Overdose Crisis – RCMP Agreement with China
The Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Morris and Minister of Health Terry Lake issued the following statement on the overdose crisis: “We are pleased to report today the RCMP and Chinese Ministry of Public Safety announced their commitment to work together to co-ordinate enforcement efforts against illegal...
Canada’s health-care wait times hit 20 weeks in 2016 — longest ever recorded
Canadian patients waited longer than ever this year for medical treatment, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank. The study, an annual survey of physicians from across Canada, reports a median wait time of 20 weeks — the longest ever recorded...
CBT Inviting Applications for Recreation Infrastructure Grants
The Editor says: Recreation groups -- need money? Read this press release from CBT and sharpen your wits and your pencils. Columbia Basin Trust is once again looking to provide funding support to groups and organizations wanting to create new or upgrade existing recreation amenities in your area. This funding can be used for...
IH warns public when considering cosmetic tattoos
Given the emergence of relatively new cosmetic procedures such as eyebrow microblading, Interior Health is reminding the public to exercise caution when considering such services. Specifically, users should ensure the establishments they visit have safeguards in place to protect their health. Microblading, also known as...
Sleep apnea immediately compromises blood pressure
A single bout of sleep apnea impacts the human body’s ability to regulate blood pressure. In a recent study measuring the impact of simulated sleep apnea on humans, researchers at UBC’s Okanagan campus found that just six hours of the fluctuating oxygen levels associated with sleep apnea can begin to deteriorate a person’s ...
Health Minister’s statement on the federal opioid summit
Health Minister Terry Lake has made the following statement following the federal summit on the opioid crisis in Ottawa, Nov. 18 and 19, 2016: “Since January, British Columbia has lost 622 people to overdose deaths. This is more than double the number of people who died in car crashes last year. We are making a concerted...
Can Medical Marijuana Aid Recovery From Alcoholism and Drug Addiction?
A new study from UBC suggests that marijuana, long feared by some as a "gateway" to drug abuse generally, may be able to act as a gateway in the other direction: it could have a medical use in helping people recover from alcoholism and opioid addiction. But more research is needed. “Research suggests that people may be...
Report shows drug overdose deaths continue to rise in province
The updated statistics from the BC Coroners Service released Wednesday show the number of illicit drug overdose deaths has increased over the month of October. The BC Coroners Service said for the first 10 months of 2016, the number of illicit drug overdoses was 622, compared to 397 for the same period last year. The total ...
New telehealth connections will help save lives
You can’t physically move an entire regional intensive care unit (ICU), but Interior Health is banking on telehealth technology to help. For hospitals in Kootenay Boundary without an ICU, specialists are using this technology to bring ICU expertise to emergency departments (EDs) in real time to care for critically ill or...
'Initiative Petition Application' underway, to change paramedics' bargaining rights
British Columbia’s Chief Electoral Officer, Keith Archer, has granted approval in principle on an initiative petition application. The petition will be issued to proponent Joshua Henshaw on Monday, January 9, 2017. The title of the initiative is: An initiative to amend the Fire and Police Services Collective Bargaining Act....
