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May 6, 2020 ~ Vol. 90 No. 18 $1.00
Crowsnest Pass
Herald Serving the CnP SinCe 1930
David Selles photo
University of Lethbridge Student Meagan Lahoda returned to the Crowsnest Pass after finishing her semester in Lethbridge and wanted to create something to bring a smile to residents during the pandemic. She created wonderful chalk art in front of the Provincial Building in Blairmore for people walking by to enjoy. This is one of many things people can see throughout the community that shares some positivity during this time.
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2 – Crowsnest PAss HerALD – Wednesday, May 6, 2020 20051AA3
Pincher Creek Associate doctors give update Rural doctors say only way to move forward is with agreement
DaviD SelleS Pass Herald Reporter
Physicians at The Associate Clinic in Pincher Creek are feeling forced by government changes to rural healthcare. Dr. Samantha Myhr, a physician at The Associate Clinic, says due to changes announced by the Alberta government, physicians at the clinic have withdrawn hospital services. "Essentially, we had made the decision as a clinic, because of the changes that rolled through unilaterally by the government on April 1st, to focus on clinic and withdraw hospital services. At the time that was almost all of us and two more were still deciding and then because of pressure from communities and their MLA's we finally got to the minister at least to care
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enough to look at the issue. We didn't get his ear because we've been trying that for months. Two physicians, a town Councillor and our mayor went to visit with Minister Shandro in person and bring him the 350 letters from our community and obviously they still rolled through with the changes after that anyway." Now all nine physicians have decided to withdraw their hospital services. Dr. Myhr says the changes announced on April 24th by Minister Shandro simply aren't enough for her and fellow physicians to change their course. "I think because of pressure from his rural caucus, which is of course a direct result of community support, he rolled back some of the changes but it was really not enough. What that showed us on the 24th was that government was still really not listening. It's not about piecemeal changes and putting some of the things that were taken away back. It's about the trust and certainty that comes with an agreement. I don't think they understand the effect that it has on retaining physicians but mostly recruiting physicians and because of those changes and walking back the changes really it's been this shifting environment week-toweek for us it feels like. With the government able to make changes on a whim unilaterally we don't have any end in sight to that." Dr. Myhr says the clinic has already lost one recruit and a second is looking elsewhere. "Because of that, we have lost a recruit that was supposed to be coming this summer from BC and was interested in the surgical training, which would be fantastic for us since we only have one surgeon who is on call all the time. She had been planning to come for months and ever since these changes were announced back in the fall she was weary and now has decided she can't deal with the uncertainty and is out. Our other recruit that's supposed to come this summer is also looking elsewhere." The focus is solely on finding an agreement that will allow rural physicians to move forward. That agreement will need to be put in place by
the Alberta government with the Alberta Medical Association, who are a group of physicians that have been elected by other physicians around the province to represent the needs of all communities and also look at advancements that can be made in all medicine. "We're realizing how important it is to have that certainty with that agreement. His announcement didn't change anything with that so we haven't changed anything with our stance either." Dr. Myhr says that it's no small task to ensure everything is as it should be for patient care. "It's a big undertaking to make sure that all the things are in place so that we can still care for our patients after hours not being in the hospital and going through meetings with AHS and trying to make sure we can assist them in getting coverage for the hospital as much as possible. Without an agreement to give us certainty that they aren't just going to take everything away again, we aren't going to go through the process of flip flopping every time the government does." According to Dr. Myhr, it's up to AHS to cover the care of patients requiring time in hospital. "It does depend on what AHS can find for coverage. The government has said over and over again that they've got replacement physicians. We're hoping that's true. Given how hard it's been for us to recruit it seems unlikely. But it is AHS's responsibility to man the hospitals and we gave them a huge heads up because we want them to be able to do that so patient care is interrupted as little as possible but we know that if we don't put pressure on and try to raise the awareness of this issue then rural hospitals all over Alberta are going to end up understaffed anyway. People will leave and no one is coming in this environment.” Dr. Myhr says the physicians in Pincher Creek will still be providing as much help as possible. "We will be doing extra clinic hours, we'll take care of our patients after hours by phone as much as possible but it's all on AHS to staff the emergency departments and hospitals." This also isn't a situa-
tion that is unique to Pincher Creek. It's being felt across all rural communities in Alberta. "I'm part of the Rural Sustainability Group that was trying to raise awareness of this crisis that's coming and we're still getting lots of input from physicians around the province and overwhelmingly the response after the announcement on the 24th was physicians saying they're done with this government and it's making them done with this province. There will be a lot more physicians just leaving, which will be incredibly unfortunate. The one thing that everybody has said that would help them get past this is an agreement. Who would feel comfortable working for an employer that has torn up your contract and can change things day-to-day without your input at all and with no recourse?" As for what's next for rural physicians, Dr. Myhr says demonstrating the effects of no agreement will happen to ensure the government sees what could happen. "There are things happening across the province in various ways. We know we have a lot of community support. We are trying to highlight the extreme drain that's going to happen. Part of that will be demonstrating the amount of physicians that are leaving, closing their practices or retiring early in addition to the physicians that have withdrawn hospital services." Dr. Myhr says there was also a letter penned by 170 medical students saying things need to change and an agreement needs to be reached because this is making those students not want to come to or stay in Alberta. According to Dr. Myhr, 87 percent of the current doctor residents polled are considering leaving Alberta. Dr. Myhr says highlighting what's going on is essential moving forward. "We're trying to highlight it from various different levels and a different lens because it seems like the government doesn't understand that this is not at all about money." The Pass Herald also tried to reach out to doctors at the Crowsnest Medical Clinic multiple times but did not hear back from them
Wednesday, May 6, 2020 - Crowsnest PAss herAlD - 3
In the lIne of fIre Between April 27 and May 4, Crowsnest Pass RCMP responded to a total of 51 calls for service including the following reported incidents. Three (3) assaults, three (3) threats/harrassments, one (1) mischief (vandalism), three (3) thefts, two (2) disturbing the peace, four (4) other criminal codes, five (5) other provincial statutes, eleven (11) driving complaints, two (2) motor vehicle collisions, five (5) assistance to general public, five (5) suspicious occurrences, four (4) assistance to other agencies, one (1) 911 call (invalid), one (1) false alarm and one (1) animal call. Hit and Run On April 27th, 2020, there was a complaint of a hit and run to a parked vehicle on a residential street in Coleman. A 2005 Land Rover was damaged on the driver’s side. Traffic Complaint On April 27th, 2020, there was a complaint of a vehicle that went through
a red light. The vehicle was located and the driver was charged with a Traffic Safety Act offence. Theft On April 27th, 2020, there was a complaint of theft of a TV from a business at Crowsnest Mall. A 24-year-old female suspect was identified and charged. She was released on documents for Pincher Creek Court. Camping Complaint On April 29th, 2020, at approximately 10pm, there was a complaint of two males camping and having an open fire at a closed campground at Crowsnest Lakes. The males from the Lethbridge area had been drinking and were advised of the closure and were told to leave in the morning due to being intoxicated. Driving Complaint On April 29th, 2020, there was a complaint of a possible intoxicated driver in Coleman. The vehicle was located and stopped. The 21-year-old
~ rCMP news ~
male driver showed signs of drinking. He was given a 72-hour drivers licence suspension, along with tickets for no insurance, no registration, driving carelessly, driving without a licence in his possession and possession of liquor in a motor vehicle. His vehicle was towed. Erratic Driving On May 2nd, 2020, there was a complaint of erratic driving/ road rage on highway 507 west of Pincher Creek. The vehicle was stopped on highway 3 near Blairmore. A 67-year-old driver was charged with dangerous driving and released on documents for Pincher Creek Court. Illegally Parked Vehicle On May 2nd, 2020, Police noted a vehicle parked illegally in Coleman. The licence plate was not associated to the vehicle and therefore the vehicle was towed. Disturbance Complaint On May 2nd, 2020, there was a complaint of
The Simple Raven’s Post by Avner Perl
Life is a story I was less than a foot tall, (a Primie) not equipped to survive even three hours without help. I couldn’t see or communicate more than scream for a brief time. Something changed. Twenty years later I could survive on my own and function in a complicated society. How did it happen? The chief ingredient was and is what I believe. I believe what comes to me from stories. Even what I see or hear remains in my mind in the form of stories I recall and tell myself. Do I remember what happened when I was learning how to walk? Not really, but my parents told the story and I remember it slightly differently. I recall the story in my own words. Stories shape individuals as well as societies. Stories, which are just words; create. The stories we believe are true make us who we are and even determine what we will do or not do. There are stories that we treat as an art form while there are others that we believe to be a reality. A superb example in our age are the stories about or by science. It’s proven and we can’t doubt it. The world is a ball of magma hurling through space; we have seen it. We live on the thin surface, shielded by a little bubble we call the atmosphere. I learned how to read early in life, perhaps around five. The first book of stories, which I still have, was a volume with translated stories by Hans Christian Andersen, a most famous Danish writer. His children’s stories more or less shaped the thinking of the North European people. The Little Match girl thought me compassion for poor people, The Little Mermaid was all about love while The king’s New Clothes demonstrated another life lesson. People will believe in any impossible story if they can benefit from doing so. Believing is based on proof, like science, but can be altered by a greedy mind. The other influence that shaped me came from Old Testament Biblical stories, which I learned in school. Good stories they were until I began to read the Bible on my own. By the age of sixteen, I decided that I didn’t believe in God. Shortly after we moved to Canada and for the first time I had my personal copy of the New Testament and became a convert to my own religion. Here was a story that appealed to me. In Canada in the late sixties, I purchased a little black and white television set which opened my mind to alternative stories. The most influential upon me was
disturbance at a business in Coleman. The suspect left the business and police located and arrested him for uttering threats, causing disturbance, dangerous driving, failing to stop for police and breach of probation. He was also arrested on outstanding charges from Lethbridge City Police. He was remanded in custody for a court hearing in Lethbridge. Fire On May 2nd, 2020, there was a report of a fire in Forestry area outside of Coleman. The fire appears to be of a suspicious nature and is under investigation. Anyone having information can contact the RCMP detachment or Crimestoppers Tips. Effective immediately the RCMP office will be limited to persons attending detachment. If you need to attend the detachment, there will be limited persons at the detachment including front counter. Please call to make appointment at 403 562 2867.
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the series of Star Trek. Here was a story about humans becoming an admirable species using technology yet undreamed of. They explored worlds that offered other possibilities that we never considered possible. Above the fascination with technology, Star Trek dealt with two other major interests of mine. First was the possibility of human beings training themselves to be honorable, curious discoverers, and willing to fight for principles above all peace. The character of Spock was extremely interesting. A superman, in a way, he was half Vulcan. His people had a rough past and learned to suppress their emotions and use logic to solve all problems. The next aspect I was very much attracted to was the philosophical theories that were dealt with on different planets that the Starship Enterprise visited. The crew of the ship often found themselves on planets similar to Earth but where societies grew to believe in a variety of philosophies. I imagine the Starship Enterprise coming to a world like ours today. They discover a world of humans where an elite of wealthy humans is in the process of replacing the labor force with Artificial intelligence and robots. A deadly pandemic is reducing the poorest population who are helpless against an advanced military force beyond their ability to fight against. The elites are drowning in comfort, involved in sex, even pedophilia, and like to keep things as they are. They own the Inteligencia, which in that age are the Theoretical Physicists. The impoverished masses are looking for ways to survive. In comes, the Starship governed by the old USA constitution trying to restore balance and save billions of innocent lives. In their story “we the people” rule themselves for the benefit of all. Imagining a story is not easy. The author must present a problem and discover a way to solve it. What would be a reasonable way to solve a conflict of a species immersed in inequality that will destroy a beautiful world? The answer comes from the history of Humankind itself. People value most their own lifetime and life is only precious if it exists relative to all that surrounds it. In my Star Trek story, the captain finds a few of the elites who are abhorred by the plan to replace most humans and hand the world over to a few lucky corrupt individuals. Some, more humane elites, join up with intellectuals and people of high morals to spoil the takeover attempt. They discover a cure for the pandemic and convince the armies not to fight against the common people. My memory of the old Star Trek episodes is fading. All I remember is that there were a few that dealt with the exceptional power of faith and belief. In one a weapon was used which had no physical means to harm people but in the right hands, it killed. Officer Spock explained that it was similar to the wellproven placebo effect. My studies show that it is possible. My historical observations demonstrate that we are the stories we tell ourselves, but we must “know” that the stories are true. You can’t believe what you don’t know to be true or know something and not believe. It has been many years since I read the story about “The King’s New Clothes”. Here is a link to my blog: https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/ Feel free to check other articles and comment.