Ahousaht Emergency with Tribal Council ..T.
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LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA Bibl'otheque et Archives Canada . rtiF, Ma-1°R I I i Pill 1 3 =i2ali,iaii,i 2 6 p f - r-- HaShi1th-Sa em Canada's Oldest First Nations Newspaper - Serving Nuu -chah- nulth -aht since 1974 Vol. 36 - 18 - Canadian Publications Mail Product No. Sept. 24, 2009 haaitsa "Interesting News" Sales Agreement No. 40047776 Ahousaht emergency services co- ordinator e. II x - urges calm over H1N1 MEE= mi allera - they are all mild - so. .""wro cases that are being ° By Denise Titian treated in the community, and the symp- iirtl .! y t ai, . Ha- Shilth -Sa Reporter toms are no worse than what has hit the * ...0.+JfIliP 1111111M- community in flu . seasons past. -.40t16-40 ,..--..t _.I....d - rS r --.- --.= - 4,411iirp -..e+_+ Dr. John Armstrong, a family physician ..t.- °-raff0._-.^ _ . - Debora Steel Emergency - Ahousaht- Services serving Tofino, Ahousaht and Hot A Humpback whale spent three days in the channel leading to Port Alberni Coordinator Curtis Dick is telling Springs Cove, confirmed that H1N1 is in Sept. 10, 11, and 12. It frolicked around China Creek and gave a Ahousaht membership that reports about all three communities. fishermen show near Lonetree before it headed back to the open waters. the recent occurrences of H1N1 cases in The community has implemented plans the community are not as bad as what is for containing the virus and educating the being portrayed by the media. people about prevention. If there is a sig- The national news is reporting as nificant spike in new cases, Ahousaht Three vie for VP post many as 200 cases in the community, will go to higher level containment prac- Dick said, but as of Friday, Sept. 17 tises. At present, people exhibiting flu there were only six confirmed cases in symptoms are being asked to stay home. with tribal council the last 30 days. Ahousaht is in constant contact with "I've been in touch with Dr. VIHA and, according to Dick, upon noti- The voting members of the Nuu -chah -nulth 4( Charmaine Enns of VIHA (Vancouver fication of any significant spike in the Tribal Council have one less decision to make as Island Health Authority) on a daily basis number of flu cases, Ahousaht will go to they gather at Maht Mahs gym on Tseshaht terri- and she said we (Ahousaht) have done the next step. tory for the organization's annual general meet- an excellent job and that this is getting "It could mean isolation and maybe ing Sept. 29 and 30. -140 r 3 all Cliff Atleo Sr. has been acclaimed as president blown out of proportion," said Dick. even stopping people from coming into r Dr. Enns explained that the World the community," he said, adding he didn't of the tribal council and will serve another term. Health Organization declared an H 1 N 1 think it would get that bad. Atleo was elected to the position in 2008, replac- pandemic in June 2009 because this The negative attention focused on ing Tom Happynook who resigned from the job. lam. strain of flu, which originated in Mexico, Ahousaht with respect to H IN I has The position of vice president will still be con- was a new virus resulting in illness already had a detrimental impact. Dick tested, however. Three sturdy individuals have around the world. said the community was expecting a thrown their hats into the ring. Current VP Dr. Michelle Corfield will not seek re- election. "We've had it in Canada since April group of visitors from Vernon, but they Iris Frank 2009 and in May or June we told all cancelled the trip after hearing exaggerat- Vying for the position are Iris Frank, Priscilla B.C. physicians to quit swabbing since ed reports about flu in Ahousaht. Sabbas, and Dave Watts. we knew it was here," she told Ha- Besides their physical wellness, Dick Iris Frank Shilth-Sa. said he is also concerned about the men- Iris Frank is the current band manager of the "It's out there in almost every commu- tal wellbeing of his people and the fear Ucluelet First Nation. She is the daughter of Jack nity, and if it's not it soon will be," said being created by news reports. and Nona Thompson of Ditidaht. Her mother is Enns. "My first priority is the welfare of the originally from Tseshaht. Her paternal grandpar- "There are cases here in Courtenay, community and we must be careful about ents are the late Webster and Ida Thompson (nee and everywhere else in British how we deliver messages so that we Modest). And her maternal grandparents are the W- Columbia, but we don't hear about those don't create fear," said Dick. late Ken Jones and the late Agnes Williams. because doctors are not testing for it." Ahousaht has received tremendous sup- Frank said she was raised in her culture and in According to Enns, physicians port from VIHA, along with a shipment her community, and that inspires her daily to swabbed for H1N1 in Ahousaht patients of Tamiflu, a drug taken to lessen the work for the betterment of her people. She began because Ahousaht is isolated, only acces- symptoms and course of flu viruses. her professional life with the tribal council with Priscilla Sabbas sible by boat or float plane, and they According to Dr. John Armstrong, if her first job out of high school. She was hired as were instructed to test for the virus. taken within 48 hours of the onset of flu a file clerk and soon learned that she wanted When asked how the six confirmed symptoms, Tamiflu can reduce severity of more from life, and wanted to learn to be a per- cases of H1N1 came to be reported as flu symptoms and recovery times. son who could make the required changes for her 200 by media, it followed a CMAJ Tamiflu can be administered by a people. She took the advice of a former tribal (Canadian Medical Association Journal) physician and by the two public health council executive director, and set about getting report, Dick said. He speculated that nurses that are in the community. her feet wet in every department in the organiza- reporters may have taken their cue from Chief Councillor John O. Frank said in tion that she could. -. - J medical officials who told him that for a recent news report that he was con- She moved through the ranks, and then worked every one confirmed case of the flu there cerned about the three days, Friday to with other groups, spending two- and -a -half years JOWL could be as many as 20 more people Sunday, when there were no health pro- with Ditidaht, and then the last three years with infected. fessionals in the community to administer Ucluelet, which she called an absolutely amazing Asa_ Dick admits there are likely more Tamiflu. opportunity to see a nation ratify and work to H1N1 cases in the community than the Continued on page 7. implement a treaty during their move toward Dave Watts six confirmed cases, but points out that self-governance. Continued on page 3. If undeliverable, please return to: Ha- Shilth -Sa Inside this issue... P.O. Box 1383, Port Alberni, B.C. V9Y 7M2 Hupacasath member graduates from UVic Page 2 COLLECTION (17) CANADA NEWSPAPER Language preservation a priority in territory Page 4 NATIONAL LIBRARY OF ST, 395 WELLINGTON Lawn bowl title successfull defended Page 8 K1A ON4 OTTAWA, ONTARIO Canadian Red Cross reaches out to First Nations Page 9 Community and Beyond Page 13 4- Page 2 - Ha-Shilth-Sa - Sept. 24, 2009 Sept. 24, 2009 - Ha- Shilth -Sa - Page 3 NTC Election for Vice President Ha- SkilthSa newspaper is published by the LETTERS and KLECOS Nuu- ,bah -ninth Tribal Council Ho-ShtlN, -Sa will include letters received from its readers- Letters MUST be signed Unity, communications, service delivery top priorities for distribution to the members of the by the writer and have the writer's full name, address and phone number on them. Continued from page I. minor iin Media Studies with Distinction. home," she said, but those away from dren. Ile is a certified carpenter. Ha- twelve NTC -member First Ration., Names can he withheld by request_ Anonymous submissions will not be accepted. A common theme of all three candi- She s currently working on her masters home can still offer something to build Shilth-Sa asked him why the voting dele- as well as other interested groups We reserve the right to edit submitted material for clarity, brevity, grammar and good dates is the need for enhanced communi- with a focus on curriculum development. up the Nuu- chahtlulth people." gates should consider choosing him for and individuals. taste. We will definitely not publish letters dealing with tribal or personal disputes or cation and better program sen ice deliv- Currently she holds the health and edu- Sahhas tells Ha- Shilth -Sa she is pas- vice president. Information and original work con- issues that are critical ofNnuwhah -nulth individuals or groups. ery to the 14 nations that make up the cation portfolios as a councillor with the sionate about working for the Nuu chah- Watts is a former chief councilor and tained in this newspaper is copyright opinions expressed in letters to the editor are purely those the writer All of and will tribal council. Hesquiaht First Nation. nulth community of nations, and asks has worked in treaty negotiations. and may not he reproduced without Ile not necessarily coincide with the or policies of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Frank said, Weltered.