A round-up of recent emails:
*********************
GAIL GLESBY DEATH AT HSC
(This is the link for the Gail Glesby facebook group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=74878550799 )
"My name is Angie, I'm Ashley's Dad's girlfriend.
Thank you Marty an awesome job. As you told Gails story I sat in my chair and almost relived it. Thank you for giving them a voice, someone finally listens, I know how much this means to Ashley and Dylon, the way Gail was treated left by the staff of HSC to died without dignity or respect.
I hope that you will continue to bring stories such as these to the attention of those who can change they way things are done so that no other family has to ever deal with this type of behavior again.
Thank you Oh so much."
"Re: Sun picks up our Glesby exclusive, the headline must have made WRHA's weekend
What would we do without you Marty? That was such an awesome couple of shows and my heart goes out to the family and I hope something will eventually come of this. M"
**********
Seven Oaks Hospital Emergency overnight staff shortage?
I am fed up with this so-called health care system of ours! When I have to take in my 5 year old daughter into Seven Oaks hospital at 1:30 a.m. cuase she has not gone to the bathromm in over a day, has a high fever, has bodyaches and the chills, (suspected urinary infection), and I get told by the nurse at the desk, "you'll have to wait several hours as we only have one doctor on duty tonight", with a tired, sarcastic look in her eyes as she says it, makes me ill!!!!!!!!!! But apparently if you are are drunk and bloodied bar fighter that the police are hauling in at the same time, it's "C'mon In!!!!"!!!
As I have to shield my daughter's eyes from these screaming morons cause I don't want her to see this! Then a kindly security guard walks us out through the hospital through a short-cut to get back to my truck and turns to me and says, "yeah, we get a lot of people that don't need to be here..."
Then when I do load my daughter back into the truck, she says to me, "Daddy, why is there only one doctor working." Made me want to cry.
I got her into her pediatrician this afternoon and she seems to be doing okay in the meantime.
Marty, I swear man, I WANT TWO TIER HEALTHCARE!!!!! I will pay whatever it takes to have my children cared for ASAP, but I can't. I have to be as helpless as her. These bar bozo's did their own, self-inflicted damage! Who cares!!!!!!! They belong in the tank anyway.
Talking to other friends of mine with small kids, they have had similar situations at other Winnipeg hospitals! Why the Hell aren't our children priority??? If they have a a child little cough and your dealing with an over-reacting parent, okay, I get that. But dammit, why is there only one doctor, (or in some cases, no doctors available overnight?!?!?!?
The government treats us by class, by income, and tax and treat usall differently, but when it comes to healthcare, we're ALL in the same boat buddy! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!?!?!?!
Times change man, it's time for us to get with the program. Litterally! I want options dammit!
Thanks for hearing my rant.
B"
************
Former NDP cabinet minister Sam Uskiw suing province for colonscopy rationing
" Faced with a critical illness myself, I was asked to wait for 10 months for an endoscopic ultrasound (a surgeon does this procedure unlike a standard ultrasound).
Apparently we only have one or two surgeons in the province who do this.
The Mayo Clinic is a short drive away and in 2 days did a full diagnostic and saved my life. Canadians have a 2nd tier ...its called the USA.
Bravo to the lawsuit. It should be a class-action suit. D"
" Marty
I am really tired about people claiming we only have one tier health care. Unless you have insurance through your work, you still have to pay for "vision" and "dental, and other things, like physio, among other things. Even people with the benifit packages at work, there is a deductable. So we DO have 2 tier health care in this province, plain and simple.
G "
***************
Superbugs in Winnipeg Hospitals
"Hello Marty,
For what my opinion is worth, Dr. Embil is one of the most respected physicians in Winnipeg. He works tirelessly for his patients, he takes call - even if he's not technically "on call", he has a mind like a trap, and he treats people very well. The man is a world renowned academic, and he writes frequently and is published in medical journals. Also he is right. Hospitals work quite hard to contain any perceived outbreak.
There is a bit of a problem with this, in that it becomes much more onerous for loved ones and healthcare staff to care for a patient who is considered infected and quarentined as the patient is in isolation and staff are required to gown, glove and mask before entering the room, which has dedicated equipment down to the stethascope. The problem too is that some staff - i am sure physicians included, but particularly healthcare aides and family members often do not feel that they need to follow these precautions and do not wash their hands frequently enough.
The thing about these "superbugs" is that often MRSA is floating around in the community (you yourself are carrying billions of its close cousin Staph Aureus on your skin 24/7). People are colonized with MRSA, however not infected with it, and often it is quite tricky to know who to treat and how to best do it. These people visit their loved ones in the hospital, and next thing you know we have an "outbreak of a superbug".
Hope this is useful,
Dr X"
" I like the idea of a public warning in principle, however the possible ramifications (pros and cons) of this policy should be well debated. For example, will we see people forgo attending the Seven Oaks when an outbreak is present and attend another hospital - the Grace or Concordia.
In this event we might have higher than anticipated attendance at the latter hospitals with an unwarranted lack of attendance at the former. Or would someone forgo attending the ER despite a serious issue when a warning is present simply to avoid potential infection?
On the other hand, benefits of posted warnings would have family members think twice before simply "dumping" their elderly relative at the front door.
In the meantime, i do agree - we must do more to wash our hands, and if the kids are ill, keep them from grandma's hospital room for a few days.
Regards
Dr XX"
*********
Manufactured news
"Here is an idea for you if and when you get your chance to guest star in the Excuse Me? commentary on CJOB
I noticed in Sunday's Free Press, I think on page A8, they devoted a whole entire color page to entries from children on drawing our new provincial flag. I think you are even encouraged to send in a vote on which one you think is the best.
EXCUSE ME?????
Are the editors at the Free Press that dillusional to think that this is actually going to happen? This was a one off policy thrown out at an annual NDP conference, which really got no support to run on. I remember when this hit the news, Richard Cloutier devoted some time on his show for this, I'm sure you did also. Many callers called in asking why he was even wasting air time on this issue. His anwer - sometimes you have to put the absurd ideas out there so the creators of these ideas can see just how far off base they are.
Secondly, however cute it is to see children send in their entires on what they think a new flag should look like, is the Free Press that out in left field that they really think the Province will use a child's rendering as our new flag. Do they not realize that if the Province ever did decide to go ahead with this debacle, they would spend millions of dollars doing research, studies, focus groups, marketing firms, etc. before they came up with a new flag? Perhaps this is the Free Press's way of saving the Province money, who knows.
I guess the larger point here is, aside from giving valuable print space to a ridiculous idea, do they have nothing better to report on? They are laying off valuable reporters, who have done great work, because they are losing money, yet they can devote AN ENTIRE PAGE IN COLOR no less to this so called story that absolutely no one other then a handfull of people care about.
Is it any wonder why the Free Press is losing money and readers? Not to me.
thanks
N"
************
Mailing-in reporting on Tim's camp proposal?
"Marty,
Every now and then a story appears which makes me wonder how the heck the NDP stay in office. The Winnipeg Free Press reported on Saturday that the provincial government announced plans to build a Tim Horton's children's camp at Meditation Lake in Whiteshell Provincial Park (Province unveils controversial wilderness camp, Mar. 31: actually, maybe this story by 'Bruiser' Owens also serves as a lesson in journalism).
The NDP held closed-door meetings on the proposed camp for over a year and then announced it as a fait accompli. With bold-faced contempt for the plebs, the NDP says it will now "meet with the public."
To discuss what? How the project will proceed? It also appears that the NDP will be contributing financially to the project. Why? Surely, Tim Horton's can raise the money by themselves. Have other provinces helped finance these camps?
Two token public meetings are scheduled: one in Winnipeg on April 30th for the general public and another at Dorothy Lake on May 2nd apparently for local cottagers. "First Nations people will also be consulted," writes Owens. It would be charitable to assume Owens is just transcribing a government press release.
Shouldn't the vagueness of that statement raise his eyebrow, never mind the reeking discrimination of it? How will First Nations people be consulted? Who will the NDP decide is qualified to speak for First Nations people? Considering that there isn't an Indian reserve within 100 kilometers of Meditation Lake, why do First Nations people have to be consulted at all outside of the meetings already provided? What is so special about their point of view in the NDP's eyes?
What no one seems to be asking either is: Will Meditation Lake be closed to the public after the camp is built? Meditation Lake is presently a designated back country campground and it also provides access to Horseshoe Lake, a popular destination for anglers which also has government-designated campsites.
Conservation Minister Stan Struthers said the province took its time determining which lake was most suitable for the camp. Well, then, I'd like to know what other lakes were studied for this project and why wasn't the public permitted to have input on that process. Cabinet ministers under Gary Doer have been reduced to being just announcers and are probably easy pickings for a serious journalist.
When reporters like Owens simply mail it in, it does a real disservice to the public especially when the public is being treated so disrespectfully by a government that has come to take its votes so for granted that it can ram autocracy down their throats anytime they please.
'Hey, it's for the children, right? Hey, we're going to consult the original inhabitants. Who is going to object to that? Everyone loves Tim Horton's, right? Those that love us will love us no matter what we do, right?'
I've got a great name for this camp: "Camp Contempt." Keep up the good work, Marty!
M "
************
True Crime
" 4 weeks ago I installed a metal detector at the front door of my store. I'm hoping aside from the usual guns/knives and screwdrivers it will also pick up hatchets. Let me be clear, I am not protecting my self from criminals...they do what they do...I am protecting myself from the judges who continually refuse to do their jobs and by keeping these people behind bars.
Do we have a high crime rate or a ridiculously LOW incarceration rate? The guy who robbed me at gunpoint had escaped, or should I say walked away from rockwood where he was incarcerated for armed robbery. Had he been put away with a lock on the door he would not have increased the crime rate by 14 additional robberies that he did when he was out on the street!.
Ari Driver"
"To The Great Canadian Talk Show.
I am a resident of the William Whyte area living near one of the top burger joints in town The White Top. I have just encountered a minor problem plaguing the residents of this underrated part of Winnipeg. Some might say it is something very minor, however I believe it leads to a major issue with revitalizing the neighbourhood.
I attempted to simply order delivery from the local Boston Pizza, probably a 5 minute drive from home but after a long day at work and a couple beers, I don't really want to make the journey and as many others in the city do, I ordered for delivery. unfortunately I was rejected not because I was out of the delivery area but because "drivers had encountered problems." I find my block perfectly safe and don't see why I can't get the same service as someone in Tuxedo. I'll even pay for it!
What this says to me is why would I want to live here if I can't even get a pizza delivered. What other services are Winnipeggers entitled to that the William Whyte residents are not. It is discriminatory to think that every one here will shoot, or mug, or rob an "innocent" delivery driver (drivers who I've seen deliver drugs while on duty as well, ironically).
This is counterproductive to the revitalization of the area. It really upsets me. Maybe if there was more of this kind of traffic, there would not be as much public displays of violence, too many witnesses.
R"
**********
and a happy note from a local band
"Subject: The Christpunchers
Hey Marty I listened to the April 6th archive online earlier this week and wanted to send you a thanks for the plug/review of our show, it was awesome! We've been sending to family and friends and they just love it. Thanks again!
Derek"
