Bringing care closer to home

Ken Johnston
Editor

One more step towards the best health care possible in the Rainy River District will begin to be taken this Friday in Rainy River.
A massive fund raising drive for a CT Scanner will begin this week with hopes that district residents, businesses and organizations will give generously towards its $1.5 million price tag.
A Computed Tomography (CT) Scanner is now the most widely used diagnostic imaging technology. Riverside Foundation for Health Care spokesperson Teresa Hazel said that 90% of all initial scans are done on CT Scanners. The other 10% are done on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) systems.
CT scans are much quicker often lasting only five minutes versus 30-40 mins. for MRIs. Often CT scans are done first and if a need is determined to do an MRI for something more it will be done later.
CT scanners use a series of x-rays to view internal body structures such as bone and soft tissue. Hazel said they are instrumental in cases involving strokes, aneurisms and solid tumor detection, just to name a few. The CT scanner Riverside is looking at is called a 32 slice scanner. Which means it takes 32 x-rays of the inside of the body to provide imaging. Many CT scanners are 16 slice and Hazel said if fund raising goals are exceeded they may look at a 64 slice.
At present patients visiting medical facilities in Rainy River, Emo or Fort Frances have to travel to get a CT Scan done. Non-urgent needs are met by appointments made at either Kenora, Thunder Bay or Winnipeg. “Waiting times are generally six to eight weeks but can be up to three months,” explained Hazel. Urgent cases can be scanned in International Falls or Baudette, Minnesota, but preapproval by the Ontario Government has to be attained and it ties up an ambulance and a nurse.
The hospital board of directors for Riverside Health Care Facilities (the body that oversees medical facilities in Rainy River, Emo and Fort Frances) identified the need to bring this Care Close to Home and instructed the Foundation to begin fund raising.
It is hoped that waiting times for scans are reduced, “If anything will reduce travelling times,” said Hazel.
On Friday at 6:30 a.m. efforts for Care Close to Home 2 will begin in Rainy River at the Legion Hall. A pancake breakfast will be served with a silver collection. At 6:45 a.m. Chair of the fund raising campaign, Dean Cunningham, will give a presentation about the CT scanner project.
At 7:00 a.m. former Stratton resident Bill Michl (now of Fort Frances) will begin running from Rainy River to Fort Frances to raise awareness about the campaign. Local runners are encouraged to come out and run part of the way with him, say a few kilometres. “We will have a shuttle service to bring them back home,” said Hazel.
He is basically going to run a double marathon throughout the day on Friday. He will arrive in Emo around lunch time where a lunch will be served at the Emo Legion with a silver collection again.
The lunch will run from 12:30-1:30 p.m. It is hoped that runners from the Emo area will join Michl at Manitou Forest Products around Noon to run him into Emo and again out of town.
Michl hopes to be in Fort Frances around 5:30 p.m. where he will finish his run at the Fort Frances Legion. Fort area people are encouraged to meet him at Northern Do It Centre around 4:30 p.m. and run with him to the finish line. A reception with silver collection will be held there.
There are rumours that Elvis Presley may be in Rainy River for the kick off and that there will be some substantial donations made before the run begins.
All are welcome to come out and eat, learn about the CT Scanner, and to support it in the district.
It is hoped that the scanner will be operating before March 31, 2007.
Once the kickoff is completed several campaigns will take place over the next several months including a pledge card mail out.
In Rainy River committee members working on Care Close to Home 2 include Bob and Brig McGreevy, Jack Elliott, Maureen and Scott Downs and Bill and Bev Langner. For more information on the project contact any one of them or Teresa Hazel at 274-4803.