He's been a public figure for much of his adult life, and now he's hoping that by sharing his experience, he can help the helpers. Cyril Lunney recently had to call 911 to have an ambulance come to his home to help his 16-year old daughter. She was dehydrated and in medical distress. It took nearly 90 minutes for the paramedics to arrive from 90 kilometres away. And that prompted him to write an open letter to the province on his Facebook page. That message about his family's experience has been...
Apr 07, 2022•11 min
Nearly two in five Canadians are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes according to the Canadian Cancer Society. And without question, the pressure on our health care system during the pandemic has delayed diagnosis and treatment for many Nova Scotians. Danielle Smith was studying to be a nurse when she detected an unsual lump while practising for one of her classes. And she was fortunate enough to be seen by doctors in June of 2020 and her own family physician called her to br...
Apr 06, 2022•17 min
As a part of the provincial budget, Nova Scotia is introducing the Non-Resident Property Tax and Non-Resident Provincial Deed Transfer Tax. The deed transfer is five percent of the purchase price and will be on top of whatever the deed transfer tax is in the municipality where the property is located. The non-resident property tax is calculated at $2 per $100 of assessed value and both are effective April 1, 2022. What impact if any will this have on the red-hot housing market in the province? T...
Apr 05, 2022•10 min
Family of one of the victims in the mass killings in 2020 are asking for answers about why some information they provided wasn't included. They say they provided Fitbit data from VON Nurse Heather O'Brien that showed her heart was beating for hours after she'd been shot and left for dead by the killer. They question why the responding officers didn't get her medical help. Documents relating to the RCMP Officer's notes and the transcripts of their interviews with the Mass Casualty Commission were...
Apr 04, 2022•16 min
When opposition members introduce Legislation, it can be seen as a signal of the direction they'd like to see government move towards. It seldom makes it to second reading to be voted on to become law. Both the Liberals and New Democrats have been busy introducing their opposition bills this session. The challenge for Iain Rankin and his party is that they could have still been in power had they not chosen to go to the polls last summer. The end of the mandate would still have been months away. ...
Apr 01, 2022•16 min
Nova Scotia's budget included two new measures the government says will help with the housing challenges in the province. One is to include a five percent deed transfer tax for non-residents who don't move in within six months of closing. The other is a two-dollars per $100 assessment tax for non resident property owners. Meantime, Liberal MLA Lorelei Nicholl has proposed a change to the Municipal Government Act that would exempt first time home buyers in Nova Scotia from paying a deed transfer ...
Mar 31, 2022•13 min
A group of citizens in Dartmouth is worried about the potential threat to a vital ecosystem at the expense of a newly announced housing development. Protect Our Southdale Wetland Society has been around for a few years. But they have renewed concerns about announcements last week and this week for the Southdale Future Growth Node developments. The 12-hundred units are being added to an area their group considers ecologically sensitive. And with the provincial developments being fast-tracked, the...
Mar 30, 2022•11 min
Today saw the Progressive Conservative government outline its spending plan for Nova Scotians for the coming year. And health care was a huge part of the $13.2-billon budget. Mental health was also included. Earlier in the day, the Nova Scotia Division of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) and the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers (NSCSW). Both groups were looking for the government to focus on equity, parity, housing, early intervention and the social determinants of health. Karn...
Mar 29, 2022•13 min
There's no doubt that people still have questions for Lisa Banfield about the events that led up to the mass killings in Portapique. But the killer's common-law spouse has also accurately been described as the first survivor and the first victim in that attack. For the Elizabeth Fry Society, there are times when victims of intimate partner violence are blamed for not leaving or reporting the actions of the perpetrator. And Executive Director Emma Halpin is urging people to have empathy and under...
Mar 28, 2022•11 min
Earlier this week I reached out to speak with Dr. Stan Kutcher. He is a renowned psychiatrist and expert in adolescent mental health, in addition to being a Senate Representative for Nova Scotia. The conversation was about the return to school and the anxiety that may come from the lifting of pandemic health restrictions. He discusses the issues of trust in public health and in governments and the five things we've learned during this pandemic. Along with his thoughts on those topics, he also to...
Mar 25, 2022•14 min
Nova Scotia's legislative session opens today and MLA's were greeting by protesters as they entered the house. It was organized by the group Permanent Accessible Dignified Safe Housing for All (PADS) and a coalition of worker, housing and anti-poverty advocates. Hailie Tattrie is a member of Justice for Workers. She describes how this came together, why they are optimistic and what they'd like to see come from this movement. As she says, they want to see anti-poverty action from the legislative ...
Mar 24, 2022•9 min
The possibility of the next federal election happening before 2025 is a lot lower than it was, just a week ago. But in spite of the Conservative Party of Canada labelling it a Liberal-NDP Coalition, it's being described as a "confidence and supply" agreement. The New Democratic Party will support the minority Liberal Government on issues that could trigger an election, in exchange for some of the programs and spending they'd like to see enacted. And that does decrease the chances of the oppositi...
Mar 23, 2022•16 min
It's been a difficult two years since the State of Emergency was enacted and Nova Scotians started following Public Health guidelines. But now that the Progressive Conservative Government has ended most of the mandates, there are some questions about the timing. As the Nova Scotia Liberals work towards selecting a new leader, Iain Rankin is still the head of the official opposition. And when the House resumes with the spring sitting on Thursday, he has questions. The party released a statement d...
Mar 22, 2022•15 min
Pressure from a group of pediatricians has pushed the Nova Scotia Government to keep masking mandatory for kids in class for a few more weeks. That is in line with precautions for hospital and senior care facilities. But all other pandemic related public health measures are gone as of today, March 21st, 2022. Anecdotally, there are many people who are following the advice that masks are recommended, even if they are no longer mandated for use inside businesses and offices. But one professor at D...
Mar 21, 2022•15 min
Steve Poltz is a self-described road dog and performance junkie who regularly spends 300 plus days a year on the road including regular stops in Halifax. Unless there's a pandemic. Born in Nova Scotia, raised in California, he now spends much of his time in Nashville when he's not on the road. Poltz has just released his 14th solo album, Stardust & Satellites and he describes himself as the Grateful Dead of Folk music. Whether it's crafting a song about a can of pop, or co-writing a Top 40 s...
Mar 18, 2022•22 min
Gas prices will be adjusted again tonight in Nova Scotia and it looks like high prices are here to stay for a while. And for one mother in the East Hants area, an idea on saving money and reducing traffic seemed obvious. Katy Strickland started a Facebook group to help bring commuters together for people travelling between Stewiacke and Halifax. In fact, she was blown away by the quick response. More than 200 people joined her group in the first few days. She discusses some of the concerns the a...
Mar 17, 2022•11 min
Recently, a fire department in Markham, Ontario donated thirteen automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to help people living in Victoria County, Cape Breton. A few former residents of the island helped make that possible through Emergency Health Services (EHS) and the area's Fire Service Coordinator. One of the conditions for the businesses that accepted the potentially life-saving devices, was that they had to sign up and have them included on the EHS AED Registry program. Paramedic Lyle Don...
Mar 16, 2022•13 min
The lede in a recent story on his life and his passing, spoke to the many historical and human legacies of Darce Fardy. "Nova Scotia’s first freedom of information officer who later shared his story of living with dementia as a Chronicle Herald columnist, died Saturday at age 89 in Halifax." His long career as a journalist led him to his role as a public servant, focusing on access to information and the right for citizens to know what governments were doing. Former Nova Scotia Politician Graham...
Mar 15, 2022•12 min
As COVID-19 restrictions are being eased across Atlantic Canada, some experts are urging caution about a complete return to a pre-pandemic lifestyle. And Nova Scotia's own Chief Medical Officer of Health has cautioned there are still people dying and the virus is still very much in our communities. So who does get to decide when a pandemic has ended? What are the lessons from the 1918 Spanish influenza? One recent article suggested it would be people and not science that will dictate the answer....
Mar 14, 2022•15 min
Now that we're two years into the global pandemic, we've learned a lot about the frailties and limits in many of our health care systems. And when the vaccines started becoming available, we saw a pivot for pharmacies as they became front lines for public health care. March is Pharmacy Appreciation Month. And Allison Bodnar is the CEO of the Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia (PANS). They are taking some time this year to recognize the innovations they've brought to the health care system in No...
Mar 11, 2022•11 min
For months, volunteers have been helping collect and distribute food and water to people living in tents in Meagher Park in Halifax. Over the past few weeks, Halifax Regional Police have come in to dismantle platforms that were being constructed for a food tent for the site. And Laura Patterson has been documenting a lot of the happenings on her twitter account. She says they've been working to help when it appears the politicians are not helping and in fact, they are making it worse. Some advoc...
Mar 10, 2022•17 min
After initially refusing to participate, the woman described as the first survivor and a key witness to the events of April 2020 will testify at the inquiry. Members of the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) have announced Lisa Banfield will be interviewed and will be questioned under oath to fill in some of the missing pieces of the story that ended with the deaths of 22 people and an unborn child. Her legal case was in court today, clearing her so-called jeopardy. And the Chair of the MCC announce...
Mar 09, 2022•17 min
Fabian W Francis says he's been getting a lot of support from friends, family and community. But more than anything, he wants to hear from his daughter. Marley Alicia Morris is 24-years-old and no one has been in contact with her since February 20th, 2022. Francis says she has struggled with addictions in the past and he's worried she's hanging around with the wrong crowd. He's pleading for her, or anyone else who may have spoken with her, to get in touch. An awareness walk was being held on Tue...
Mar 08, 2022•10 min
A week after removing the proof of vaccination requirement, businesses in Nova Scotia are opening up to have additional customers. The easing of health guidelines and restrictions continues as we adjust to "living with COVID" as Premier Tim Houston described it. Tourism Nova Scotia announced it is launching a campaign to try and get more visitors to come to our province this spring, summer and fall. Paul MacKinnon is the Chief Executive Officer of the Downtown Halifax Business Commission. He wei...
Mar 07, 2022•13 min
Nova Scotians were fully in support of the families of the victims who called for a Public Inquiry rather than a review of the 22 murders in 2020. The Mass Casualty Commission was struck and has now started presenting evidence and hearing arguments about who should be called as witnesses. With so many questions still unanswered, some are describing a crisis of confidence in this process if some people aren't brought forward to answer questions. Professor Emeritus of the Schulich School of Law at...
Mar 04, 2022•18 min
There are times when we might be saying something else when we ask a question about racialized communities. Robert Wright is no stranger to speaking up about issues of systemic racism in Nova Scotia. He is a social worker and a consultant and a member of the group known as the African Nova Scotian Decade for People of African Descent Coalition. He says recently he's heard several people ask if Nova Scotia is ready for a Black woman to lead a political party and potentially be the Premier of the ...
Mar 03, 2022•17 min
There was a time when it was difficult to get information from a conflict zone and it was at risk of being clouded by "the fog of war". The images of the fighting in Ukraine have been easy to find on tradition sources like television and newspapers. And you can even see people sharing information on sites like twitter and TikTok. Scott Taylor is a former Canadian soldier and is the editor of Esprit de Corps Magazine. He was shocked to see Russia take this action, but he says the media has polari...
Mar 02, 2022•16 min
As pandemic restrictions and precautions are starting to ease, Nova Scotians are showing different reactions to the idea of "living with COVID". And there are also other stresses with the situation in Ukraine and the information coming out of the Mass Casualty Commission. Dr. Dayna Lee-Baggley is a clinical psychologist in Nova Scotia. She's been helping people work through pandemic burnout, including health care workers. And she has some thoughts on these challenging times and the ways we can a...
Mar 01, 2022•15 min
Monday was the first day of testimony and the presentation of evidence in the Nova Scotia Mass Casualty Commission (MCC). A foundation document including a timeline of the murderous events of April 2020 was released to the public. And as promised, the details were graphic and upsetting as they outlined the first 13 murders during a grisly 45 minute rampage before the killer escaped. Adam Rodgers is no stranger to these types of events. He is currently the legal representation for Lionel Desmond ...
Feb 28, 2022•12 min
It was quite the headline at SaltWire.com: ‘Exhilarating and slightly discombobulating’: Removal of COVID-19 restrictions gets mixed reaction As The Chronicle Herald's Stephen Cooke wrote, "After Premier Tim Houston declared that “COVID zero is not a reality” and mapped out Nova Scotia’s long journey down “the road to normalcy” opinions voiced online ranged from “too much, too soon” to “it’s about time.” And for infectious disease expert and Dalhousie University scientist Dr. Lisa Barrett, there...
Feb 25, 2022•18 min
