrive”), mission (to regulate, govern, serve and promote the sort of horseracing in Southern Africa) and Values (Service, Integrity, Responsiveness, Excellence, and Dedication). There’s news from the Laboratory concerning the adoption of IFHA International Screening Limits for therapeutic prohibited substances as well as information on the Vet Treatment Register from the Equine Welfare Unit.
The September issue contains Lyndon Barends’ thoughts on maximising performance and news on Turffontein race course becoming part of the City of Johannesburg Blue Plaque initiative. The NHA Lab received an accolade of excellence for passing the 2016 AORC Proficiency Test with a 91% score and Dr Schalk de Kock takes the time to shed light on the process of specimen analysis. News from the Equine Welfare Unit includes a summary of the recent NHA Roadshow information.
The October edition sees Mr Barends discussing the issue of responsiveness in terms of improving their service delivery and consistent peak performance. The Equine Welfare and Veterinary section is a reminder of the basic guidelines for AHS and Flu vacs and the NHA Lab reports on the effects of some of the more commonly encountered performance enhancing substances.
The newly minted issue for December 2016 / January 2017 can be accessed here and in the regular CEO’s comment, Mr Barends continues to share his thoughts on the NHA’s new vision with a discussion on Excellence. Dr Dale Wheeler’s Equine Welfare and Veterinary report includes a list of substances except from prosecution as banned substances and the NHA Lab Report includes a discussion from Dr Schalk de Kock on guidelines for detection times for therapeutic substances. Kenilworth will be hosting the very worthy Horses For Causes charity fundraiser on 11 February and congratulations to Calvin Habib and Liam Tarentaal who both passed their matric certificates at SAJA.
Also available for download is the new NHA Business Plan (2016 – 2020), which lays out the proposed process of Business Transformation over the next 4 years.
