The Castlegar Sun Wednesday, September 30, 1992 Horvath enjoying new found freedom after retiring from local hospital board ‘There's a whole new world out there that | haven't had time for before. Now I'm planning to make the most of It.’ — BILL HORVATH Retired from hospital board SHARLENE IMHOFF Sun Editor Members from the Castlegar and'District Hospital board offi- cially said their good-byes to long-time member and Chairman, Bill Horvath. Horvath said he will miss the duties which he was responsible for while sitting on the hospital board, but, he is enjoying a new- found freedom since leavi “There's a whole new world out there that I haven't had time for before,” he said. “Now I’m planning to make the most of it.” | Reminiscing about his years on the board, Horvath recalls when he first became a mem- ber—there were-38 beds at the Castlegar and District Hospital and a lot less staff. Horvath began his career on the hospital board in 1966, and remained until 1972. For five out of these six years, he was chair- man. He re-joined the board in 1984, and remained there until last March. In 1989 Horvath was again appointed chairman, which he continued to hold until he retired. He was also the govern- ment appointed representative on the board for the Social Credit party from 1984-1992. The 73-year-old consultant and engineer has seen the changing face of health care, and was part of many variations made as the hospital grew to meet the needs of Castlegar. “It's like an evolution. Con- stantly changing and moving ahead—becoming mofe sophisti- cated,” he said. Being a member of the hospi- tal board means ly ifvolved in labour disputes, planning and expansions, and changes in health care delivery. Horvath has been part of it all. “Being involved in the process of this evolution has been pretty much a full-time job for te,” he said. Tough decision-making, and difficult actions were sometimes needed as well. One of the more trying times for Horvath involved a nurses’ strike. The provincial government had a approved a lock-out proce- dure against the nurses and it was up to each individual hospital whether to carry out the plan. “We always prided ourselves for being on good terms with our staff. So when the provincial gov- ernment came out with this, natu- rally it was a distressing time.” Fortunately, said Horvath, the strike was settled and the hospital board never had to make the decision. Horvath fully acknowledges the support he had while on the board, and the fact that everyone always worked together to better the health care/services in Castlegar. “In all the years I was involved, I was very fortunate to have so much support.” SHARLENE IMHOFF Sun Editor Self-help for local diabetics is on the way. The Castlegar and District Hospital will receive $31,114 for a new diabetes education service under the Ci ity Partner- up of members from health care related service groups in Castle- gar, such as Community Ser- vices, Continuing Care Agency and Home Support Services. The new diabetes education service, is an example of an idea brought forward that, once imph d, will help improve Hospital Care. “It was identified as a need initially by the dietitians and medical staff,” said Hospital Administrator Ken Talarico, referring to the new pr Needs are also identified and Priorized by a committee made the relationship between commu- nity groups and the hospital “Implementing educational services stch as theses also places less demand on hospital services,” Talarico said The immediate goals of the Diabetic Education Services Local hospital receives funding for diabetic program however, involve improving and maintaining the health of people with diabetes through education. After using the new service, health care officials are hoping that a client will increase their basic knowledge and under- standing of diaketes by know- ing how to: describe the alteration of normal metabolism that is diabetes; identify the symptoms of hypoglycemia and ‘hyper- glycemia; describe three major principles of nutritional man- agement; relate the benefits of good diabetic control to delayed or prevention of long- term complications. The diabetes education ser- vice will also promote positive attitudes towards good diabetic control, involve family mem- bers in making lifestyle changes, and teach the individu- al and family how to be better health care Consumers. The diabetes program in Castlegar is one of 34 Commu- nity Partnership—Hospital Care initiatives approved so far, with a total value of about $1.65 million. Local Red Cross JOHN VAN PUTTEN | Sun staff Castlegar, it's that time again. Time to bleed out of the good- ness of your hearts, excuse the pun. A small donation of your time and blood, could save some- one’s life. The travelling Red Cross DR. KEITH MERRIT blood donor clinic will be at the Castlegar Community Complex Thursday, October 8, from 2 p.m. until 8 p.m. Babysitting will be available. One unit of blood can benefit as many as four patients. Once it is collected it is separated into its different components. Red cells, white cells, platelets and plasma. There is no substitute for human blood. Each day the Red Cross in Canada must collect 5,000 units to support the needs OPES TER YS ee geet at eet he bee i eee of 900 Canadian hospitals. Donors must weigh at least 45.5 kg (100 Ibs), and first time donors must be between 17 and 60. Anyone who has donated blood in the past two years may continue to donate until they are 71 “It’s absolutely safe for the donor, its a safe procedure. There is no risk of contracting any dis- ease by giving blood. All materi- als used, including the needle and plastic collection packs, are ster- ile, used only once and discard- ed,” said Dr. Keith Merritt, Chairman of the Castlegar blood wants your blood donor clinic. The Red Cross has set this year's goal at 350 units, last year it collected 368. “Our community uses approxi- mately 300 units per year,” Mer- nitt said. Once jthe blood is collected, it’s flown to Vancouver where it undergoes extensive testing to verify blood group and type, it is also screened for hepatitis, syphilis and the antibody to HIV. The testing is done at the Red Cross Blood Transfusion Centre Laboratory. From there it Is sent out to acute care hospi- Fire Prevention Week tals around the province. “Blood donated in B.C. is used in B.C.,” Merritt said. A few things are recom- mended before donating blood eat a substantial meal at least one to four hours before donat- ing; and bring two pieces of identification, one with a photo or signature. The process of giving blood takes at least one hour. Donors ing close- ' BILL HORVATH These days, Horvath has time dom that has Horvath holding off for other things, like ig. In November he and his wife Leo: will be visiting Hawaii, along with their son and daughter-in- law. “My freedom means so much to me night now,” he said. Tt may be this new-found free- any gi g his future on other working committees, such as City Council. “I’ve been approached to run for a seat on city council, or even possible the mayor’s chair, but like I said, I love my freedom very much right now.” GoBC grant cancelled—not replaced JOHN VAN PUTTEN Sun staff A new Capital Grant Program will not be started this year to replace the cancelled GO B.C program, said Lois Boone, Gov- ermment Services Minister. GO B.C. was cancelled March 31 when money from the lottery fund was redirected by the B.C. Government. Half of the money went into the health account, the other half was transfered into general revenue to fund ongoing government programs, according to Doug Harms, Information Co-ordina- tor of the Community Grants Branch in Victoria. Organizations that had grants approved by GO B.C. will receive the funds they have been promised “This fiscal year, communi- ties will receive more than $40 million to honor the $80 million commitments under the previous GO B.C. program,” said Boone. “We have done well with GO B.C. We are expecting our final payment from GO B.C. soon,” said Katrine Conroy Executive Director of the Kootenay Columbia Child Care Society in Castlegar. The outstanding GO BC com- Mmitments will be honoured but no new commitments will be made. The new program “will never be as generous as under GO BC, the maximum will be under a million,” said Harms. “If we warit access to com- munity grants we (Kootenay Columbia Child Care Society) now deal with Ministry of Women’s Equality. Weare in the process of trying to get funds to finish our renova- tions,” Conroy said. “Definatly in our case (KCCCS) things will improve with the changes. With GO B.C., it was one third (of the money) from GO B.C. and two thirds from us, but with Women's Equality it will be a 50-50 split,” Conroy said. The government will be developing guidelines for a new community grants pro- gram. Applications which were under review when GO B.C. was cancelled, will receive attention before new applica- tions will be considered, Boone said. will register, then c it a health assessment questionaire before giving blood. After a short rest, a refressment is offered, Merritt said. Are you planning to get out alive? JOHN VAN PUTTEN Sun staff Test your detector—it's sound advice. That's the motto of this year’s Fire Prevention Week, October 4-10. “The educational focus will be to get elementary grades from One to three involved in the ‘Plan To Get Out Alive Program’,” said Fire Chief Gerry Rempel The Plan to Get Out Alive Program is a joint effort between Fire fighters, schools and McDonald's restaurants across Canada. It’s a team effort to help téach kids what to do incase a fire breaks out in their home. The program encourages fami- lies to stage home fire drills, plan a route of escape and to familiar- ize people in what to do in the event a fire does start The program was the idea of Edmonton Firefighter Tim Van- denbrink, in 1984. Rempel plans to go into the schools and give students a fire safety talk, have the kids draw a diagram of their house and then make an escape plan. He hopes the kids will go over the plan with their parents and have a practice drill “It's usually the kids who put the pressure on their parents They're pretty keen on it all,” Rempel said." 4 At the end of Fire Prevention Week there will be a draw to see who among the students will be fire chief for aday. The Regional District of Cen- tral Kootenay also supports the plan. “Minimizing fire hazards should be a high priority for all residents of the Central Koote- nay. Smoke alarms, if installed, would provide greater protection in the event of a fire,” said George Cady chairman of the RDCK. “I would recomend all houses should have both a smoke alarm and a fire extinguisher,” Rempel said. At the end of Fire Preven- tion Week, in appreciation of the services provided by the fire departments, October 10 has been set aside as Fire. Service Recogni- tion Day. ) By Leigh Rubin il i " 4.25 Many questioned the sincerity of Pp Herb's at self et nn ee Wednesday, September 30, 1992 ———— The Castlegar Sun Hospital board discusses x NE IMHOFF Sun Editor Members of the Castlegar and District Hospital Board are dis- cussing the possibilities of opting out of a costly and time-consum- ing accreditation process. ‘Accreditation’ is the label a hospital is given after it demon- strates to an assessment team that each department in the building is organized to follow specific poli- cy and procedures related to health care. “Going for an accreditation is a voluntary measure by hospitals. If a hospital decides not to go through this process, it doesn't mean they are providing inferior care,” said Castlegar Hospital Administrator Ken Talarico. The Castlegar Hospital first received accreditation status in = Glade Continued from 1A The meeting dealt with clear cut logging in the Glade Creek Watershed. Over 100 area resi- dents, officials from the Ministry of Forests office and Atco repre- sentatives attended the meeting. The proposed cut, forest license A20-193 covers 80 hectares (197.6 acres) in five blocks in the Arrow Forest Dis- trict which covers a total forested area of 23,614 hectares (58,326.58 acres). The trees range in age up to 250 years. “Its all basically never been cut,” said Thrums resident Thomas Munson. The residents of Glade oppose the proposal to log or build any logging roads in the Glade Creek Watershed, said Rick Marken, reading from a letter written by the Glade Community Watershed Committee (GCWC) to the Min- ister of Forests. “We wanted to be totally clear with them (the ministry) that we do not want logging in Wwater- sheds, those things (logging prac- tices) and government should change,” said Louella Bartlett a member of the GCWC The decision to log was not made recently explained Ian Hamann, Harvesting Operations Manager with the Ministry of Forests. “This land has always been part of our timber supply land The decision was made many years ago. All of the areas within the timber supply area are subject to logging,” Rossland-Trail MLA Ed Con- roy said he a compromise is the only alternative “T know there are a lot of peo- ple at this meeting who earn their living in the forest industry. We have to make some kind of a compromise. It's not a matter of, if we are going to log in water- sheds, it a matter of how we do it, and we have to do it properly and that’s what we are trying to do.“ Some residents wanted to find out actually how much the timber in their area was worth to the company and how many jobs would be created, for how long . = Community Continued from 1A between committee members I 1972 when it was awarded a two- year accreditation, also termed “compliance.” During the follow- ing process, it was awarded the maximum level, a three-year year ; accreditation, or “good compli- ance” status. It has remained that way ever since. The process is carried out by a non-profit organization called the Canadian Council on Health Facilities Accreditation, based in Ontario. Like most federal gov- ernment dbjectives, each year the standards, paperwork, amount of time and money, needed to achieve accreditation increases. These consistent increases have some board members wondering if the amount of time and money which the hospital spends to become accredited is worth the Status it provides. “It was a very good idea when it first started, it allowed hospitals the choice to be audited by an outside agency. But now, the amount of work needed to pre- Pare and the amount of money it costs to achieve this is question- able,” said Denise Reid, director of nursing, and coordinator in charge of accreditation. The costs do add up. , | Talarico estimates the hospital pays an annyal accreditation fee of $1,580 and then an additional ‘| $4,200 the year the actual assess~ ment is done. “Over the last three years I'd Say we've spent $8,000 - $9,000 on this process,” said Talarico. When a hospital becomes accredited, it receives no extra funding or services from either federal or provincial Li cap It does receive however, the sta- tus which states that it hag opting out of accreditation process opened its doors to outside scruti ny and has received a good mark. “There is somewhat of a stig ma attached in losing accredita- tion,” said one board member. $till, an additional number of changes to the accreditation pro- cess this year means more headaches for hospitals going through the process. ; “Maybe Castlegar should con- sider opting out of the accredita- tion process for one year. It would be a cost saving measure,” said Board Member John Carpen- ter. “It doesn't affect the quality of care a hospital provides any- way.” In the Kootenays, the only hos- Pital not to receive accreditation is in Grand Forks “I don't believe that hospital has ever tried to become accredit- ed,” said Talarico. Louella Bartlett, a GCWC member, question s the ministry technocrats about Options the group has in order to change the proposed 80 hectare clear cut. After a three and a half hour meeting and feeling frustrated, Bartlett said, "Our input is not going to sway their decision.” “Is it worth logging that area? How much timber is there enough to have jobs for twenty people for maybe a month? Or is it better to leave it alone and leave the people alone and forget about it?” asked Nick Denisoff, a 30-year resident of the area. The Technocrats (Ministry representatives) as they referred to themselves, tried to convince the residents they were on the same side “It’s our job to ensure any har- vesting activities that take place meet the scrutiny of all other agencies concerned,” Hamann said. In reference to B.C. Hydro’s running of power lines near Glade, Hamann said, “We do rec- ognize there is a history here, in terms of what has happened in the watershed. It’s a question of how are we going to deal with road construction and harvesting Futures within the drainage to protect that particular resource (residents water supply). That's one of the key things we (the ministry) focus in on,” Hamann said. With B.C. being so heavily dependent on the forest industry the raw materials need to come from somewhere. According to a Arrow Forest District report, the Castlegar- Arrow Lakes area depends on the forest industry for 75 per cent of the industrial activity in the area. “This is reality. We simply cannot stop logging in every watershed in the province. What we have to do is do it properly,” Conroy said. There are alternatives to clear cutting as a way of harvesting timber according to Corky Evans MLA for Nelson-Creston. “I don't necessarily agree with these people when they talk about clear cutting, I spent 15 SUN STAFF PHOTO /John Van Putten years doing it a different way and I think it’s a better way. That doesn't mean it’s the only way.” Evans recommended that, everyone involved actually walk | through the areas where the road “is proposed to be built and the cutting is to take place “Once it has to do with land and trees it won't look as harsh as it does in this room. To say all clear cutting or no clear cutting in a room is the same kind of non- sense as they used to do (in the past). You can’t make decisions from your kitchen,” Evans said. In encouragement, Evans told the residents they should form a committee and take art active role in the decision making pro- cess in regards to logging in their area. “You come up with the best liability you can get, and you don’t let them log until you like the deal.” —————— OUTLOOK: The forecast for Wednesday, Bands of moist Pacific air moving in from the South-west will give a mix of cloud and sun- shine. With temperatures reaching the mid 20's there is a risk of a shower or thunder- shower. Skies will remain generally cloudy overnight with the risk of a shower. Lows near 7, Outlook for Thursday Is for moming cloud with the risk of a shower then Sunny In the aftemoon as a ridge of high pressure bulids in from the South. The sunny weather should continue into the weekend. Temperature: Max/Date 27.58/22 Precipitation: Rain Number of Hours 34.6 lay over the higher mountains. ARROW LAKE Ff ysis for the RDCK. Rowcliffe, who said that she is ing the situation, would not guess,” said Richard Madd past chairman of community futures and one of the members who was willing to help the com- mittee through its transitional, “I’ve decided not to remain involved in that way.” Newly appointed committee members are also reluctant to speak about Community Future's current situation, stating that because they are new, they must become further acquainted with the program and what their volun- teer position will mean in terms of commitment and direction. “Everything seems to be in limbo at this time,” said Jan Angrignon, a newly appointed committee member from New Denver. “I want to find out myself what's going on.” Central Kootenay Community Futures, with government fund- ing, was responsible for the suc- cess of a number of programs such as: a self-employment incentive for people on social assistance; small business train- ing for owners, operators and managers; a 10-day entrepreneurial immersion pro- gram; and community needs anal- speculate on whether Central Kootenay Community Futures is suffering as a result of a clash in ities, ideas and di Instead, she remains opti- mistic. For the last two months, she said she has been working, with a group of people who belonged to Central Kootenay Community Futures, towards a Proposal which would allow tem- porary government funding to rebuild the program in the RDCK. “The Community Futures Pro- gram has been successful across the country and because of this, funding has been made available for an additional five years. We have to get the Central Kootenay Cc y Futures Ci i in place so this program can receive some of that funding as well,” she said Rowcliffe says this will involve a membership drive to bring the numbers up from five to 12. “In order to qualify, we have to get these people in place by the end of December, so we can apply for funding January) 1,” she said. Rowcliffe admits the job will not be easy, but says the new committee members, once appointed by the federal govern- ment, should be able to adminis- ter the program as well as their predecessors. “I know we can’t replace the five years of experience that the Previous committee had, but we do still have some enthusiastic and energetic people. There's no Treason why the new committee can’t be as successful as it had been in the past.” A LOOK BACK AT THE PAST WEEK: Min/Date 13/27 Snow 24.0 0.0 REMARKS: A ridge of high pressure gave sunshine and above normal temperatures Monday and Tuesday. The ‘ridge’ broke down Wednesday allowing a very active Pacific disturbance to move into the Kootenays late in the day giving record breaking rainfalls Thursday. A second weaker system crossed Southern B.C. Satur day freezing levels was evident with both systems as fresh snow Forecast provided by The South - East interior Weather Office at Castlegar, B.C. n Mean 13.3 Total 24.0 Normal Number of Hours 38.3 Local police targeting drivers without belts Smarten up folks, buckle up, its for your own safety. Over the next week police will be targeting people who fail to wear their seatbelts. Anyone found in a vehicle without a seatbelt stands to receive fines of $75 for an unbelted adult, and $100 for hav- ing an unbelted minor in your car. Those are minimums at the discretion of the officer in each incident. Police say in their press release that a local news anchorman should have first-hand knowl- ¢-edge of what the fine is like for not wearing a seatbelt! No charges laid in sexual assault claim ' An RCMP investigation into a reported June 20 sexual assault during a Kinnaird Junior Sec- ondary School trip has ended: ' Police conducted several inter- views and held a meeting with Crown Council and have closed the case without laying any charges. The investigation began when an allegation of sexual mis- conduct was made after a school band trip had taken place. Police investigate garage sale dispute Local RCMP investigated a reported assault over garage sale money. The alleged assault occurred at an 8th Ave. home on Saturday. Police investigated the incident and it was concluded with no charges being laid. Trail City Council sending invite out to Harcourt and ( Cominco president TRAIL TIMES Premier Mike Harcourt.and Cominco president Bob Hall- bauer will be invited to Trail by city council to address the public on the future of the local econo- my. f After spending almost a year working with the company and the Job Protection Commission on an economic renewal plan for the Trail operations only to have it rejected by cabinet, council is frustrated. "I don’t think council should sit back and wait for things to hap- pen,” Mayor Sandy Santori said last night. “We would like to know what the government's position is and we would like the premier and the minister of eco- nomic development (David Zirn- helt) to come here and explain it.” Santori said B.C.’s mining | industry is in decline and the gov- ernfient isn’t doing anything to assist it or development a replacement. Since the JPC process began last fall, the government has announced additional charges and taxes expected to cost the Trail operation $7 million annually. Cominco says it needs to cut costs by $50 million a year to eam the level of profit that would justify the additional investment needed to make the operation viable in the long term. “Our community has been liv- ing with this albatross for man: years,” said Santori. "It’s very hard to attract new investment ,when you are living with this uncertainty about Com- inco’s future.” Candidate Green begins campaign for council chair SHARLENE IMHOFF Sun Editor He's Green and he’s eager. Castlegar resident Doug Green has tossed his hat into the arena of municipal politics by filing nomination papers to run in the October by-election. The by-election, set for Oct 19, will fill the seat left vacant by Marilyn Mathieson, who moved to Vancouver. Green, who was announced as a candidate last week with the support of the local citizens y (CURB), says he want to make something clear. “I'm not running for CURB, but I am being supported by them,” said Green, who admits he has been feeling dissatisfied by the way city council makes decisions. “I’m going to be pushing for A ‘I'm not running for CURB, but I am being supported by them’ — DOUG GREEN Candidate in by-election more openness. I don’t like the idea of discussing important issues behind closed doors,” said Green, referring to City Coun- cil’s ‘in-camera sessions’, from which the public is barred. He says he is not running to represent the interests of CURB alone “I don't have any hidden agen- LJ & DOUG GREEN da. I want to see the residents of Castlegar get what they want out of their representatives—honest answers and more input into decision-making." Green said he would work “{ towards a city hall that would serve the needs of all citizens, including the youth, seniors, and the business ity. Green, 45, is actively involved with the Telecommunications Workers Union as Plant Council- lor for the West Kootenay region. He has lived in Castlegar for the past 19 years, and said he has a lot of faith in Castlegar. “I believe in this community. Now I have an opportunity to give something back.” Green has coached and man- aged youth teams in minor hock- ey, baseball and soccer, and has been involved in fundraising for the Minor Sports Association. He has also served on the executive of the Castlegar Rebels Hockey Club. The deadline for filing nomi- . nation papers is tomorrow. To. - date, Green is the only candidate to file for the by-election.