A4 - The Terace Standard, Wednesday, N March 1, 2006 | TERRACE TANDARD. ; ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 » So . PUBLISHER: ROD LINK , _ ADDRESS: .3210 Clinton Street Terrace, B. C. * V8G 5R2 _ TELEPHONE: (250) 638-7283 » FAX:.(250) 638-8432 | “s "WEB: www.terracestandard: com = EMAIL: newsroom@terracestandard.com a4 _The best way _ READ ANY material nowadays on health care and this phrase appears over and over again — best _ practices. It’s the foundation statement for all pronounce- "ment on providing, increasingly expensive. health ‘care. That is, for the | money we’re spending, it “ should only go to health care methods and means - that make financial sense and are best for people. Expect that phrase to be tested in the months: “ahead over the ‘plan establish in Prince George a -Tadiation treatment centre for cancer patients. _ The cost won’t be known until this summer but “it will be. expensive, very expensive: for it will “mean‘not only constructing a facility and install-. ing the equipment, but it will mean recruiting: and | _paying for jhighly skilled and \ very scarce profes- | - sionals. . At the same time, according toa study recently | ~ teleased by. the Northern’ Health Authority cand .{. the B.C. Cancer Agency, it’s going to require ad- “ditional facilities at the Prince George Regional Hospital. ° The premise behind the push for a ‘radiation ‘centre is sound — as northerners, we deserve the “same kind of health care available elsewhere i in: the: province. It’s also very political, at least in | -Prince George where a radiation treatment centre is viewed almost asa right for the north’ S largest ; - city. . ; * . And that’s where the problem occurs. A radi-. ~ ation centre can only» work in’ Prince George if each arid every cancer patient in the north is sent - there to provide the numbers to justify the expen-_ diture. _In other words, a supply. will need to be created - to justify what is a political. demand. It means that * doctors, probably the most individualistic people . . of any profession and who get decidedly cranky when anything stands in between .themselves and care for their patients, will almost have to be ‘forced to send their patients to Prince George. | _ Now consider the provincial government's lat- est effort to clear up hip and knee surgery wait lists. It’s to open two operating rooms at UBC specifically. for this. purpose, drawing i in patients _ from around the province. The idea is that con- -centrating services - “meets that “best practices” _ phrase. | So is it best to create a new ‘radiation centre in "Prince George? Or is it best to put scarce health care dollars into already- -established treatment ~centres down south? . Which will provide the _ greater value for the money spent. Does it make sense to travel to Prince George if you are from the northwest compared to a quicker _ flight down south? These are questions: which deserve only the best: . of answers if “best practices” are to follow. PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link _. ADVERTISING MANAGER: Brian Lindenbach . PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur | - "| NEWS: Sarah A: Zimmerman COMMUNITY: Dustin Quezada moa NEWS/SPORTS: Margaret Speirs "FRONT OFFICE: Darlene Keeping, Carolyn Anderson ‘CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Alanna Bentham ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: Bert Husband, Susan Willemen AD ASSISTANT: Sandra Stefanik PRODUCTION: Susan Credgeur _ SUBSCRIPTION RATES BY MAIL: $57. 94 (+$4.06 GST)=62.00 per year; _ . Seniors $50.98 (+$3.57 GST)=54.55; * Out of Province $65.17 (4$4. 56 GST)=69 .73 Outside of Canada (6 months) $156.91(+10.98 3 GST)=167. 89 GCNA astocrarion = eee NEWSPAPERS COMPETITION ° MEMBER OF . B.C. AND YUKON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION, _ CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION ~ AND ‘B.C, PRESS COUNCIL (www.b¢presscounc!l ora) Serving the Terrace and Thornhill area, Published on Wednesday of that you real- - ~ ize the number of people who - - have-had.a similar encounter. ‘in their lives. Their stories be-. -come your goals. | . Through all. of this, the kindness of people is the one . constant..One of my more in- teresting stories occurred a gouple of days after my heart “surgery while I was still in - Vancouver General Hospital. A complete’ stranger ap- peared at the end of my bed. He told me while shopping for _acar in Burnaby the salesman . told him the story of an old friend who had a heart attack and was now in Vancouver General. After listening to the sales- person. talk, he felt he needed to come down and say hello. He wanted me to know that he was in the exact same bed eight months ago and now was up and getting around just fine. “So, buddy, hang in. there. You're going to be OK.” . - A heart attack drives home the importance of finding bal- ance for each of us in our lives. It is those small actions and — decisions we.each make in our” — personal lives that make a big difference in determining our exposure to heart attacks and stroke. We each need to take the time.to take care of ourselves. That means making intelligent decisions in what we eat. Observing the rule of mod- _eration in both the selection of e what we consume as well as « the volume will goa long way" in minimizing our risk. ‘Hanging the truck keys on’. the wall and making sure we . find some way to stretch our ~ legs each and every day is ab- solutely essential. Taking the time once a year to get a medical check up lets _ you know how you’re doing. To not take the time is the “most selfish -thing any of us cando. There are people out there — for each of us that depend on us each and every day. They ~ are family and friends. They ~ are the folks we work with or the kids we might coach. They depend on us to be with, to talk to, and to take care of or just for company. __ If you won’t take the time for yourself, do it for thém. | . -I can’t imagine a better | | community to live-in as I go through my recovery. But in reality, it is an ex-— perience I would rather have done without. Pets. can cut health care costs » IF OUR health care System ” chose to be innovative we could relieve two pressures at ‘the same time ~ the growing - cost of: seniors’ medical care — and the over supply of shelter strays.” tion in the amount of medi- cations used when compan- ion animals such as dogs are brought in'to visit the elderly. Average drug costs dropped . from $3.80 (U.S.) per day to $1.18. A similar study done in . Australia on. seniors living independently showed a de- crease in medication costs of. $1.82 billion between 1994- The lower medication _ costs derive from the soothing _ effect pets have on the elder- ly, helping to reduce blood pressure, and in turn the risk couple disagrees about own- ing a pet, but that’s another story not likely to spring up in a long term care facility.) Savings of the size shown ‘by these two studies ought to . wake up any government to the financial reductions pos- sible by sacrificing some ste- rility to floating fur. Pets soothe by being good ‘Studies done in nursing homes show a marked reduc- (Unless a. ott ae THROUGH BIFOCALS | CLAUDETTE E SANDECKI companions. They | listen. .. They respond with wriggles and wags, or purrs. They : fit into the daily routine as ‘comfortably as cold toes into - warm slippers. No roommate could be easier to live with. Both cats and dogs eager- ly serve as cleaner-uppers if soup or gravy dribbles on the kitchen floor. And at night a pet curled about the feet sub- stitutes for a hot water bottle, one that’ stays warm until wake up. As an aside, both species can warn of an impending diabetic coma or epileptic seizure, as well as guard the house against smoke and mimic a doorbell. Sere aaa A dog’s need for regular walks encourages seniors to exercise outdoors where they also meet neighbours, partic- ularly young children. Rare - is the child who can pass a .. dog on a leash without ask- ” ing, “What’s his name? Can |. [pet him?” ‘This human interaction is _ beneficial for seniors.. It also assures neighbours the senior is up and about, safe. Cats require far less care beyond emptying their litter box and peeling fur felt off upholstered furniture from time to time. Nonetheless looking after _ cats prompts even the most sluggish senior to rise and do for the good of the animal. And anything that stimulates . seniors to be active, to take. an interest, to meet certain ‘commitments every day is good for their well being. Results of the two seniors’ studies come at an opportune time for Terrace. Both the Terrace and Thornhill animal shelters’ adoption fees have shot up, Terrace’s five times more than last year. Shelters are clogged with abandoned pets and may be slower to empty at these higher adop- tion rates. Adopting a Terrace dog will cost $80, a cat $50. Seniors on fixed income » will have to weigh the price of prescribed - medicine against cosy companionship before they adopt a stray. As well, the higher adoption fee will encourage dognap- _ ping of popular, expensive : breeds, already a sideline for car thieves. Beyond the extra exercise - »and reduced risk of heart at- tacks, owning a cat could serve as the perfect bluff for the senior finding it difficult to afford necessary medica- ‘tions and quality food 1 in am- ple amounts. Stocking up on. Whiskas on Seniors’ Discount Day -wouldn’t raise a checkout eyebrow. Granny could haul the catfood home and shelve it next to her salmon and soup for those. end-of-the-month meals which might otherwise be meatless. Our medical plan could of- fer a free dog or cat from the pound to every senior when _ they reach age 65. The pound would soon empty their cages while our. health care costs would di- minish. A catfood lunch wouldn’t be my choice but neither is hunger.