ihe public speaks out:

state of health care in
Terrace\NEWS A13

Citizens gather to gripe abo

is valine a word?

| Test of strength

ut the

You bet! Walter Raedeke used it
earlier this month in the Scrabble
tournament \COMMUNITY B1 ~

Terrace Bantams skate circles
around Triple-A teams in
Quesnel\SPORTS B5 —

By ALEX HAMILTON

LOCAL DOCTORS won't admit out of town pa-
tients to Mills Memorial Hospital Dec. | unless
the province gives the facility more money,

They’re also taking the action in support of
nurses at Milis who say they're understaffed to
the point that those who ‘are on’ shift are over-
worked, me

The decision brings to a head the long stand-
ing position of doctors and nurses that the. hospi-

es it provides. > °
“We're ail: tired of dancing the dance. We've
been doing that for 10 or 15. years now,” said’ sur-
geon Dr. Michael Kenyon last week.
“If the government wants to fund this as a vil-
lage hospital and not recognize its regional role,
that’s fine. We’ve been bled out,” he said.
Because Terrace takes patients from else-

WEDNESDAY
November 17, 1999

ANDA

Docs to close off admissions |

@ Nurses want to be nurses, Page A2
@ Citizens rally to the cause, Page A13

tal doesn’t receive money for the regional servic-—

where in the northwest who are too sick to be
cared for in their home hospitals, more pressure
is put on Mills, said Kenyon.

“To be a patient here you have to be the sick-
esl of the sick and that requires care. Particularly
with nurses, it’s at the. point of-no return,” he ad-
ded. “There‘are too few-of them.” “7/200 0 0

- Traditionally, doctors here have admitted pa--
tients: from Kitimat, Prince Rupert, Smithers, *

Hazelton, the: Nass Valley, Dease Lake and Ste-
wart. rr oo
A second physician, Dr. Lani Almas, said hos-
pital nurses have been short staffed ‘for the past
six months. 9 , ot
“They’re burnt out,” Almas said. “They can-

‘

hot function at that level. They can’t possibly
cope.”

The nurses shortage has been a problem here
since June, when a number of nurses retired or
quil to work elsewhere. Hospital officials have
previously said there isn’t encugh money to hire
more full time nurses and have been relying on

hiring casuals (on-call nurses who-will work only.

when needed.) -

_..,, Doctors. say-it’s ridiculous to advertise for ca- ©
sual nurses’since no-one is going to be willing to

move up to the north without’ guaranteed full
time employment.: | Ooo ae
Almas doesn’t understand how the hospital
can’t afford to hire more full time nurses, and

therefore provide more beds for patients.

/ “We used to staff for.an 85 bed hospital, why ~
can we not afford to staff for a 35 bed ward?” Al-

mas wondered.

$1.00 PLUS 7¢ GST
{82.10 plus 8¢ GST outside of the
Tatrace area}

VOL. 12 NO. 32

Over the past (wo and a half months, the hos-
pital has managed to keep admissions below 32
beds, averaging 23 beds in September, 26 beds
in October, and 24 beds from Navember- 1-13.

“We haven't operated as a fully operating
hospital in six months,” Almas said, “Every day
there is a push to get people aut, to send people
home.” ot

“1 want to-be funded so.I can practise medi-
cine-.and: -not practice -politics anymore,” ‘she

Bad ys

“Doctors will take in outside patients who are
emergency Cases. © re

~ “There. is no way that | can tum them away
medically, -legally.or morally," Almas said.
“However, we would be telling people that you

don’t transfer people here, you send them to.

Vancouver.”
Cont’d Pape A2

m@ Cry me a river!

Julie Jacobs, Dennis Hannam and Annette Martindale are. actors
in The Odd Couple, Terrace Little Theatre's season apener. The

play, which is directed by Marianne Brorup Weston, is showing at

Mayoral contenders tangle

NO KNOCKOUT punches were
landed in Friday night’s debate
between the mayoral candidates,
but voters did witness a tough test
of the three contenders in advance
of Saturday’s election.

Challenger Garry Pryce, one-
term city councillor Linda Hawes
and veteran mayor Jack Talstra
fielded questions from. the - floor
and from a media panel. Friday
night at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre in
front of an audience of about 80.

The most heated moment came
when Talstra: rebutted Hawes’
promise to bring in a policy guar-
anteeing local suppliers will: be
invited to bid on city purchases
and that preference be given to
local bids when all other factors
are equal, ,

“Tt's a little bit insulting. to our
administration, our staff-and our
workers,” Talstra said. “They: try
to find the best bargain they-can.”

He also took a more -regional
view on the sume issue, noting
Terrace benefits when people in

other northwest communities

choose to shop here...

“If everybody shopped in their
own town, Terrace would be the
loser,” he noted, — Ss

Hawes took aim at Talstra’s
campaign claims that Terrace
could get a cut of the proceeds
from the sale of timber that blew

down over the summer. in the “city.

watershed.

“It plain and simple doesn’t
work,” she said. “It's Crown land,
slumpage goes to the government
and that’s it.”

Pryce. played up his status as
the only candidate who’ doesn't
have their eye on-(he B.C, Liberal
nomination for Skeena.

> “If either one. of these candi-
dates wins. this election you can

be sure that by 2001 we'll have to”

refill the position of- mayor,” he
said. SB
There were’ also. several ques-

_ tions from Braun’s Island residents
to all.three-candidates: pressing for -

city:action lo resolve sewage and
water contamination there.

“Terrace’s sewage system :has|

not polluted the. water on. Braun’s
Island,” Hawes responded, citing

reports from the environment min-.

istry, a
 .Pryce meanwhile. said the city

should take responsibility. and. pay

“whatever it takes” to solve the
problems there. mo

All. three candidates backed
the construction: of the multiplex:

and Talstra pledged that if there's
a ‘Yes’ vote hell fight hard to
ensure the cost to taxpayers:is re-
duced. *-

. "L guarantee.we're not going to

‘use 100 percent taxpayers money

“to build it,” Talstra assured. ° =
Talstra also made it ‘clear —-

something he'd done in even
blunter terms at a Chamber of
Commerce forum two days earlier
— thal he was not happy about
council’s decision in August,
spearheaded by Hawes while he
was out of town, to go to referen-
dum.in November, —

Talstra had wanted to wait for

a February referendum that would
have. allowed more time to try ta
find other ‘sources of money to re-
duce the cost to taxpayers.

“1 tell you we've put the cart.
_ before ‘the: horse ‘here,”. Talstra

tald the Chamber forum, referring
to holding the referendum. before
getting a-better fix on financing.
“T really regret that.” ‘

“Hs too late now,” he added. :

“T still think you should: vote yes.
But'l tell-you I'll:do-my darndest
to. make sure that you don't pay
that full cost.” ee
'.. Also taised-at Friday's forum
was what would happen next if

“thé multiplex is voted down. -:

Talstra said that. privatization
options -— explored without suc-

cess.in.the past — would: likely
> have to be revisited. 5
“Pryce said that. failure of the
referendum. would reflect. the :

city’s failure to communicate, the

_ project's benefits or how it would.
_be carried out, - oe Ee
“People were unaware. of what...
was going. on. at. multiplex

the McColl Playhouse at-8 p.m. on November 18, 19, 20, 25, 26,
27, and December 2, 3, and 4, Tickets can be purchased at Uni-
glabe Courtesy Travel.

meetings,” he said.

The same “lack of vision and
initialive’, Pryce said, was the
reason attempted amalgamation
with Thornhill also failed.

Hawes rebutled that, insisting.
there were plenty of multiplex

“open houses and. other opportuni-

ties to participate.
» “The public. has been -invited to

participate in. the process every -

single solitary step-of the way.”

‘she shot back. a
’... Talstra-was asked by the media

panel ‘why ‘he didn’t “keep: his
promise of three yenrs ago that

he'd -hold-a vote on-the Nisga’a.
treaty if it became controversial, .:

Talstra responded he'd. made

that. statement when’ the process
“was still: “quite “secretive”. and
"that after extensive lobbying . the

province agreed to: put a munici-
pal representative: on its negotiat-

formed ne
The cily didn’t need a repeat: of

- the divisive experience “it. had

when there wus a-referendum on
Sunday. shopping, he added: .

Hawes~also took the line. that -
—the treaty -is all bat passed and
there’s ‘nothing the city can do’

about it
“This is vot a time lo redebate

_ this whole issue,” she sald, “The:
federal: govertment’-is. going to *

pass it come hell or high water.”

New ‘plex.
plan pushed

BY JEFF NAGEL
THE CITY cauld get $1 million to reduce the tax bite of
the multiplex if Braun’s Islanders can be persuaded to
merge with Terrace, says mayor Jack Talstra.

In return for joining the city, he suggested, Braun’s Is-
land would gel a water system free of charge that would
end problems with contaminated drinking water there.

Talstra’s plan reaches back to 1996 when a referen-
dum to merge Terrace and Thornhill failed. Had that
passed, Terrace would have received about $1,26 million
from the provincial government.

It’s this amount of moncy Talstra now wants to use on
the premise Thornhill will indeed one day join Terrace
and he says there’sa precedent in Quesnel

Talstra suggested the city use about $250,000 of that
money to ensure Braun’s Islanders pay nothing for a
water system, ‘That would leave $1 million the city could
then use to reduce the amount of borrowing required to
construct the multiplex.

Taistra noted thal in the 1996 amalgamation referen-
dum the city had leaned toward using its share of re-
Structuring grants for recreation.

“[ just want the voters to know that we as a council
are doing our besl to make sure that 100 per cent of the
burden of paying for the multiplex won’t be borne by. the
local taxpayer,” Talstra added, “We will try to reduce
that amount as much as we can.”

_ Cutting borrawing costs from $7.6 million to $6.6 mil-
Hon would trim the annual property tax increase by

‘about $5 and migh! boost voter confidence that further

reductions can be found, he said.

Talstra said there’s probably cight to nine months to
examine the idea and look for other money before con-
struction of the muliplex would begin if the vote passes,

He added it could happen quickly if there’s support on
Braun’s Island. “f don't believe it requires another vote
in Terrace,” he said, adding a vate would be needed on
Braun’s Island after a series of negotiations,

Talstra conceded using the grant now, if that’s pos-
sible, would mean the city wouldn’t be entitled to any
more if and when Thornhill or other rural areas decide to
join. He added that the city might not attempt a: large
scale amalgamation again, but rather look at cutting
deals with smaller areas to join the city.

The first step of this plan is up to Braun's Island, Tal-
stra stressed, noting the idea won’t po ahead if they’re
nol interested.

Councillor Linda Hawes, who is challenging Talstra
for the mayoralty, called his announcement a premature
one that may falsely raise expectations,

- How the city spends the $1 milllion under Talstra’s
scenario. will be up-to-the next council, she added, not

_ just the mayor. “They may sce other priorities are more

important at that time,” she added,

~~ “This raises potentially false hopes on several differ-
ent levels,” Hawes said. “There’s no firm offer.on the
table, there’s ‘10 contract, there’s nothing in writing. It's
premature,” ~ : oo
What people should remember most about the mulli-

_piex when voting in the referendum, she said, is that

faxes won’l go up for about two years, by which-time the
economy may improve ‘further,
“Taistia said he’s also fighting for a federal infrastruc-

ing team to’ keep the cily in- » ture grant for the project. If that comes through, he pro-

mised. business leaders at a Chamber of Commerc lun-
cheon ‘Wednesday, he wants to use that to reduce busi-
‘ness taxes for the multiplex more than for homeowners,
Skeena: MLA Helmut Giesbrecht said much more in-
‘vestigation is needed on the idea of tapping restructure
grants, but said it'could be a creative solution to the
drinking water problem on Braun's Island,
_"It's worth looking at,” he said, “I'm Boing to try to
advance il." —
' Braun's Island reacts, Page AlS,
Nisga’a cautious on multiplex money, Page Al5
More on multiplex financing, Page Ald ,
And the ‘no’ forecs gather, Page Al4