Blowing smoke

By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star - July 08, 2008

It was interesting to learn last week that the Interior Health Authority is looking at standardizing how all hospitals handle overcapacity conditions. While all facilities are jampacked, apparently simple wording makes it challenging to compare them. Vernon Jubilee Hospital classifies over-capacity as code purple, while just down the highway, Kelowna General Hospital describes it as something else. One has to hope that standardization ensures that overcrowded conditions are treated the same no matter which hospital you find yourself in.But the conspiracy theorist in me wonders if this is just an attempt by IHA to avoid the issue of why patients are constantly finding themselves in hallways or places other than proper rooms. Is the thinking that if the public no longer hears the term code purple, they will think there is no longer a problem?The reality, though, is that despite the colour or bureaucratic lingo being used, there aren't sufficient acute care beds, operating time or nursing staff to address the needs of a growing region. And while the $81 million diagnostic and treatment tower is a good start, there is no guaranteed funding yet for additional beds. Until that happens, code purple alerts will continue.Let's hope that the thrust behind standardization is ultimately to improve the health care system at VJH, and not just an IHA smoke screen to try and confuse the public.

Cunningham doesn't run and hide.Generally politicians try to avoid controversial issues, but not Juliette Cunningham. The Vernon councillor has gained a reputation for speaking out on difficult subjects, even when she knows it may not be popular with some constituents or others at the council table. Case in point was last Friday when the Vernon Native Housing Society held a ground-breaking ceremony for a 40-unit affordable housing complex on 19th Avenue. The speeches were filled with excitement and optimism, that is until Cunningham brought a dose of reality to the podium and raised the concerns of adjacent residents about the project. "It wasn't an issue of not-in-my-backyard but legitimate concerns about the loss of green space and the crime that already exists," she said. Cunningham credited the society for making some changes to the plans, but indicated that work must continue if the neighbours are to be satisfied. "All of us are committed to ensuring these concerns are addressed," she said. It would have been easy for Cunningham to ignore the issue altogether, to forget that residents are worried about losing part of a park, or that the drug trade is prevalent in the area adjacent to the sewer treatment plant. But that would have been doing a disservice not only to the neighbours, but also to the Vernon Native Housing Society. The non-profit organization has shown substantial leadership when it comes to pursing affordable housing and allowing families to blossom. But while the society's track record of operating housing complexes is extremely positive, there is always room for improvement and there is a need for both it, the city, and the RCMP to set the bar even higher when it comes to the 19th Avenue neighbourhood. It is not good enough to say that the ground has been broken, and the project is moving ahead as is.And I suspect that Cunningham's blunt honesty will continue if she believes the neighbourhood's concerns are being forgotten.