The Chilliwack
Progress Wednesday
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Lions Festival
Friends
Chiefs
The Lions Dance and Music Festival gets under way this week.
Odd Fellows step forward.
Tkachuk nets winner over Spruce Kings.
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Hospitals jammed but Fraser Health is predicting progress
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Chilliwack hospital among the most congested Jeff Nagel Black Press Hospitals in Fraser Health remain severely congested despite the launch of a new strategy last year to improve patient flow, according to the authority’s latest statistics. Less than 39 per cent of the region’s emergency patients last year were admitted to hospital within 10 hours – far below a provincial target of 55 per cent – suggesting hallway medicine remains rampant in ERs. The numbers were worst at Langley and Delta hospitals (both at 29 per cent), Peace Arch (31 per cent), Mission Memorial (32 per cent), and Surrey Memorial and Chilliwack General (both at 32 per cent.) That means more than twothirds of ER patients in all those hospitals typically waited longer than 10 hours for a bed. Other key capacity indicators in the health region’s newly released monthly report card show hospitals across the region are also struggling to meet targets to limit the average length of patient stay, the number of patients staying more than 30 days and the proportion of patients who could instead be treated at home or in other settings instead of hospital. Fraser Health board chair Karen Matty said ERs are jammed right now from the annual winter surge, mainly due to large numbers of patients arriving sick from the flu. “You don’t build an airport for the Christmas rush and you don’t build a hospital for the flu season,”
Kyle Hislop assembles his sleeping quarters atop Royal LePage Wheeler Cheam Realty on the first day of his fundraiser, Living on the Roof, on Monday. He will be up there until Feb. 6 for Ann Davis Transition Society. The goal is to raise $5,000. Those wishing to donate can do so in person at the Royal LePage office at 8-8337 Young Rd., or online at kylehislop.com/sponsor-me. JENNA HAUCK/ PROGRESS
Walking the coldest night of the year 2nd annual event raises funds and awareness to fight homelessness The Progress
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It might be a little chilly out there. The Coldest Night of the Year is a night-time fundraiser Feb. 21 for the hungry, hurting and homeless of Chilliwack. “We are hoping to have 25 teams join us,” said Tim Bohr, director of community ministries for Salvation Army. Teams will be heading out from the Salvation Army Church
at around dusk to complete 2km, 5km or 10km walks to help the local soup kitchen and homeless shelter. They are aiming to raise $25,000. The Salvation Army and Kiwanis Clubs of Chilliwack and Sardis are partnering up for the second year to host the special fundraiser. “The money we raised will also go toward helping us increase capacity to house the homeless,” said Bohr. “Our shelter provides a
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30-day program designed to transition those affected by homelessness from the streets into sustainable, affordable housing.” They helped 113 people get off the streets last year. “The other beneficiary of this event will be the Soup Kitchen, which provided a total of 26,836 meals to the Homeless last year. With recent efforts by city officials, in collaboration with community partners, to take a compassionate, proactive approach to problem homeless camps, this
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event provides caring citizens of Chilliwack the opportunity to do something tangible that will directly help the homeless,” said Bohr. They held a press conference at City Hall on Friday to launch the Coldest Night fundraiser, as the location on Young Road is along the 2km route for the walk. Mayor Sharon Gaetz said she was happy to take part in 2014, and is gearing up to run the 10km loop again this year. “I’m so pleased to support this worthy endeavour,” she said.