The leader of one of the main health care unions in Nova Scotia were repeating her call for help in addressing the challenges in Long Term Care this week. Nan McFadgen is the president of CUPE-NS. And she is worried about the impact the impact of low wages and staffing levels are having on workers and the people they care for. McFadgen admits she was frustrated in her appearance in front of the Standing Committee on Health this week. But she is offering guidance and science to back up their call...
Jan 12, 2022•16 min
As the long-awaited modular units for the people experiencing homelessness on Alderney Drive, a Dartmouth councilor is sharing his thoughts. District 5 representative Sam Austin admits they made mistakes when they tore down the temporary shelters in HRM last summer. And the Dartmouth Centre councilor says they over-promised and under-delivered on their plan. But he says in spite of that, they are making progress and they are still working to correct their mistakes and learn from them.
Jan 11, 2022•16 min
For most of the pandemic, Nova Scotians have fared quite well with relatively few people contracting COVID 19. But since the end of 2021 and over the past few weeks, we've seen thousands of cases of the Omicron variant. And while it would have been unlikely to know someone personally who had a positive case in the past, all bets are off. Many workplaces are dealing with staff shortages because of the isolation requirements for employees who have tested positive. And that also includes a member o...
Jan 10, 2022•10 min
It's a small victory for parents and educators who were looking for added protection in Nova Scotia schools. And the delay in reopening after the Christmas break has also made some people happy. But not all. Stacey Rudderham is one of the founders of Nova Scotia Parents for Better Education. She had to post a message to admonish some of the 21-thousand members of their Facebook group because of the comments and personal attacks. She says it's a time to be civil with each other, especially if we ...
Jan 07, 2022•14 min
The Nova Scotia Teacher's Union was pleased to see the province delay the reopening of schools for another week. And there's some optimism that ventilation issues will also be addressed. But today, the New Democrats are urging the province to act on another request. That is, to prioritize teachers and staff for boosters ahead of the start up of in-class learning. Suzy Hansen is a former school board representative and is currently the NDP MLA for Halifax-Needham. She is also the opposition spoke...
Jan 06, 2022•12 min
He spent a short six months as Premier after winning the leadership of the Nova Scotia Liberals in 2021. Since then, he's been serving as the leader of the official opposition. Today, Iain Rankin announced he was stepping aside to let someone else take over the party. He says it was the quiet reflection over the holidays with his wife and new daughter that brought him to this decision. And in this conversation, we discuss other political decisions of the past year that in hindsight he doesn't ag...
Jan 05, 2022•17 min
Students in Nova Scotia have gotten an extended holiday break because of the latest COVID variant. It started a week early with staffing challenges because of mandatory quarantining and positive cases. And they decided to push ahead the start date to next Monday, January 10th. But the Nova Scotia Teacher's Union is hoping government will rethink that. President Paul Wozney says they would like to see remote learning put in place until they can make it safer for staff and students. And while Wozn...
Jan 04, 2022•19 min
Nova Scotia announced funds to help those Nova Scotians affected by the devastating flooding in late November. And there was also significant damage for parts of Newfoundland and Labrador from the same storm system. A Halifax musician and promoter who had friends affected by flooding earlier in the year in British Columbia prompted him to organize an online concert as a fundraiser. It will be streaming live this weekend with a way for people to donate to help. Robert Campbell describes how this ...
Dec 17, 2021•15 min
More than 82-thousand Nova Scotians are waiting for a primary care provider. And the provincial government has been looking to provide alternate ways to get patients in front of doctors and nurse practitioners. One way is through VirtualCareNS. It is a way to give people free access to online services like prescription renewals, tests and referrals for specialized care. And now the service is being expanded across the province to people who are on the Need a Family Practice Registry. They starte...
Dec 16, 2021•15 min
It's not always the most wonderful time of the year for everyone. And with the holidays approaching, there are a few things you can do to reduce some of the pressures and stresses according to Doctor Simon Sherry. He is a professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Dalhousie University and a clinical psychologist at CRUX Psychology. And as he points out, a lot of the pressure comes from unrealistic expectations and harmful upward social comparisons. He also weighs in on the rea...
Dec 15, 2021•16 min
There are several news stories circulating on the immediate future of the shelter at the Mi'kmaw Friendship Centre. Some are focusing on the increased demand for services and the challenges of meeting their core goal of helping the urban indigenous population. Other stories are looking at the expiring lease agreement, lack of secure funding for 2022 and allegations from workers who have applied to become unionized. Brendan Maguire is the Liberal MLA for Halifax Atlantic. He's the party's Poverty...
Dec 14, 2021•10 min
Halifax Mutual Aid (HMA) describes itself as a group of people committed to taking action against homelessness by building small crisis shelters for those who need them. They also acknowledge these shelters are not a solution to the housing crisis. And recently, they've launched a fundraising initiative called a Gingerbread Story Kit. It's a way to build your family's understanding of the housing crisis with a kid-friendly baking kit. Campbell McClintock is spokesperson with HMA and he discusses...
Dec 13, 2021•8 min
Researchers at Dalhousie University have surveyed 165 owners from around the world about their dogs to discover how many words their pets respond to. Dr. Sophie Jacques is an associate professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. She teamed up with a colleague who also is a dog trainer. Their recent report was published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science and it identifies which breeds are more receptive and what influences outcomes. Why does this matter? As a child psychologist, ...
Dec 10, 2021•13 min
Nova Scotians elected a government last summer in part because of the promises to fix health care in this province. And there has been a lot of work already to identify and make a plan to address some of the long-standing issues. This week, the Minister of Seniors and Long-Term-Care announced $57 million to support current and future workers and to open more beds. Susan MacDougall is the Chair of the Board of the Nursing Homes of Nova Scotia Association. She's optimistic, but realistic on what e...
Dec 09, 2021•13 min
Nova Scotia's Auditor General gave the province a passing grade for it's financial reporting during the pandemic. But there were questions raised by Kim Adair about measuring the effectiveness of COVID-19 spending and industries that may not recover. The other unanswered question was about the province's long-term economic recovery plan. And those are also some of the questions being asked by the opposition. Lisa Lachance is the NDP Finance Spokesperson who is also wondering if the Houston gover...
Dec 08, 2021•14 min
It's a bit of a setback for the operations of the majority of Canada's CH-148 helicopters. All but two of the long-awaited Sea King replacements have been taken out of service because of cracks recently found in the tail sections of the aircraft. The exact cause of these stress fractures isn't clear, but one Defence analyst says in some ways this shows the maintenance and inspection processes are working. Former Naval Commander Ken Hansen also says this is likely something the manufacturer Sikor...
Dec 07, 2021•13 min
It has been 32 years since the murder of 14 young women at Polytechnique Montréal. This act of violent misogyny led Parliament to designate December 6th as The National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Erica Kelly is a fourth year engineer student at Dalhousie. She is also the VP Logistics for the Women in Engineering Society. That group is hosting their annual ceremony of remembrance and resilience to remember the women who lost their lives that day. Geneviève Bergeron H...
Dec 06, 2021•9 min
It's one of the certainties for all of us but it's not something we talk about often, or ever. And when Stephanie Purcell's father was diagnosed with a rare cancer in February of 2019, they decided to celebrate the time he had left with love and gratitude. Stephanie has written about her family's experience and what she calls the gift of Medical Assistance in Dying. And she opens up about why she wanted others to know what they went through so that we could all start celebrating life and the peo...
Dec 03, 2021•10 min
Canada and other countries are introducing new travel restrictions and testing requirements with the arrival of the new COVID variant Omicron. And with the potential for more variants, we're going to have to expect more snap travel restrictions, vaccine passports, cross border testing in the foreseeable future. Doctor Robert Huish is a professor at the Department of International Development Studies at Dalhousie University. He's not convinced these decisions are being made for the right reasons....
Dec 02, 2021•15 min
He's kept a steady hand on the public health directives under three premiers since the start of the global pandemic. And Doctor Robert Strang has fielded many questions from journalists and others in his regular briefings. How concerned is he about this latest COVID variant? And what are his thoughts on people who are distrustful of science and the public health measures that have been put in place under his guidance? He also talks about when he thinks we'll be able to lift restrictions and live...
Dec 01, 2021•18 min
Today is Giving Tuesday. That's the day after Cyber-Monday following Black-Friday and it's a lead in to the giving season. And it's also the start of a new project by The Unity Values Foundation. That was a group created to change the world based on the values of individual people. Steve Skinner is with the group and he says they want to empower people to help others. They do that by fundraising donations from individuals and businesses to provide specific items or funds to registered charities....
Nov 30, 2021•14 min
He's not calling it a retirement. But after 45 years as a broadcaster, Steve Murphy has certainly earned the right to step away from the nightly news desk. The award-winning journalist and anchor will be leaving the post he's held since 1993. He will be focusing on his long-form interviews and other projects after his last newscast on Tuesday, November 30th. But in this conversation, Murphy reflects on how social media has influenced the public discourse, the adversarial relationship between pol...
Nov 29, 2021•23 min
While they haven't been a band for more than 50 years, there's no denying the universal appeal for the music of The Beatles. And with a new docuseries airing on Disney's streaming service, there's even more interest in the event that was seen as the zenith of the band's evolution in the 1960's. Kevin Brunkhorst is a music professor at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish. He teaches a course about the Fab Four and their musical and social influence. He discusses the persevering reverence ...
Nov 26, 2021•16 min
A former Liberal Cabinet Minister is now working with the Progressive Conservative Government in Nova Scotia. Geoff MacLellan was named as the person who will chair the Halifax Regional Municipality planning task force. Liberal Iain Rankin is concerned with the lack of clarity from Premier Tim Houston on what the intent and duties will be. Rankin also gives his comments on the way the government is handling the vaccine rol out to children, the end of the Owl's Head golf course plan and his thoug...
Nov 25, 2021•14 min
With the opening of the first session of parliament since the election saw our second Speech from the Throne in just over two years. And while the address is mostly ceremonial, there were promises made to help with the pandemic, the economy and the environment. Doctor Lori Turnbull is an associate professor of Political Science at Dalhousie University. In this conversation, she speaks to the dynamics of the second Liberal Minority and the delay in naming a cabinet and in starting the session. Wi...
Nov 24, 2021•14 min
Even people living in Canada's Ocean Playground have a lot to learn about how we influence the ocean and how it influences us. And a team of researchers from Dalhousie University have completed some breakthrough work on ocean literacy and on an educational strategy. The team was led by Lisa "Diz" Glithero who is being recognized for spearheading a research collaboration that helps Canada become a global leader in promoting and sustaining ocean health.
Nov 23, 2021•16 min
Statistics Canada says the latest Consumer Price Index is showing a 4.7 percent increase in costs due to things like gasoline and food prices. Doctor Sylvain Charlebois is a professor with Dalhousie's Agri-food Analytics Lab. And he points to the natural disaster in British Columbia as another pressure on our supply chain. And he says that's likely to affect many other areas of the country, perhaps even Food Banks here in the Maritimes. In fact, he says we are just as vulnerable to pressures on ...
Nov 22, 2021•13 min
Teachers and other school staff have until the end of the month to get their first vaccination and have a second one scheduled, or they face being suspended without pay. And today Health Canada has given approval to start offering COVID vaccinations to kids under the age of 12. Earlier this week, there were reports of outbreaks in six schools across Nova Scotia. Paul Wozney is the president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union. He gives us his thoughts on the approaching deadline for staff and on w...
Nov 19, 2021•10 min
Soon a Nova Scotia grown spruce tree will be arriving in Boston for the holidays. It's an annual tradition to thank them for their support following the Halifax explosion. And it elicited a few people to write letters to the editor over the practice. Some people are worried about the environmental impact of cutting down 60-year old trees as part of the tradition. For that perspective, I reached out to the Ecology Action Centre (EAC). For 50 years, the EAC has been working to build a healthier an...
Nov 18, 2021•11 min
Several media outlets are reporting on the conversation between members of Halifax Regional Council and the Chief Administrative Officer prior to the eviction of homeless people around HRM last summer. The details show that they were discussing the need to keep the details from service providers and the public ahead of the actions planned for August 18th. That day saw two dozen people arrested at the old Halifax Library location when they tried to stop police from dismantling the temporary shelt...
Nov 17, 2021•12 min
