Latest FORA Health Update following meeting with Island Health representatives.( Dr Drew Digney, Executive Medical Director NRGH and Shelley Gallant Director OHC). We meet quarterly.

NRGH- Greater use of Operating rooms in winter and less in summer to accommodate seasonal demands of both staff and patients. Electronic record system under government review with our area being the pilot area, not to be expanded elsewhere at this time.

New Government- More focus on mental health, addictions, community services and less on hip and knee surgeries
                            Wait times for Tests      
                                  CT Scan          MRI           Ultrasound
Urgent                           1 day           1 day             2 days   
ASAP                            20 days        18 days          15 days
Semi Urgent                  121 days     118 days          30 days
Routine                         195 days     180 days         155 days    

Oceanside Health Centre- Urgent Care visits still averaging 68/ day. Complex care patients to be seen in 4 hours or less and simple cases in 2 with success rate of 90 and 80% respectively. Financial compensation plan is working well here for the staff.

Primary Care seeing 730 appointments per month using 3 salaried nurse practitioners backed by urgent care doctors only when required. They have 1800 patients with 25 added per month. At this rate their fee equates to that just below the lowest GP fee.The use of NP's province wide is being studied by the government.
The search for primary care doctors is still ongoing with a reviewed pay scale to be put in place with a plan of 3 or 4 eventually expanding services to 7 day week, 12 hour days.

14 Heart patients seen per day via the ECHO programme.
OHC has 2 psychiatrists.

Local health authorities being subdivided to better care for local demands.

No plans for any expansion at OHC.

Telehealth and home care monitoring available now for certain patients with geriatric, psychiatric, ms, heart and copd issues. FORA questioned how these services were advertised to the public and local docs?

End of Life- 6th hospice bed added at Trillium Lodge with 75% occupancy rate and average19 day stay. Now supported 24/7 by RN, LPN and health care
aid at night.

Medically Assisted Deaths(MAiD)- 25 in Oceanside, 355 on VI over 18 months. Only 1 local doctor with patients having to go outside of the area.

Residential Care Beds
- total of 378 in Parksville with 53 assisted living, 3 respite, 6 end of life.
- total of 225 in Qualicum Beach, 30 assisted living.
- total of 848 in Nanaimo, 98 assisted living, 2 respite.
There are no plans for any new beds which take 4 to 5 years to put in place.

​On May 3, 2017, Emergency Communications Teams and Emergency Program Coordinators from around Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, the Lower Mainland and Washington State will be participating in Exercise Sweeper. This communication exercise, came as a result of Exercise Coast Response, designed to test and practice emergency communications from between Emergency Operations Centres, Emergency Management BC, aircrafts and communities. 
 
The military has also been invited to participate in Exercise Sweeper, resulting in low flying aircraft and aircraft noise.  Throughout the day, aircraft will be flying between 1000-1500 ft to enable low-interference for communications. These aircraft will also be collecting imagery of the areas that have been requested by appropriate municipalities.
Thank you for your patience and we apologize for any inconvenience.
 
Any questions, please contact Rob Daman, Emergency Program Coordinator, 250.927.5108

http://www.qualicumbeach.com/news-release-march-30-2017

Please open up the town link above or go to the town website main home page showing the Memorial Ave/19A roundabout with no signalized pedestrian crossings(3off each with central island to regain ones calm), a reference to a heat exchange system with no benefits explained and no references to adjacent business accesses(Shell and Q Beach Inn).No detail of reduced diameter turning circle required either.
I counted 30 large coniferous trees and many more somewhat scraggy deciduous trees will need removing just between Village Way and Sunningdale Rd East in the next construction phase. Hopefully none between Sunningdale Rd and Hoylake Roads will be removed as the road is to be moved 2 metres Westward to avoid having power poles in the middle of the new 3m "pedestrian only" pathway with cycle routing both sides of the shared vehicular road section, if it can be safely fitted in?
When will accurate depictions for the complete $5.6mm project be released to the public?
​Dave Golson

Perhaps you all have read in PQB News about BC paramedics initiative and maybe some of you have already signed their petition. Some canvassers are scheduled to be outside  Quality Foods on Saturday March 18th if anyone would like to sign their petition. I believe that this is an important initiative for paramedics and for BC residents who rely on their services. The initiative would amend the Fire and Police Services and bargaining Act to include Paramedics.

Last year, I had the opportunity to speak with some paramedics about their work and have become very sympathetic with the problems and issues they must deal with on a regular basis because of the system and contract that governs their jobs.

Website for information about the initiative is   http://yourparamedics.ca/
or
http://elections.bc.ca/recall-initiative/initiative/initiative-to-amend-the-fire-and-police-services-collective-bargaining-act/
Charna MacFie

www.pqbnews.com/news/415591724.html for the PQB News story.

Charna is an active member of the Qualicum Beach Residents Association.

OCP Preliminary Consultation SurveyThe Official Community Plan is an important guideline for the current Council and future Councils that is reviewed every 6 to 10 years. The survey has open ended questions to give you a chance to help set the direction of the OCP Review. Let them hear what you want for our town. Survey closed December 28.

Most of your board attended the meeting. It was very interesting and the original presentation might make an informative members meeting.
​
For more information on the OCP Review process, visit the Town’s website, http://www.qualicumbeach.com/ocp

http://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/in-tofino-addition-of-ramp-makes-a-beach-for-everyone-1.2471575

Word spread quickly about the District of Tofino’s new accessible ramp at Mackenzie Beach.
A crew of athletes with disabilities — including a Paralympian —pulled up just as the district was putting on the finishing touches.
“We stumbled across it,” said Jeff Robertson, who organizes a surf camp for the California-based High Fives Foundation, which supports athletes with spinal cord and brain injuries.
“We got to the end of the road and we just saw this fantastic ramp that was brand new and freshly built. We went down it and there was perfect access to the beach. It was a complete surprise to us.”
Robertson said the group, which includes Canadian Paralympic skiier Josh Dueck, has returned to the beach several times this week to wave-ski. The sport involves a surf-like board with a kayak-like top, giving athletes back support.
The easy access point could mean the High Fives surf camp makes Tofino a regular destination. Robertson said it could also help open doors to adaptive water-sports competitions in Tofino.
Tofino Mayor Josie Osborne said the district started working on the project after a lack of accessibility was identified as a gap in the district’s 2013 age-friendly action plan.
“We’ve heard time and time again that it would be great to make the beach entrances more accessible for people with strollers or walkers or wheelchairs,” Osborne said.
Mackenzie Beach was chosen because of the relatively short distance between the parking lot and beach. If successful, the district could expand the project to other beaches.
The project cost $229,000, including the ramp, accessible washroom and change room, concrete sidewalk between the washroom and ramp, and large vehicle turnaround area. In the summer, it will also include a plastic rollout mat to make moving over dry sand easier.
It was funded through a provincial Resort Municipality Initiative grant for small, tourism-based communities.
Doug Nutting, executive director of Recreation Integration Victoria, said accessible beach access is not as common as it should be.
“One of the big challenges with a sandy beach is most wheelchairs will stick in the sand between the high tide [line] and the parking lot,” said Nutting, whose organization aims to assist people with disabilities pursue active lifestyles.
“So unless a person has an all-terrain chair or beach chair … the water is not accessible unless you have four strong friends.”
People with physical disabilities can still participate in activities such as kayaking, paddle boarding and snorkelling, he said.
In some cases, adapted equipment makes it possible. Recreation Integration Victoria has an adapted surfboard with handles, for example, as well as beach chairs with extra large inflated tires available for weekly loans.
Nutting applauded Saanich for making Cadboro-Gyro Park accessible. Its upgrade included a rollout plastic mat for the beach section beyond the park.
“That’s the only beach in the capital region that I’m aware of that has actually put in the matting,” he said. “I’m glad Saanich has led by example.”
The Vancouver parks board also has accessible equipment, including portable matting, available for rent.
In a Facebook post, Victoria Coun. Jeremy Loveday said the city is exploring creating barrier-free beach access as part of its 2017 budget.
asmart@timescolonist.com