Nursing picture brightens for the first time in years REGISTERED NURSING VACANCIES at Mills Memorial Hospital are at their lowest level in several years, says its nursing director, And the vacancies that exist don't surprise Marg Petrick because they are in highly spe- cialized critical care areas. “We could use a few more intensive care unit nurses, a critical care float, but it's hard to find people like that,” said Petrick. “If we _ had more, we could have a second nurse on duty all the time.” “At the moment, the hospital has enough of an intensive care unit complement to have two nurses On duty about half of the time, ‘But overall, Petrick says the number of working nurses is encouraging, particularly af- ter extreme shortages, “Nurses are feeling better because there is more full time staff. It is making life a little easier.” Petrick also said the hospital also has a full She attributes some of the in- W crease in staffing ] to a nurses’ wage {contract brought in two years ago which substantial- ly increased pay. There’s also been movement in A having nurses y come from B overseas, 5 6A nurse from the Phillipines was going through ori- entation last week and another, this time from Eng- land, has been in Marg Petrick contact with the hospital. casual vacancies, Petrick said. The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, September 10, 2003 - A3 News In Brief in the making but administrative changes in the attempt to reduce the bureaucratic require- ments for foreign nurses should reduce the waiting time for the English nurse to eight months, Petrick said, “And we're only one month into it,” she said of the English nurse’s paperwork require- ments. Within Canada, the hospital is in con- tact with a nurse from Prince Edward Island. As well. as filling permanent part time posi- tions, the hospital is gradually filling out its These are on-call positions and while they may be hard to fill, some nurses prefer this kind of work because they are not committed to regular shifts at varying hours. Mills has been using licensed practical nurses to flesh out some of its registered nurs- ing vacancies. As more RNs have come on duty, licensed practical nurses have been shifted to the ca- complement of licensed practical nurses. struggling daycare tries to fill its seats A GROUP DAYCARE at the Thornhill Community Hall that suspended opera- tions earlier this summer will open Fridays to take advantage of the new four- day school week. A wait list will help de- termine if there’s enough demand to run the Thorn- hill School Aged Care pro- gram on the other week- days when schools are in session. “Until there’s a proven demand, we will focus on Friday,” Terrace Daycare Society chair Ann Peltier said. The 20-seat program has struggled since it opened in 2 new addition at the Thornhill Communi- ty Centre just over one year ago, Peltier said. “When we started on this project, it was four years ago. The mill was,,.to still running,” she said. “The economy hasn’t ‘ helped.” The program was origi- nally conceived and ap- proved under the NDP. Back then, the province _was chartering a course to- ward universal day care. Terrace was just one northwest community that received money to operate group licensed daycares aimed at school-aged children in Kindergarten to Grade 6. The Terrace Daycare Society ran the program under increasingly less op- erating money from the provincial government. Peltier said the program is now down to just 25 per cent of its original operat- ing grants. The society - and its counterparts across B.C. - have also lost a wage sup- — plement for staff. The society didn’t want ..4imply, raise, beyond what parents can reasonably afford in order to keep the doors open. - COPPER: SPIRAL WIND CHIMES OM TH inant T AL *Gucci , ¢Ralph Lauren *Harry Potter °Flexon «Silhouette eEasy Clip GLASSES and CONTACTS “ONE STOP SHOP” BUY ONE PAIR GET A SPARE for a friend or family member For your convenience & quick service, please bring in your prescription. YOUR taise, fees - The Filipino nurse's arrival was two years sual list, said Petrick. BRENDA SISSONS, left, and Ann Peltier of The Family Place, inside the Thornhill School Aged Care facility earlier this year. The Thornhill Community Hall underwent an expansion to accommodate the program. FILE PHOTO In June, the Terrace and Area Childcare Commiltee tried surveying local par- ents on what type of child care they would use, The results suggest par- ents will need full-day care on Fridays, but Pelti- er said actual demand won't be known until the four-day school week is in She doubted the reality of the four-day week would sink in for parents until this Friday, when students will be home from school en masse for the first time. “For some people it will be a shock,” Peltier said. “1 think people still | don't believe it.” She wonders if parents will simply forgo child care arrangements Monday to Thursday. She pointed out stud- ents at nearby Thornhill Primary and Elementary are now dismissed at 3:20 p.m.— which is 50 minutes later than last year, and closer to when parents are heading home. Phone: 250-638- 7667 OPEN 7 NE A WEEK - Report cards changing NEXT UP on education ministry Christy Clark’s plan to change public education is making report cards easier to read, By the start of the 2004-05 school year, she wants every school district in the province to use standardized report cards written in _language that all parents can understand. The key is to ensure parents can easily deter- mine how their children: are. doing in specific areas, Clark said last week, And having report cards: standardized means a student's performance ratings won't change just - because one’ district uses” a" different: method ‘than another's. Clark said the planned change i in report card lan- guage follows complaints made to her by parents. Kermode backed TERRACE city council is putting ils voice behind the idea of the Kermode bear being a symbol of the 2010 Winter Olympics, Council passed a motion at its Aug. 25 meeting backing the promotion of Moksgm'ol - the Tsim- shian name for a Kermode — as the symbol of the 2010 Olympics. That was in response to a request from the local 2010 Community Benefits Team. : Haida offered land THE PROVINCE has offered the Haida 20 per cent of the Queen Charlotte Islands provided the tribal group ends its court actions and returns to the bar- gaining table within six months, The land, totalling 200,000 hectares, amounts to a rare land-first treaty offer ahead of other provi- sions like cash and self-government. Along with the jointly managed park covering the South Moresby area, it would give the Haida control over more than a third of the islands. Haida leaders immediately rejected the proposal. They have launched a court case claiming out- right ownership of all of the Charlottes plus off- shore waters. Most of the land offered by the pro- vince is concentrated in the Duu Guusd area of northwest Graham Island. Apocalypse now? FORGET the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Roger Harris figures there must be at least 10. Skeena’s MLA says the range and number of ca- lamities that have hit B.C.’s loggers, farmers and tourism operators since the Liberals took power has gone beyond anyone's abilily lo forecast. “It started out with softwood lumber,” Harris says. “Then it moved to 9/11. The Afghan war. The Iraq war. SARS. West Nile, Mad cow, Forest fires.” “I think there’s actually a locust plague in Al- berta that's moving to Dawson Creek.” “In any lifetime you tend to see one or two of these things appear. But I don’t know what s what now, I-need to check the Bible,” For the record, the four horsemen of the : apoca- lypse are War, Famine, Pestilence and Death. full swing. @ proud sponsor o of CRIM gs ANNIVERSARY 2003 STOPPERS - Terrace Crime Stoppers are asking for help to solve a residential break & enter. ‘During the: afternoon hours of: Monday, August ath, 2003, a home. cn. the: 9400 block of Sparks Street was entered and. various. ‘items stolen. “The - person(s) responsible: entered the home via an unlocked rear window i fte trying to enter. through a. kitchen window. Missing from a. child's bédroom are a | Nintendo 64 and ten games. A’DVD. player and approximately 50: DVDs were stolen from the: living | room. Adtstiorally, about 20 music CDs are missing from the home. Terrace Crimestoppers wants your inlormation, ‘not your name. Any information is. valuable and may | COMMUNITIES IN CRISIS FORUM PUBLIC INPUT SESSION September 15, 9:15 am to 12 noon The City of Terrace is hosting a forum to generate ideas for the development of a Northwest Strategy to “Unleash the Fibre Basket”. With the downturn in the forest economy, we are seeking public input prior to the forum. Best Western-Terrace Inn IF you wish to be one of the 20 speakers, time has been allocated.on a first-come, first-served basis. The time allotted will be 5 minutes per speaker and will be strictly adhered to. Groups will be allowed representation by one speaker only. To register as a speaker, please call JoAnne Wakaruk, at 638-4721. lead to the arrest and conviction of the offenders. Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward of up to $1,000.00 for Information !eading to an arrest and/or con- viction. If you have any Information call “Crime Stoppers” at 635-TIPS that's 635-8477. Callers will NEVER be required to reveal tholr name or testify In court. 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