Residents urged to practice water safety as Mounties say most B.C. drownings are preventable
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
26 minutes ago
- CBC
Mobile outreach team hits the road in Cumberland County
Social Sharing A mobile outreach team is on the road in Nova Scotia's Cumberland County, something community partners say is a significant step forward in addressing the toxic drug and overdose crisis in the region. Ashley Legere, executive director of Cumberland Homelessness and Housing Support Association, submitted an application for federal funding in collaboration with the Town of Amherst. The initiative, which also includes the YMCA of Cumberland's community development program, the Amherst Police Department and Nova Scotia Mental Health and Addictions as partners, received almost $365,000. "It's huge," said Legere, whose organization is based in Amherst but supports communities throughout the largely rural county. "This funding and the access to the mobile outreach vehicle will provide lifesaving interventions, prevention, across a much needed demographic," she said. Recovery journey Legere said the team can provide more timely access to services such as detox and treatment, helping clients access care even if it is outside the county. The team will also provide harm reduction supplies and connect people to mental health, addiction and housing supports. "Connect that person, do the intake, and then drive them to their appointment so they can start their recovery journey immediately. That is the really the meat of this program," she said. As a result of the funding, she said three positions that pay a living wage have been created and people with lived experience have been hired. "One of our peer outreach workers actually is a tenant of ours," said Legere. "We were able to hire someone who went from crisis to stability, from homelessness to housing and now is able to support individuals who he may not that long ago had been living with or supported by himself." Filling gaps Amherst deputy mayor Hal Davidson said, "Now we have an opportunity to have people that are in the business, that know the business, that are able to provide the services directly on an emergency basis." Davidson said the mobile outreach team will fill gaps that police can't — something the Amherst chief of police echoes. "We're always going to be there to help as well," said Chief Dwayne Pike. "We just can't provide that in-depth assistance that people often need. So when it comes to somebody who's in crisis, this is a person that can come along and sit with them, help them at the hospital." Pike said the mobile outreach team will also alleviate pressure on Amherst police resources. The new initiative is a part of a growing number of support services in the town. Earlier this year, Amherst's integrated youth services site, operated by YMCA and the IWK children's hospital, was the first in Nova Scotia to open. Legere's team is also working to open an emergency youth shelter. That's in addition to 10 emergency beds and six supportive housing units for adults.
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
With syphilis cases in N.L. on the rise, experts hope to curb numbers with increased testing
The sexually transmitted and blood-borne disease has been a growing concern for health-care professionals across the country for years. In Newfoundland and Labrador, case numbers increased by over 150 per cent over the past two years, causing those in sexual health care to promote regular testing.
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Measles cases in Alberta pose risk for the territory, says N.W.T. public health
As many people living in the Northwest Territories travel through Alberta over the summer, the territory's chief public health officer says that comes with a risk of measles exposure and she's urging residents to check their vaccination status. "This is something we're watching very carefully," Dr. Kami Kandola said. As of July 24, Alberta has seen 1,511 measles cases this year, the latest data available from the province shows. Of them, 465 have been detected in northern Alberta, the second most affected region behind southern Alberta. Kandola said this is an area that sees a lot of traffic from N.W.T. residents, which increases the risk of the infection returning north with travellers. Measles is an airborne disease, so it can be contracted even after the contagious person has left the area. "Measles is very talented at finding the susceptible people because it is so contagious," said Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Alberta Hospital. Saxinger said if an active measles case is near someone who is not immunized against it, there is a 90 per cent chance that person will contract it. "There's a significant suspicion [that] there's a lot more spread that isn't being captured in the case counts," she said. It is likely that health care workers in Alberta are only seeing the sickest patients, and that many people weathering out the illness at home are going undetected, she said. Kandola said she doesn't expect the same to be true in the Northwest Territories because of its smaller communities. "If someone is visiting, they see someone with a big red blotchy rash on their face and they know they had travelled or they knew that they were sick," she said, "everyone will be talking, and we would find out sooner or later if someone had measles." In the N.W.T., the Tłı̨chǫ region is the most vulnerable, Kandola said. In other regions, over 90 per cent of five-year-olds have received at least one dose of the vaccine, but the rate drops to 77 per cent in the Tłı̨chǫ. Back to school With a month to go before the start of back-to-school season, the window to get children immunized against measles before they return to the classroom is narrowing. "You would want them to have a couple of weeks before school start to have full effect from the vaccination," Saxinger said. "It'll be pretty tight even if people start looking into it right now," Children need two doses of the vaccine, given at least four weeks apart, to be considered fully immunized. Yellowknife Catholic Schools temporarily closed two of its schools in early May after the chief public health officer warned that children might have been exposed to a case of measles. Adam Murray, the school board's superintendent, said they have a close relationship with public health authorities ahead of the new school year, and praised their response in the spring. He noted clinics were set up in schools afterward and that more children have been able to get vaccinated since. "We'll be well prepared for this," Murray told CBC. "We're looking forward to a healthy school year." Immunization rates are only updated yearly for the territory, but Kandola said there has been a surge in demand for measles vaccines since the case detected in May. "That's a really good sign," she said.
