Up front: Maple Bay residents urge pause on Stoney Hill Road Artists: Cowichan carver leads with his art
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For all the news of the Cowichan region as it happens, plus stories from around British Columbia, go to our website www.cowichannewsleader.com Your news leader since 1905
Friday, February 1, 2013
Sex assault changes CDH protocol
Security changes: Duncan man handed three-months jail after assaulting patient with dementia Peter W. Rusland
News Leader Pictorial
A
Penny pinching Andrew Leong
Betsy Burr, ticket centre supervisor at Island Savings Centre, holds a vanishing species of coin. Starting Monday, the federal government begins the phase-out of the penny. The Island Savings Centre will immediately start rounding its cash returns to the nearest nickel and all Canadian businesses are being urged to follow suit.
Cowichan prepares to bid copper a slow goodbye Don Bodger
News Leader Pictorial
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ount on some confusion at Cowichan Valley businesses and elsewhere beginning Monday, as the penny begins its journey into becoming obsolete. The Royal Canadian Mint will no longer be distributing pennies as of Feb. 4 and a notice from the federal government, for those who’ve been paying attention, is encouraging businesses to start rounding cash transactions on that date. That means both rounding up and rounding down, with a bill of $1.01 or $1.02 getting pared back to $1 and $1.03 and $1.04 being
raised to $1.05, for example. Only cash transactions are affected. The exact totals will remain the same for payments made by cheques or electronic transactions. Sonja Nagel, executive director of the Duncan-Cowichan Chamber of Commerce, said it typically takes directives from the B.C. Chamber in cases such as this. “I don’t think it’s ever been presented to the B.C. Chamber of Commerce,’’ said Nagel. “I have seen absolutely nothing come out of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve had our hands full with other issues and the penny has been very low on the list.’’ The Municipality of North Cowichan will be going immediately to the rounding up and down system for cash transactions.
“It’s been coming for quite a while,’’ said director of ¿nance Mark Frame. “We knew the deadline was Feb. 4.’’ The recreation department made reference to the change in its latest newsletter. “I don’t think they get a lot of pennies there and we don’t get a lot of cash period,’’ said Frame. Pennies can still be exchanged as normal if businesses decide to accept them and give them back as change. “You can keep going as long as you want, as long as you have pennies,’’ explained Frame. Many small business owners are simply going to implement the new system right away rather than prolong the penny’s existence. more on page A5
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Duncan man charged with sexually assaulting a senior female patient two years ago in a Cowichan District Hospital room received three months jail time, plus two years’ probation Wednesday, Duncan court staff said. But the criminal case against Daniel Patrick Hill, 49, also helped Victoria write a sweeping hospital-room safety and security policy. It was formally installed last summer by the Vancouver Island Health Authority. Even before VIHA’s policy — called Hospital Room Assignment To Support Patient Privacy, and Dignity Safety — took effect, health brass took action just a day after Hill’s Dec. 21, 2011 assault against the 83-year-old woman. “On Dec. 22, 2011, new interim guidelines went into effect,” VIHA’s Suzanne Germain said, declining to comment about Hill’s sentence by Judge J. Hubbard. “This incident brought it to light.” Paired with a separate assault in another health authority, VIHA’s room-safety policy requires CDH patients in semi-private rooms with two beds to be the same gender. Efforts must also happen to separate men and women in three- and four-bed rooms. When mixed-gender rooms are necessary, there will be a minimum of two women per room, the policy stipulates. Patients in mixed-gender rooms must also be alert, mentally competent, and able to vocalize concerns. Those with violent or mental-health issues — or a history of inappropriate sexual behavior — won’t be placed in mixed-gender rooms. “Care plans are developed for each patient,” noted Germain. “If a patient is a higher risk, they won’t be placed in a shared room.” Security guards can also be posted if the patient poses a risk to themselves, or others. Still, VIHA’s room policy doesn’t stop all risks, she cautioned. “We don’t lock patients in their rooms. more on page A5
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