Dawson Trail Dispatch
Celebrating Over 20 Years of Service to Our Communities!
Canoeists Take On the Roseau River
There was no lack of enthusiasm among the participants during this year’s derby.
On May 25, the tiny community of Stuartburn was overflowing with enthusiastic canoeists, all eager to hit the water for an adventurous paddle along the Roseau River. This is the second year that the Roseau River Canoe Derby took place, after returning last year from a twenty-year hiatus. Organizers say that despite a cool start of 8°C and drizzle, and a few less entries this year the sun came out and it could not have been better. Last year’s event attracted around 500 visitors. Participants consisted of both local residents and people who came in from Lac du Bonnet, La Broquerie, Richer, Winkler, and Île Des Chênes. There was no shortage of canoes, kayaks, tubes and homemade barges gathered at the start line in Stuartburn in the morning. From there, the group traveled a distance of 11km along the Roseau River, to the Roseau River Park.
As part of revitalizing tourism along the Roseau River, the Emerson-Franklin Tourism Committee has been mapping and adding signs along the river to make it a more enjoyable experience for paddlers.
No canoe? No problem!
June 2019
Bethesda Security to be Reviewed Security will be enhanced at Eden Mental Health Centre and Boundary Trails Health Centre thanks to a memorandum of understanding recently signed between the Province and Southern Health. The agreement has opened the door to a review of other facilities in the region, which could see security improvements at Bethesda Regional Health Centre. Eden Mental Health Centre is where patients throughout Southern Health–Santé Sud’s region go for mental health services. Kym Kaufmann, Chief Executive Officer for Eden Health Care Services said the addition of security will also help improve access to mental health services for all Manitobans. “The introduction of security services will allow Eden Mental Health Centre to be better able to meet the mental health needs of residents of southern Manitoba, while ensuring safety of all patients and staff,” said Kaufman. Jane Curtis, Chief Executive Officer, Southern Health–Santé Sud health region, said this will also help ensure that clients experience safe, high-quality and timely care. “The implementation of the enhanced security at Eden is an important step toward achieving this goal,” explained Curtis. “As part of this process, we are also reviewing the security needs at other regional centres.” The agreement will see the region and health centre cost-share a security contract that allows two on-site security personnel to be placed at Eden on a 24-7 basis. This will allow the facility to admit clients at risk of or already exhibiting violent behaviour while reducing the need for patients to wait in the emergency department for access to an acute psychiatric bed. It will also lessen the need for police to supervise patients at Boundary Trails while they await an assessment or admission. This is a crucial step to adding security to other facilities in the region, including Bethesda Regional Health Centre in Steinbach. Currently, violent patients who arrive at the facility remain in RCMP care until they are released into the care of a qualified professional, which subsequently also ties up local policing resources. These security enhancements were recommended in the VIRGO report, which outlined a strategy to improve mental health and addictions services in Manitoba.