Exactly three months ago Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) warned the rate of opioid-related harms has been on an upward trend in St. Thomas over the past several years.
In 2021, the rate of opioid-related St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital emergency department visits was 126.1 per 100,000 population as compared to 114.0 per 100,000 province-wide.
That same year, the rate of opioid-related hospitalizations in St. Thomas was 72.4 per 100,000 population, far above the provincial average of 16.3 per 100,000.
Those alarming numbers prompted the health unit to undertake a study into the feasibility of drug treatment and consumption services in the region.
This study (undertaken between January and March of this year) defines feasibility as a combination of community support, political buy-in, and the likelihood of people with lived or living experience of substance use (PWLE) using these services in the health unit’s region.
Tag Archives: C.J. Allen
A change in St. Thomas Canada Day fireworks venue lights up more than just the sky
The announcement from the city seemed harmless enough.
Canda Day celebrations this year will culminate in a spectacular fireworks display.
However, the light-up-the-sky show will take place at 1Password Park and not the traditional venue in Pinafore Park.
We asked Mayor Joe Preston what prompted the change in location.
He noted 1Password Park “has three accesses, a lot more parking and it gives us the ability to put on a better fireworks show.”
A reference, no doubt, to the tighter confines at Pinafore and the proximity of neighbouring homes.
Preston continued, “In discussions with the Kinsmen, who help us with the fireworks and also help us with Canada Day, we thought IPassword would be a great thing to try.”
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“The growing investment in women’s sports and athletics is amazing.” – St. Thomas professional hockey player Brittany Howard
Plenty of far-reaching discussions of late about the state of women’s sports in Canada. Most notably the salary discrepancy between the men’s and women’s national soccer teams.
There is now serious talk of a national women’s soccer league to debut in 2025.
Earlier this spring, optimism was in the air over the interest generated by the WNBA game played in Toronto and whether that could result in an expansion franchise for that city.
Hockey meantime has witnessed steady growth of the Premier Hockey Federation and the Isobel Cup-winning performance in March of the Toronto Six.
The first time the championship has been won by a Canadian team.
So, who best to speak to about the future of women’s hockey than a member of that successful squad?
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‘You see it all on a piece of paper, but at the end of the day the people who live in those spaces have to love those spaces.’ – Moving on to Phase 2 of Alma College Square
Exactly three years after the great concrete pour at Alma College, preparatory is underway for what will prove to be another record-breaking event.
On June 27, 2020, close to 3,000 cubic metres of concrete was poured for the footings for Phase 1 of the three-tower residential complex at 96 Moore Street known as Alma College Square.
Adam Morris of Sierra Contracting confirmed it was a record-setting pour by quite a margin, involving just under 300 truckloads of concrete in a single day.
The eight-storey building with 156 units has been well received and so the concrete pour for the nine-storey second tower adjacent to the ravine is expected to require close to 4,000 cubic metres of concrete when undertaken this fall.
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‘Every job entails paperwork . . . but definitely the balance has shifted’ – Dr. Kellie Scott on the doctor shortage in Elgin and across Ontario
We hear disturbing stories about the doctor shortage in this province and across the country.
According to recent statistics, 2.2 million Ontario residents do not have a family doctor. And it’s not a problem confined to someone else’s backyard. In Elgin county last year, at least 7,000 residents are without a family doctor.
Quite often, it is individuals most vulnerable who have no access.
Just under 2,000 residents with the lowest incomes are particularly hard hit.
About 750 of those have mental health issues and approximately 360 have diabetes.
A condition that requires regular blood tests and medication renewals.
Many of these individuals end up in the emergency department because they have nowhere else to go.
“If you don’t have a family physician and you have an issue that needs to be addressed, you end up sometimes getting referred to a specialist for care that doesn’t need to be provided by a specialist and that just lengthens the wait list for everyone.”
At the beginning of May, we had an insightful conversation with Dr. Kellie Scott, a St. Thomas family physician.
She is also a member of the St. Thomas Elgin Health recruitment partnership.
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Estimated meter readings are water torture for some St. Thomas customers
How’s that water bill of yours? Are you going to have to dip into your savings or line of credit to pay the latest bill?
Some city residents have received much higher bills than normal and we contacted Jim Hogan, president and CEO of Entegrus. The city of St. Thomas contracts out meter reading to the utility who, we find out, subcontracts it to a third party.
According to Hogan, the bills have been estimated readings only for several months and those estimates do not necessarily jive with actual usage.
“It’s kind of a catch-up and a balancing between some of the estimates may be a little high and some were a little low and we’re working hard to get out there to do the actual reads, to verify the actual reads.”
The money collected is then paid to the city on a contractual basis.
According to the formal agreement between the city and Ascent/St. Thomas Energy signed in April 2014, St. Thomas Energy “will pay to the municipality the water and wastewater charges billed to the customers by the end of the month following the date of invoicing.”
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C.J. Allen delegation to St. Thomas council Monday to focus on “bureaucratic and redundant red tape and restrictive bylaws”
The agenda for Monday’s (Jan. 16) council meeting reveals what should prove to be a no-punches-pulled deputation from C.J. Allen.
He is the chair of the Good Vibes Community Association (GVCA)board of governors.
If you are not familiar with the GVCA, it was the producer of last year’s inaugural Summer Harvest Festival held in Pinafore Park.
A well-attended event that is to become an annual attraction in the park.
Allen has outlined four areas of discussion and with deputations limited to 10 minutes, he’s going to have to move quickly through his presentation.
First up is GVCA’s experience and feedback concerning the city’s special event process and the interaction with city departments, specifically in relation to last year’s festival.
Next up is a look at the city’s strategic plan and specifically Commitment 1 under the Vibrant Community banner.
This area of the plan has a mandate to “Enhance opportunities for connection and development to promote growth for people and businesses in the city.”
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‘It’s not always about drugs . . . It’s about losing that job’ – St. Thomas municipal candidate Rose Gibson
She has yet to win a seat on city council and yet no candidate in the St. Thomas municipal election has more campaign experience than Rose Gibson.
This is her sixth run for the roses and, on that alone, you have to respect her tenacity.
In 2018 she finished 10th in a 19-candidate field, less than 500 votes away from knocking Jim Herbert out of the running.
Her first outing was in 2000 and she returned to the fray in 2003, 2010 and 2014. Of note, each time she secured more votes than in her previous attempt.
And that vote differential four years ago is the driving force in this campaign, advised Gibson.
“I have a good group of people who really believe in me. I think the voters last time believed in me.
“You know there is an area that you learn where you made your mistakes and I realize that.
Ian's City Scope 