INSIDER. What s Inside. the cypress. Staff Newsletter. Edition 117 July 3/14 SICK/WCB TIME BARIATRIC STRETCHERS INSECTS CIRCUS CIRCUS

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1 INSIDER the cypress Staff Newsletter Edition 117 July 3/ SICK/WCB TIME INSECTS What s Inside 4 5 BARIATRIC STRETCHERS CIRCUS CIRCUS

2 Setting the Standard The Cypress Health Region has set the provincial benchmark for the lowest sick time use per Full Time Equivalent (FTE) among health regions in Saskatchewan. During the 2013/14 fiscal year, Cypress Health had an average of sick leave hours per FTE. This is well below the provincial average of and marks a 31% total reduction since 2009/10. provincial Edition 2117 Cypress cypress The region has also decreased its Workers Compensation Board (WCB) claims per 100 FTEs for six consecutive years through strategies such as offering modified duties for each job description and enhancing the role of the Occupational Health and Safety Committees in each facility. cypress provincial

3 Insects Pack Powerful Bites The Cypress Health Region has circulated messaging to the media and public about precautions during the spring and summer months to avoid or minimize the possibility of insect bites that can lead to various diseases as well as inconveniences. These precautions are important to everyone, including you and your family. Two insects of importance are mosquitoes and ticks. In the early spring and summer, various species of mosquito emerge and cause a nuisance as well as itchy red spots where they bite. These mosquitoes, however, do not carry disease of significance to humans. Later in summer, a species of mosquito called the Culex tarsalis emerges and multiplies to significant numbers. This mosquito feeds on birds, horses, and humans. It can pick West Nile Virus from migrating birds and spread this to humans. Ticks are small, ranging in size from a poppy seed to a pea. Their size depends on variables such as age and time of their last feed. The most common found in Saskatchewan is the American dog tick, also known as a wood tick, and does not transmit disease of significance to humans. The blacklegged tick, also known as the deer tick, can carry disease with a bacterial infection that causes Lyme disease. It is common in parts of the USA and Manitoba, but has now started to appear in parts of Saskatchewan, mainly the Qu Appelle Valley. Lyme disease is difficult to diagnose due to its differing symptoms from person to person. Signs and symptoms of Lyme disease may include, with varying severity: fatigue, fever and chills, headache, spasms/weakness, numbness/tingling, skin rash, dizziness, nervous system disorders, and abnormal heartbeat, among others. If you develop these symptoms in the weeks after a known tick bite, please contact your healthcare provider immediately. If you saved the tick that bit you, bring it to your medical appointment as it may help the physician assess you and can also be sent for testing. You may also directly submit ticks for testing to the University of Saskatchewan s Chilton Parasitology Laboratory in the Biology Department. 3Cypress July 3/14 Wearing closed-toed shoes, long-sleeved shirts, and pants with socks pulled over the bottom of the pant leg are important measures to protect yourself, particularly if you venture into forests or overgrown areas. Wearing light coloured clothing and using insect repellent containing DEET or Icaridin (read and follow directions on label) will also help prevent unwanted insects from coming in contact with you. If you have been outside for an extended period of time, shower or bathe afterwards to wash away loose ticks and do daily body checks on yourself, your children, and your pets. Staying indoors, eliminating standing water, and sealing holes in screens and doors are other preventative measures to consider. For those with allergies to stings, make sure you know of the medicines to access and what medical attention to seek when necessary.

4 Bariatric Stretchers, EMS The Public Health Agency of Canada states that approximately one in four Canadian adults are obese, according to measured height and weight data from These are staggering statistics and are certainly cause for concern to the entire healthcare system. For EMS this means that there are restrictions when trying to transport bariatric patients. The stretchers that are currently in place have a load lift capacity of 700 lbs. That is wonderful, but where problems are encountered is the patient surface area. The surface needs to be much larger to accommodate girth. The average cost of a bariatric stretcher is around $20,000. Edition 4117 Cypress At the present time there are only approximately six bariatric stretchers in Saskatchewan. On a few occasions our EMS teams have been presented with a severe need for one. When we look at options to transport a bariatric patient we consistently run into road blocks. Regions that have the capability are simply too far away to assist us in a timely manner. Air Ambulance also has restrictions with a maximum of 300 lbs. So the question is: How do we transport safely and quickly? Locally we recently experienced this situation. After speaking with the dispatch center in Regina, making about a dozen phone calls, and a lot of begging I was finally able to get one to come out from Saskatoon to transport the patient. We were so grateful to them for helping us. I decided that this was definitely a mission to go on and seek out options. What I found was something called XPS. The XPS provides an expanded patient surface and is retrofitted to attach to current stretchers we have in place already. I made a few phone calls, pleading our need for one. The cost was greatly reduced compared to a bariatric stretcher. I am ecstatic to say that because of all the generous donations the public makes every year through Donor s Choice and various other contributions and fundraisers, the Cypress Health Region now has not one, but THREE. They have been strategically placed in Leader EMS, Maple Creek EMS, and Shaunavon EMS. We will be able to also potentially go out and help other services that do not have this capability. We are thrilled and just want to say Thank You so very much. Submitted by: Michele Garrett, PCP

5 If Circus Brings Smiles On June 5, 2014 residents from Eastend, Shaunavon, and Maple Creek made the trip into Swift Current for the circus. Everyone enjoyed the show, eating popcorn, and of course dipping into some cotton candy! The staff at the Wolf Willow Health Centre are so appreciated for volunteering their time to take residents on outings like this. Last summer they also enjoyed many off-site outings with the help of staff volunteering!! - Shannon Armstrong Health Services Manager, Eastend 5Cypress July 3/14 Pictured: Residents from Eastend and Shaunavon photographed at the Circus Back Row (left to right): Nancy W., Walter H., Walger G. Front Row (left to right): Anna Marie M., Kate P., Margaret H., Doris M. Ideas? you have a tip of the hat, a news story, or anything else you d like to share in the next edition of the Cypress we d love to hear from you! Send us an at insider@cypressrha.ca.