Precautionary air quality advisory issued for Southwest Alberta

Alberta Health Services, Pincher Creek – Due to wildfires burning in British Columbia, air quality is expected to be variable across Pincher Creek and surrounding areas in Southwest Alberta over the coming days. Alberta Health Services (AHS) is issuing a precautionary air quality advisory for the area.

Residents of and visitors to this area are advised to be aware of air conditions and take precautions against potential health concerns that can be associated with smoky air conditions.

Although minor smoke conditions do not typically cause health concerns in healthy individuals, if smoke conditions become more severe, even healthy individuals may experience temporary irritation of eyes and throat, and possibly shortness of breath.

If you can taste and/or smell smoke in the air: 

• Monitor your symptoms. 
• Minimize physical activity outdoors. 
• Remain indoors with windows, doors and air circulation fans/vents closed. 
• If you drive to another location, keep windows and vents closed. Run your car fan on re-circulate mode to avoid drawing in outdoor air. 

Individuals with respiratory conditions (such as COPD and asthma), and individuals with existing cardiovascular conditions (such as angina, previous heart attack and congestive heart failure), may notice a worsening of symptoms in smoky air conditions. These individuals should monitor for worsening of symptoms and take the precautions routinely recommended by their physicians if a worsening of symptoms occurs. 

Individuals experiencing symptoms can also call Health Link 24 hours a day, seven days a week, toll-free at 811, to speak to a registered nurse.

Air quality can and will vary with weather conditions and prevailing winds. Because air quality is expected to be variable, this advisory will remain in effect until further notice.

Information about the air quality in many areas of Alberta is updated hourly on the Alberta Environment Air Quality website at airquality.alberta.ca.

Oral health for seniors

Dental Hygienist Jenna Simmons

Jenna Simmons, Alberta Health Services - Healthy teeth lead to a healthier well being! It is common for people to keep their own teeth as a result of more access to care, more education and more advances in professional services. In Canada, dental care is mainly privately funded. Financial challenges are often a concern when it comes to seniors visiting the dentist. Oral care is postponed for many people. Overall health is directly connected to oral health. Periodontal disease, cavities, lack of proper nutrition and poorly fitted dentures are among some of the most common problems seen by health care providers. There are many factors that place seniors at high risk for an unhealthy mouth.

How to protect yourself while having fun in the sun

Courtnay Epp, Alberta Health Services - It’s been a long, snowy, cold winter in Alberta and people are starting to celebrate the arrival of spring (finally!). With many of us heading outside to enjoy the warm weather, it’s also time to start thinking about sun safety. Taking measures to protect you and your family from the sun will help prevent the long term effects of ultra-violet radiation (UVR) exposure such as skin cancer and the short term effects like sunburn.

Tune up your bicycle

Laura Lukye, AHS

Laura Lukye, Alberta Health Services - The spring season is a great time to think about getting active outdoors more often. This is the perfect opportunity to hit the road (or trail) on your bike. But before we jump into the saddle and peddle away, we need to ensure we are safe for the road. 

AHS website answers immunization questions

Laurie Pristie, Public Health Nurse, Alberta Health Services

Laurie Pristie, AHS - What immunizations does my kid need? It’s a common question we hear at Public Health. The search for reputable, evidence-based information on the Internet can often be an overwhelming and frustrating experience. You might ask yourself, where do I even begin? Well, did you know Alberta Health Services (AHS) has developed a user-friendly website that can support parents and caregivers to answer this question and many more with only a few taps of the iPad?   The provincial website www.immunizealberta.ca provides full transparency on the routine immunization schedule from infancy all the way to adult boosters.

Estimated emergency wait times now on Amazon’s Alexa

• Intelligent personal assistant can also provide latest AHS news and information

Alberta Health Services - Estimated emergency department wait times and the latest Alberta Health Services (AHS) news are now available through Alexa; Amazon’s intelligent personal assistant.  AHS is the first public healthcare organization in Canada to offer information to the public with this technology.

Alberta Health Services reaches agreement with nurses

Alberta Health Services - Alberta Health Services (AHS) has ratified a three-year collective agreement with United Nurses of Alberta (UNA).  The three-year agreement expires on March 31, 2020 and sets out the terms and conditions for the more than 30,000 Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses who provide care in Alberta’s communities, hospitals and healthcare facilities.

A-1 Pizza re-opens

Chris Davis - A-1 Pizza in Pincher Creek was approved to reopen on Wednesday February 7 after a closure order issued on February 2 by Alberta Health Services due to a failed health inspection was rescinded.  The closure order was rescinded following a successful effort by the restaurateurs to meet the conditions of the inspection report.

According to the notice rescinding the closure order, Alberta Health Services approved the removal of the order and granted permission to reopen the establishment provided "the facility is maintained in a clean and sanitary condition and the written cleaning and sanitation program is fully implemented on a continual basis," and "the temperatures for all coolers are checked and logged 3 times per day". To rectify infractions noted in the closure order A-1 Pizza Floor replaced tiles near utility room, the floor in the utility room, and the handle on the walk-in cooler door. They also cleaned the vent hood and pizza oven, and created "an adequate written cleaning and sanitation plan".

Pertussis outbreak declared over in South Zone

 

Alberta Health Services - Pertussis disease activity in the South Zone of Alberta Health Services (AHS) has decreased to such an extent as to no longer represent an outbreak situation. As such, effective immediately, the South Zone Medical Officer of Health (MOH) has declared the South Zone pertussis outbreak (active since June 5, 2017) to be over.  From the onset of this outbreak until Dec 7, 2017, 441 cases of pertussis were confirmed in the South Zone, of which 388 were connected with the outbreak.

Estimated ED wait times in AHS South Zone now online

Alberta Health Services South Zone - Real-time estimated emergency department (ED) wait times for Chinook Regional Hospital in Lethbridge and Medicine Hat Regional Hospital are now online, giving southern Albertans another tool to help them decide where to access care for themselves and their families.  Available on the Alberta Health Services website and mobile app, patients and the public can access up-to-the-minute wait times in the ED 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The wait times posted reflect an estimate of how long it takes from being assessed by a triage nurse in the emergency department to being seen by a physician.

The times are calculated through a software system that uses current data from the facility that compares the number of people in the emergency department and how sick they are with how many resources are available and required to treat those patients.

This calculation does not take into account seriously ill patients, who will be seen immediately, and patients with non-urgent concerns, who may wait longer to be seen depending on resources.


Wait times do not represent the total time patients may spend at the hospital.

Cardston and Pincher Creek Health Centres limiting visitors due to smoke

Alberta Health Services (updated September 11) - Visitor restrictions remain at Cardston and Pincher Creek Health Centres due to smoke that enters the buildings when doors are opened. If visits are not truly urgent, we are asking people to postpone visiting until the air quality improves. At this time weather forecasts indicate that relief does not appear to be imminent.

There was an error in the Lethbridge Herald this morning, saying people were being asked to refrain from visiting evacuation centre. This is not the case- we are only asking people to refrain from visiting Cardston and Pincher Creek hospitals.

What does a healthy 24 hours look like for your child?

Sonya Brown

Sonya Brown, Health Promotion Co-ordinator, AHS Community Health Services - It’s that time of year again. The time of year when alarm clocks are set extra early; morning routines are back in action; school lunches are carefully prepared the night before; and new fall activities have filled the calendar. The long days of summer and family vacations are nothing but a memory, and although getting back to “routine” can feel like a relief to some – to others it feels more like organized chaos.

What parents need to know about children and vaping

Michelle Sauvé

Michelle Sauvé, Tobacco Reduction Counsellor, Addiction and Mental Health Services - The start of the school year is such an exciting time! There are many ‘firsts’ for children and lots of new opportunities. Unfortunately, for some children and teens, there is one ‘first’ that many are entirely unprepared for. It is the pressure to try ‘vaping’ with a device called a vape, also known as e-cigarettes, mods, e-hookahs or cloud pens. If you aren’t sure what these electronic smoking products are, take a closer look at the big ‘clouds’ drifting around inside cars or surrounding people outside schools and convenience stores.

Pertussis immunization booster dose clinics in AHS South Zone

• Clinics ongoing – book your child’s appointment today.

Alberta Health Services - Alberta Health Services (AHS) has begun offering a booster dose of immunization that protects against pertussis (whooping cough). Children aged 10, 11 and 12 with a birthdate between September 1, 2004 and August 21, 2007, who are living or attending school in the South Zone of AHS, are eligible for this booster dose, now through August 31 only.

The Core story of Brain Development

Justin Boodhoo

AHS Health Promotion Facilitator Justin Boodhoo - Stress is a normal part of life. For some, having to wake up in the morning can be stressful. For others, it could be the loss of a job. Stress is something that is unavoidable. Being able to address stress is important to increase resilience, and to learn positive coping skills. The Core story of Brain Development is a project developed by The Alberta Family Wellness Initiative. This initiative focuses on education and prevention, spreading the message that in order to help children build a strong foundation for development, they need stable, responsive relationships with adults in a safe environment.

Southern Alberta healthcare worker: Thank you for the opportunity, Canada

Trudy Reimer

Alberta Health Services Community Health Representative Trudy Reimer - As I reflect on the 150th Canada Day celebrations the country took part in recently, I cannot help but be thankful for the great blessing it is to be able to call Canada home. My life would look very different if my passport didn’t reflect my Canadian citizenship status.

I crossed the Coutts border on March 19, 1999 into Canada at the age of six, in an old Suburban with my five siblings, my parents, my uncle and a family friend. My uncle and the family friend had taken a trip down to Mexico to pick us up and pack us in along with the few possessions to fill the spaces that were left over. The reason for the move was economic - it was hard to make a living as dry-land irrigation farmers during a drought.

Natural health products: What you don't know can hurt you

Dr. Lena Derie-Gillespie

Alberta Health Services South Zone Medical Officer of Health Dr. Lena Derie-Gillespie - Natural health products (NHP) are everywhere in the marketplace and their use is extremely common in Canada. A 2010 Health Canada study found that 73 per cent of the population had used a natural health product and Albertans actually had the highest rate of NPH use, at 82 per cent.

Of these people, 15 per cent had an unwanted or adverse side effect. Despite this fact, many people believe that NHPs are safer or better for them than prescription or other over-the-counter medications. Such a belief is not inherently true. For example, Vitamin A in high doses has been associated with liver damage and birth defects.

Children and screen time

Kari Hagen

Kari Hagen, Alberta Health Services - It has become common to see children playing with electronics or being in front of a screen. Often electronics seem to be a lifesaver in our busy lives, keeping children occupied while we do other tasks or household chores.  Long periods of time spent in front of a screen has a direct effect on our child’s development and health. In many cases, time spent on electronics has reduced the time available for the child and their caregivers to interact, go outside, play with toys, read etc.

Infection related to heater cooler units used in open heart surgery confirmed

Alberta Health Services - Alberta Health Services (AHS) is notifying the public of a confirmed case of M. chimaera infection in an adult open heart surgery patient.  In December 2016, AHS notified approximately 11,500 former open heart surgery patients about the potential risk of infection related to exposure to Mycobacterium Chimaera (M. chimaera) through the use of certain heater cooler units commonly used in cardiac procedures.

Becoming Canadian

Tina Fielding

Tina Fielding, Community Health Representative, AHS - I work with our Low-German speaking families in Southern Alberta and help others to understand the culture. As I do this work, I often find myself thinking back to my childhood experiences. Having grown up with a rather strict Mennonite upbringing, it took me many years to understand and comply with the Canadian culture that we were now being raised in. There were many struggles within my heart as I went to school in the Canadian public school system and attended church at the Old Colony Mennonite Church on Sundays. Often the two were so very contradictory, and for a young child it was hard to navigate the two worlds.