The Citizen, 2003-11-05, Page 17THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2003. PAGE 17.
WDH board discusses ambulance station
By Pauline Kerr
Wingham Advance-Times
Mark Lapaine, chief financial
officer at Wingham and District
Hospital, presented an update on the
ambulance situation to hospital
board members during their meeting
at the hospital Thursday, Oct. 30.
Lapaine stressed his report
included nothing that is “written in
stone” at this point.
The report has been presented to
Huron County. County officials have
to gather data of their own before
any decisions can be made, he told
board members.
Board chair Verna Steffler said,
“The only decision right now is
we’re willing to extend their lease.”
The hospital does not want to lose
the rental income, and it does not
want to have a section of the hospital
sitting vacant, according to Lapaine.
Lapaine explained the county’s
ambulance service is housed in
space in the south-west corner of the
hospital, paying rent of $21,000 per
year. The lease is up in December,
2005. which provided the impetus
for the county to begin looking at
alternatives for housing the
ambulances.
“This whole issue arose because
Celebrating 90th birthday
John Blake turned 90-years-old on Nov. 1 and celebrated
his birthday with his friends and family at Huronlea
retirement home in Brussels. (Eiyse DeBruyn photo)
Former Blyth man
celebrates 90th
An open house was held on Nov.
2 at Huronlea retirement home in
honour of John Blake who
celebrated his 90th birthday.
Blake was born Nov. 1, 1913 in
London, England to William Blake
and Elizabeth Peters.
On May 10, 1941 he married his
wife Reta Bowes Fosterand they had
five children, June (McDowell) and
Jim Foster, both of whom are now
deceased, Ivan Blake, Sheila
(Moore,) Barb (Crapper).
From 1955 to 1970, Blake worked
as a chef for the Clinton Air Base
and from 1970 to 1977 he worked at
the Stratford Hospital. He retired in
1977, but he and Reta opened a bed
and breakfast in Blyth, which they
operated until he was 87-years-old.
Blake is a veteran of the Second
World War, Italian Campaign in
Sicily and has been a member of the
Trinity Anglican Church in Byth
and Brussels. He has enjoyed many
years of organizing lost heir”card
evenings and is a member of the
Blyth Horticultural Society.
He is a resident at Huronlea
retirement home in Brussels where
he spent his birthday with friends
and family including three of his
children, eight grandchildren and
five great-grandchildren.
they thought they had to be out in
2005,” he said.
Such is not the case. The hospital
has informed the county it would be
glad to extend the lease.
However, the lease is not the only
factor. Lapaine said the present site
“does not meet their standards”.
According to the report presented
by Lapaine, the main problem is the
present area is not wide enough.
With the ramp from the emergency
department on one side and a
building on the other, extending it is
not a real option.
So an alternative site was looked
at, on the north-east corner of the
hospital. “It would be easier to build
a three-bay ambulance building,”
said Lapaine.
In subsequent discussion by board
members, that alternative comes
with its own set of problems. Board
members pointed out its proximity to
residential properties raises the
possibility of a protest to council,
and perhaps an Ontario Municipal
Board hearing.
The other factor is cost. While the
hospital does not want to lose the
rental income, it also cannot afford
to fund extensive renovations.
Lapaine said that asking the county
to fund the interior renovations itself
would be a way for the hospital to
afford to keep the ambulance service
on-site.
It would be “a hard sell” to the
county, however. Lapaine said that
by his calculations, the cost of
renovations would approach the
figure the county was considering
for constructing a new building. And
if the county decided to spend a
substantial amount on renovations, it
would, at the very least, want a long
term lease, and would not be
spending the same amount on rent
that it has been. He had no figures to
present, but said, “We’re not talking
a lot of rent.”
In summary, Lapaine said that
while it was much too soon to be
making any decisions, either
alternative looked at by the hospital
would involve “long term
implications” for the hospital.
Completion of the hospital’s
master plan would certainly be a
great help in deciding which of the
options would be preferable.
At present the report is in the
county’s hands, awaiting its input.
The county is also looking at other
locations for an ambulance building.
REHAB UNIT
Wingham and District Hospital’s
master plan and master program
development will direct the future
for a number of programs and
services at the hospital.
Among those discussed during the
meeting, were the rehab program
and feasibility of an RPN program.
A report Liz Phelan, director of
patient care, presented to the board,
described the present situation with
the hospital’s inpatient rehab unit
and the proposed expansion to a 12-
bed unit.
She explained there is no extra
funding for the present five-bed unit,
which has a declining occupancy
rate of about 55 per cent in 2002 and
about 33 per cent in 2003.
A 12-bed unit was identified in
1996 as part of the hospital’s future
plan and has been endorsed by the
Huron Perth Hospital Joint
Committee, and the District Health
Council and is now at the health
ministry level.
Phelan said demographics indicate
a future need for the proposed 12-
bed unit for treatment of such
conditions as hip fractures and
strokes. Huron County has the
highest percentage of women over
age 75 in the province, she said.
“We need to promote the service, if
that’s what we want,” she said.
The obstacle is funding. Hospital
CEO Margret Comack said the
province’s recent announcement of a
deficit makes funding unlikely. And
there is literally no chance for
having the proposed unit receive
provincial approval without the
master plan.
Steffler said, “We’ve been (at this)
10 years and done nothing... as soon
as the master plan is done, if the
master plan has anything for rehab,
we have to give the government a
proposal... we have to be as noisy as
any other hospital in Ontario.”
She went on to note, “A lot does
hinge on the master plan.”
The other item discussed in terms
of the master plan was discussions
with Georgian College and
Conestoga College for a proposed
RPN (Registered Practical Nurse)
program for Wingham and District
Hospital.
“We can’t consider the RPN
school, ambulance and rehab, etc.,
until the plan is done,” said the
hospital CEO.
The master plan - master program
development will involve working
with a consultant. The hospital in
Listowel is part way through the
process.
Beat the
temptation.
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Municipality of Central Huron
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PARKING NOTICE
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MUNICIPALITY OF HURON EAST
The Council of the Municipality of Huron East
requests the cooperation of the ratepayers regarding
the parking of cars and other vehicles, and the
depositing of snow on municipal roads during the
period in which snow clearing operations are
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It is an offence under the Highway Traffic Act, Section
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such a manner as to interfere with the movement of
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Also, Section 181 states: “No person shall deposit
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responsible for the Maintenance of the Road.”
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up urban areas of the Municipality of Huron East
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Allowance. Your cooperation in this matter is greatly
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John Forrest
Huron East Public Works Coordinator