Swan River Won't Contribute To Dauphin MRI
An MRI machine for the Dauphin Regional Health Centre won't be getting funding from the Town of Swan River.
Swan River's council decided this week not to contribute to the project as Prairie Mountain Health had requested.
Mayor Glen McKenzie says they have no doubt there is a need for an MRI, but they don't believe it is the town's responsibility to fund it.
CKDM has not yet spoken to Prairie Mountain Health regarding this issue.
---
Barriers To Employment Discussed At DFC Meeting
The Dauphin Friendship Centre is compiling a cheat-sheet for groups who want to help remove barriers to employment for people in the Parkland.
A regional planning meeting was held last night-- this one for adults, following a youth meeting held earlier this month.
A number of barriers to finding employment were identified by the 15 people in attendance, but it was narrowed down to four: housing, transportation, education, and cultural awareness and diversity.
Executive Director Jeremy Smith says the ultimate goal here is to identify programs and services that need to be looked at.
Those who missed the meeting but would like to participate can fill out a survey available at the DFC until Tuesday.
---
Safety Warning For Lake Audy Visitors
Visitors to Riding Mountain National Park's Lake Audy are being advised of ongoing grasslands restoration efforts in the area.
A press release from Parks Canada says white spruce were planted on the fescue grasslands of Lake Audy in the 1920s in an effort to reduce the impacts of over-logging.
Parks Canada says by removing the plantation, which didn't prosper, it is reducing a significant impact on the grassland ecosystem.
Visitors are told to be cautious when traveling in the Lake Audy area because the terrain and debris make for an increased risk of injury.
---
South Central Manitoba Logical Choice For Crushing Plant
Cultivating interest and doing research will be an important next step towards building a large scale soybean crushing facility in Manitoba according to the executive director with the Manitoba Pulse Growers Association.
A feasibility study released last week by the provincial government and industry partners found that Manitoba has the right mix of production and market demand to support a soybean crushing plant.
Francois Labelle says the logical place for the crushing plant to go is where there's a supply and market for the soybean oil and meal.
He says right now looking at production today and into the future, you're probably looking at somewhere in south central Manitoba.
There's more than 1.25 million acres of soybeans in Manitoba, accounting for 18 per cent of all soybeans grown in Canada.
---
Pediatric Heart Surgery Program Not Viable In Manitoba
The lack of a pediatric cardiac surgery program in Manitoba means babies with serious heart conditions who need special care have to travel to places such as Edmonton for treatment.
That doesn't sit well with the families of sick babies, who say they'd rather their children be able to get treatment closer to home.
But Manitoba Health says there aren't enough children with serious problems to bring the program back.
Dr. Reeni Soni, head of pediatric cardiology at Children's Hospital, says right now about 150 children a year in the province need heart surgery.
She says for the province to have its own program, that number would have to be closer to 250 or 300.
---
Show's Over Folks
If you set your PVR for one hour to catch David Letterman's final show last night, you have a problem because the show ran 17 minutes overtime.
Much of the extra time was taken up by Letterman thanking the many people who worked for him.
The final top 10 list was delivered by 10 stars from Steve Martin to Tina Fey.
President Barack Obama and three of his predecessors appeared on video to help bring an end to Letterman's 33-year run as a late-night host.
