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New
Brunswick
GAGETOWN —
Deadly purple rain
Agent Purple, a herbicide containing three times
the levels of cancer-causing dioxins as the notorious
Agent Orange, was sprayed on the CFB Gagetown base outside
of Fredericton in 1966, the CBC has discovered. "These
are very toxic agents to human health, something to
be very concerned about in public health," commented
Ottawa leukemia specialist Dr Richard van der Jagt.
The Canadian government allowed the US to test the herbicide
during the Vietnam war, as well as for clearing foliage
during military training exercises. Several locals plan
to claim damages for their subsequent ill health. SB
Nova
Scotia
HALIFAX —
Dangling carrot
Deputy Health Minister Cheryl Doiron recently
urged more doctors to jump on the alternative funding
program (AFP) bandwagon. About a third of Nova Scotia's
doctors have chosen to take part in the program, under
which they are paid a salary rather than fee-for-service.
"Doctors are not quite as pushed in their agendas at
times to be able to get them into and out of the office,"
Ms Doiron enthused at a legislative committee meeting.
SB
Prince
Edward Island
CHARLOTTETOWN
— Cut!
No, don't cut OK, cut After feeling the heat
from Island physicians and residents, Health Minister
Chester Gillan backtracked on a decision to scale back
the province's 24 hour suicide help line. In fact, the
government may do a complete 180 and expand the services
of the help line to include treatment for those addicted
to gambling. Unfortunately, it seems something else
had to give. Replacing the help line on the chopping
block is the province's only full-time palliative care
worker. "We got a Best Practice Award from Health Canada,"
said Mary Hughes, a member of the Palliative Care Association
of PEI, "and now we're going to let [the position] go?
I'm sorry, that's turning the wheels backwards." BW
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Newfoundland
ST JOHN'S —
Mainland leadership
Dr Thomas Costello was sworn in June 4 as the new president
of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association
(NLMA), marking the first time that a doctor from Labrador
has taken the post. Dr Costello says he will draw on
his experience as a family physician in Wabush and stress
the importance of issues affecting rural physicians.
The NLMA is expected to begin its next round of negotiations
with the province this fall with recruitment, retention,
lifestyle and workload issues at the top of its priority
list. DSS
ST
JOHN'S — The
doctor is in — jail A temporary medical
clinic was opened June 8 in St John's for patients displaced
when their physician was arrested a week earlier. Dr
Sean Buckingham faces numerous charges including sexual
assault and counts of trafficking in a controlled substance,
namely cocaine and the prescription drugs OxyContin,
Ativan and Ritalin. The interim clinic, open two days
a week, is staffed by a physician, nurse practitioner
and addictions counsellor. DSS
The
Territories
YELLOWKNIFE, NT
— Been
burned The people of Yellowknife and surrounding
area can literally breathe a sigh of relief, as three
bio-medical waste incinerators in the Northwest Territories
were recently turned off for not meeting waste disposal
guidelines. According to Emery Paquin, the director
of the territory's Environmental Protection Division,
the incinerators — located at hospitals in Fort
Smith, Inuvik and Yellowknife — were not reaching
high enough temperatures and were thus emitting unacceptable
levels of dioxins. The 'good news' is that the territory
has a brand new incinerator, though some residents aren't
very comfortable with medical waste burning at any temperature.
HY
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