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The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, February 23, 2005 - A5

~ Skeena MLA Roger Harris says his heart aitack was deceptive and very nearly deadly

By ROD LINK

HATEVER WAS happéning to
Roger Harris, it didn’t feel right
away as if he was going to have a
heart attack. .
“I just couldn* t capture my breath,” said the
Skeena MLA in recalling what: happened: the

_ evening of Feb. 2 while playing i in an oldtimers*

tournament at the arena here.
“PE came off the ice. sat down and there was an

odd defenceman there so t asked him if he could

~ of with someone ‘having a

_ one of its first responders. F
'. “It was very nice to hear.

‘had his heart attack, flatlining
’ from what those in the cardiac busi-

take the next shift.”
“| was feeling a bit dizzy, nauseated, | hid
written it off to being a bit out of shape or some-
thing | had had for supper.”
The more Harris tried to rest,
the more he began to realize:
something was wrong.
“There wasn’t that pain’ 4
down the arm or going into.
the’ neck that you'd think

heart attack. It was more;
like somebody placing © j
a medicine ball on | your 1
chest.” 7

That's when his team-
mates stepped in, realized
something terrible was
occurring and called for
an ambulance.

“Nine out of 10 times
they might have taken
me to the dressing room
and given me a beer.
If they had done that,
we wouldn't be having
this conversation,” said
Harris.

Barely conscious by
this time, Harris remem-
bers hearing the. voice of.
Lawrence Stella, a member.
of the Terrace fire department
who was duty that. night as

that voice and then those: |
of the ambulance folk,” he
said.

Paramedics quickly took
Harris to’ Mills Memorial
Hospital and that’s where he, .

ness call a “widow maker.”

“The heart surgeon in Vancou-
ver actually used that terminology,”
said Harris in adding that the sur-
geon told him he had never had the |
benefit of talking to somebody
before who had survived that
kind of attack.

Harris paid tribute to: the
nurses at Mills and to the doc-
tors, Geoff Appleton and Bar-
rie Phillips, who brought him °
back and then stabilized him
so he could be flown to Van-
couver for surgery.

' Resting at home following
triple bypass surgery on Feb.

5, Harris, 52, said. he never

considered himself a candidate

for heart trouble.

“Most people are surprised it hap-

pened to me. I’ve never smoked, there’s never

been any hint of heart disease in my family,” he

said. _ Be
Jronically, Harris, who has kept physically ac-

tive, said he told his wife Katherine he wanted to

play hockey that night to bring his cardio condi-

tioning back up again.
Looking ‘back, Harris said a combination of

events involving lifestyle, dict and other factors -

that came together to cause his heart attack. And it
was a combination of events keyed to quick think-

ing by his teammates and excellent medical care.

which kept him alive.

“Everything lined up very poorly, but then ev-
erything couldn’t have lined up better,” he said.

Although Harris felt he took reasonably good
care of himself, the one thing he never did do was
to undergo regular medical checkups which could
have told him he was going to have trouble.

“It was quite clearly something I should have
done. People need to pay attention to themselves

Nine out of 10 times
they might have taken

and given me a beer. If

they had done that, we -
wouldn’t be having this
conversation.”

and most is preventable. I never made the time for

_ myself that I should have,” he said.

Harris was less sure that the stress and strain

of the demands of politics brought him that much

closer to having/a heart attack.

“The one thing I didn’t have was a regular.
sleep pattern. I can’t imagine it doesn’t play a
role,” Harris continued. ,

Harris is committed to running again in the.
May 17 provincial election, saying he enjoys his

job and wants to finish what he started.

A final decision will depend upon follow up
assessments with the key one taking place in sev-
eral weeks,

“Thad a good discussion with my doctor. What
they did was break my chestbone. They said that
when. you break your leg, it is pul into a cast for
six weeks, not two weeks, It’s six weeks and after
that itis building up strength again. What they” re
saying is to take care of my health first." Harris
said. ,
He’s on an extremely limited schedule, leav-

Recognizing symptoms is key

me to the dressing room

ACCORDING to the Canadian BH Nausea, indigestion or

Heart and Stroke Foundation, . vomiting a

British Columbians need to | Sweating or cool, clam- a
: . Superior

do some work when it comes my skin Vene Cava

to recognizing the signs of a

‘heart attack. .
According to a recent sur-"

vey done by the foundation,
only 30 per cent of people can
name two or more symptoms
of a heart attack.

Here’s what to watch for:

M Sudden discomfort or
pain that doesn’t go away with
rest

@ Pain that may be in the
chest, neck, jaw, shoulder,
arms or back

Hi Pain that feels like burn-
ing, squeezing, heaviness,
lightness or pressure

B Difficulty breathing or
shortness of breath

phone number is 638-1102

(Aspirin) tablet or two 80 mg

MB Fear, anxiety or denial

If you experience any of
these signs contact your lo-
cal emergency phone number’
immediately. In Terrace that

for the ambulance. oe

W Stop all activity and sit
orlie down |

Hilf you take nitroglycerin.
take your normal dosage

If you are experiencing
chest pain, chew and siwal-
low one adult 325 mg ASA

tablets. Do not use pain medi-
cations such as acetamino-
phen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen
(Advil).

Inferior
’ Vena Cava

ff

An open
letter to my
constituents

I'VE BEEN TOUCHED. by the
hundreds of letters, e-mails and
calls expressing concern and sup-
port that I have received over the-
past few weeks. It is a testament
to the character of the people of
the Skeena region, and all British
- Columbians.

I am still in recuperation mode
~ and likely will be for the next few
weeks — but I feel better with each
passing day. I'm going for short
walks now and slowly, but surely,
regaining my strength.

I] would like to take this oppor-
tunity to express appreciation from
my family and tf to all of those peo-

_ple who helped in allowing me to be
here today.

First of all thank you to all the
oldtimer hockey players who so
quickly came to my assistance al
the arena when it was apparent that |

—was in some difficulty. Their quick -
thinking in calling for assistance
turned out to be'very critical.

Thanks to the Terrace Fire De-
partment and ambulance service for.
their fast response. These are two °
invaluable services in our commu--
nities manned by exceptional peo-
ple doing an exceptional Job for all

of us. .
_. The actions of the staff at Milis ;
_Memorial Hospital are something |
will always be grateful for. Every-
one from the doctors through to the
‘nurses and other support staff were
instrumental in making sure that |
am, still here today. My family and

| can not thank you enough.

- The timeliness of the air evacu- :
ation and skilled care of the statf .
at the Vancouver General Hospital
were critical in giving . me another
chance at life.

Words can't describe the- grali-
tude of my family for the support

_ rawe've received from so many of you
a ross the comnfifnity. 1 do intend to
“ rébly to eagh-ef you eventually, but
i | am conéeatfating on my re-
_covery. | am confident | will soon
"fully regain my strength and health.
Sincerely,

Roger Harris :
MLA for Skeena | .

ing most of the everyday work to his constituency

assistants.
“Lactually feel pretty good. ‘Phere are a num-
ber of things in the pipeline but the the key is not
to have self-imposed pressure points,” he said.
He acknowledged the calls, cards and letters
from people wishing him well.
“That amount of support is really important,
But its not so important for me. [ve been cast
a dic. That support is for the victims, if that's the

right word, the parents and family, What that sup- |

port does is really lift (hem, [t lifts their spirits.”
What Harris isn’t looking forward to is a dras-
tic change in his diet.
“Pama redneck in one area. But I'm now go-
ing to become a tofu specialist. | fear it's “good-

‘bye’ to everything that tastes good,” he said.

- HEART STATS

Canadians experience a
heart attack
- In 2001, 19,000 Cana-

tack
@ Half of heart attack

‘hours after the beginning
of a heart attack and/or
before the victim reaches
the hospital

i More than 80 per cent
of heart attack victims ad-
mitted to hospital survive

M@ On average, Canadi-
ans wait five nearly five
hours before seeking
medical attention, greatly
reducing the chances of
survival

™ Each year 70,000 F

dians died from a heart at-

deaths occur within two —

CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD

The Mail Bag

Mining gets thumbs up
if it is done properly |

Dear Sir:

Re: “NDP opposition to mining plan assailed by.cabi-

Net minister” in the Feb. 16, 2005 issue of The Terrace
Standard.”

I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised ‘that Pat Bell.
Gordon Campbell's minister of state for mining, would
misrepresent. my position on mining in northwestern B.C.

=~ After all, there is an election coming and he is desper-

-salmon runs and effectively wipe out a caribou herd that:

ate {6 try anything'to bolster his lagging : popularity. among :
ordinary British Columbians.

However, please allow me the opportunity to set the:

record straight and stay above destructive partisan bicker-.
ing. which threatens our economy. ;
~ Lam not, and never have been, against mining. “In fact,
prior to being elected I spent much of my time success-
fully facilitating meetings and negotiations for the mining
industry.
B.C. NDP leader Carole James has had a very positive
meeting with the B.C, and Yukon Mining Association.

My position is that any economic development, in-

cluding mines, that goes through a meaningful consulta-
tion process with local citizens, including First, Nations,
and that will not negatively impact the environment, isa
good investment.

In the case of the Tulsequah Chief mine, the consulta-
lion: that took place showed that building a road in this
pristine: wilderness would irreparably impact sensitive

the Taku First Nation-relies on.

Gordon Campbell and the DFO chose to ignore these’
facts after secret. negotiations with representatives of the ~~
mining company. That makes this particular project one ”

_ that I cannot support as it is proposed,

"ment to put in place infrastructure and programs that will .

My record clearly: shows that I am working very hard
for the economic development of the northwest.
day. in Ottawa and at home'l am pressuring the govern-

create long-term sustainable jobs for the people of my: rid-
ing. ~

If those jobs ¢ come from well-planned, environmen-
tally sound mines, I will be the first to jump on board and’

‘ensure that they become reality.
y ‘Nathan Cullen, MP
_ Skeena-Bulkley Valley

Smithers, B.C,

Marriage must stay
_ between man, \ woman

7 ‘Dear Sir:

, government's 's bill,. effectively. denying them, the fight: to *

- An article in the Feb. 2, 2005: issue of The Terrace 7
Standard, “MP Backs Same-Sex Marriage” contained a.

couple of points which need clarification:
The article says that Paul Martin has promised a “free”
voté on same-sex marriage. This reminds me of the “free”

trade arrangement we have with the US. Pau) Martin has |

actually ordered -his, 39 cabinet: ministers;to support the

vole ‘according to their consciences and the wishes of their
constituents.
_ Of course, this does not free them of the moral obli: ga-
tion to oppose this terrible legislation but it assures them
that they will be punished if they break ranks.
‘The Supreme Court, for all its inconsistencies, did not
rule that marriage limited to one man and one woman was
unconstitutional. It only said that the government could
‘ introduce legislation to allow same- >-SEX marriage, not that

it must.
- The phrase “sexual orientation” upon which the homo-

sexual lobbyists keep directing media attention, is nota *

» legitimate part of the Charter. It was illegally inserted into

the Charter in 1995 by the Supreme Court, contrary to the
amending formula.

The original Charter, adopted by Parliament in 1982
did not contain the words “sexual orientation”.
time, Jean Chretien said the phrase was “too vague to
be included in any legislation”. What is a legitimate, part
of our Constitution is its opening statement: “Canada is

founded upon principles which recognize the supremacy

of God and the rule of law.” In Canadian law, God is Su-
preme, even.over the Supreme Court. Laws, therefore,

which violate His principles are unconstitutional. . °.
Those who support same-sex legislation are falling

all over themselves to convince the Canadian people that |

churches and religious groups will be protected from
criminal charges if they refuse to participate in homosex-
ual marriage ceremonies.

This is not only misleading but also beside the point.
It’s misleading because nothing in the legislation will pro-
tect churches or individuals from civil lawsuits such as are
already being brought against people like Scott Brockie,

the Ontario printer who was taken to court for refusing .

to print materials promoting homosexuality, something
which would have violated his conscience,
It’s beside the point because the issues around homo-

sexual marriage are not only religious in nature but have .

to do with the future of our society, it’s social health, fam-
ily stability, our public education system, and the preser-
vation of our moral underpinnings.

Family values are not confined to those who attend
churches, mosques: and synagogues although they ought

to be defended. by all those who do. '

Even Canadians who claim no particular faith under-
stand the dynamics of the family structure and the social
good that comes when one generation passes sound moral
values to its children within the context of a home.

The most desirable home for most children, giving:

them the best chance to develop into healthy, well-adjust-
ed adults is a home with both a mother and father present.
. This is not always possible. One or both parents may die.
‘Marriages sometimes fail. That is no reason to redefine
marriage and the family. It is a reason to work even harder

_ to strengthen families and promote sound moral values.

Marriage between one man and one woman is the foun-
dational unit of our society. Our children need us 10 pro-
tect it now.

Rod Taylor,

Smithers, B.C.

About the Mail Bag
The Terrace Standard welcomes letters. Our
address is 3210 Clinton St., Terrace, B.C. V8G S5R2.
You can fax us at 250-638-8432 or e-mail us at
newsroom @terracestandard.com. Noattachments, please.
Name, address and phone number required for verification,

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