HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2016-10-27, Page 32PAGE 32. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2016.
FDNH could face large SCBA-relatetl expenditures
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
A change in safety regulations
for self-containing breathing
apparatuses (SCBA) could lead to a
windfall for the Fire Department of
North Huron (FDNH) as well as
some large expenditures in the
future according to Fire Chief David
Sparling.
Sparling, in a report to council,
indicated that of the FDNH's 25
SCBA units, 12 were purchased by
the former Blyth and District Fire
Department under a special lease to
own program. As part of the
program, the equipment was to be
kept up to standards, however the
2015 revision of those standards
requires that the tanks be completely
redesigned. As a result, a credit of
$24,144 was offered to the FDNH to
be applied to SCBA equipment.
"It is FDNH's intention to
purchase equipment that can be used
on our existing SCBA but later
transferred to the next generation
ones when we purchase them."
Sparling said that all the
neighbouring fire departments use
the same kind of SCBA, so a joint -
purchase program may be an option
which could save money when
replacing the SCBA equipment,
which is important as each unit costs
$10,000 to replace, or $250,000 for
the entire department.
When asked why the leasing
company wasn't fulfilling their
agreement to provide completely up -
to -code units, Sparling said it was
due to the size of the company.
"The lease isn't from the SCBA
company, but a financing company,
and they would be hard to chase to
the end," he said. "I'd love to get the
$125,000 that would upgrade the 12
units, but I'm also real about it.
Departments bigger than mine have
been taking the agreement, so I
would be hard-pressed to do
otherwise."
Deputy -Reeve James Campbell
asked what the changes were that
caused such a drastic overhaul and
Sparling said it was two -fold.
"There is a bell inside each unit
that rings at 25 per cent air left and
now those bells have to sound at 33
per cent," Sparling said.
The change is to make sure that
firefighters are using one third of
their bottled oxygen getting into a
structure or emergency area, one-
third operating and one-third leaving
the structure.
Sparling said the second reason
for the upgrade is to use bigger
tanks, giving firefighters more time
to operate when using SCBA
equipment.
Councillor Trevor Seip asked if
any other municipalities had sought
to have the contract honoured to the
letter and Sparling said that he was
aware of another chief who asked his
municipality to do the same and the
legal advice that came back
recommending taking the offered
$24,000.
Councillor Bill Knott said he
would prefer to have a legal team
examine the document to make sure
North Huron wasn't cutting itself
out of further funding before they
made the deal. Chief Administrative
Officer Sharon Chambers said she
would review the document and look
at legal options before bringing a
recommendation back to council.
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Chipping in
Knox United Church in Belgrave did its part on Saturday for a special project that helps to build
homes in El Salvador. The event consisted of a lunch and bake sale, as well as a silent auction
that aimed to raise money for the project. Participating in the auction were, from left: Nancy
Folkard, Gord Shobbrock and Donna Shaw. (Vicky Bremner photo)
H -P hospice study underway
A study to understand the current
and future needs of residential
hospice services in Huron and Perth
counties is underway. It is being led
by the Huron Perth Residential
Hospice Sub -Committee, which was
established through the Huron Perth
Hospice Palliative Care
Collaborative. The Sub -Committee
includes representation from both
Huron and Perth counties.
The study will recommend a
residential hospice model and where
10 funded beds should be located in
Huron and Perth Counties. It will
help design a service delivery model
based on best practices that have
been identified by provincial
residential hospice organizations. It
will also identify willing partners
and communities, and will assess the
local capacity for capital and annual
fundraising to determine the
operational sustainability of the
model.
The commissioned study was
funded by the City of Stratford,
Huron County and a private donor.
The recommendations and business
case will be considered by the local
collaborative and the South West
LHIN Hospice Palliative Care
Leadership Committee.
Final approval for the
recommendations and business case
rests with the South West LHIN
Board of Directors.
Residential hospice services will
complement the volunteer services,
community and hospital palliative
care that is already provided in both
counties. Residential hospice beds
are considered a multi -community
specialized resource, and will not be
located in every community
throughout the region.
The study will consider the work
completed to date, as well as gather
additional information and
consultation with stakeholders. This
project represents a major step
towards enhancing hospice palliative
care in the region and moving
towards a unified model for Huron
Perth. Further information will be
shared when the results of the study
are available in November.
"This commissioned report is an
essential component in the
development of a Huron Perth
residential hospice model. The
consultants' review of local data and
the significant work completed thus
far as well as consultation with
stakeholders will ensure the study
recommends a model that will
address the needs of Huron Perth
residents given our largely rural area
and geographic distances," said
Mary Cardinal, Executive Lead
Huron Perth Hospice Palliative Care
Collaborative.
"Putting people with life -limiting
illnesses and their families at the
centre of hospice palliative care is
one of the goals of our Integrated
Health Service Plan 2016-2019. This
study will help us better understand
the needs of people and their
families as we work to achieve this
goal, and we thank the Huron Perth
Hospice Palliative Care
Collaborative and the Huron Perth
Residential Hospice Sub -Committee
for their leadership on this
initiative," said Kelly Gillis, Senior
Director, System Design and
Integration, South West LHIN.
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