Be Healthy This Holiday Season

Halifax Community Health Board and Capital Health wishes you a healthy and happy holiday season. Please remember to anticipate your health needs in advance of the holidays.

• Ensure your prescriptions are filled.
• Do not over-exert yourself shoveling snow.
• Enjoy holiday cheer in moderation.
• If you have a chronic medical condition, anticipate your needs and have them taken care of in advance.

For more information on various health care services over the holidays, visit the Capital Health website at www.cdha.nshealth.ca

Getting Started - Tobacco Intervention Sessions

Tobacco Intervention Program
Getting Started Sessions
January– February 2010

A Getting Started session will support you in making choices about your use
of tobacco products and provide you with more information about our
free Tobacco Intervention Program.

January

Tues., January 5, 2010
Metropolitan Place
99 Wyse Road, DartmouthSuite 1070
Noon – 1 p.m.

Tues., January 5, 2010
Spring Garden Road Library
The Program Room
7-8 p.m.

Wed., January 6, 2010
Spryfield , 339 Herring Cove Road, Suite 211
Above Royal Bank, Halifax
5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Mon., January 11, 2010
Keshen Goodman Public Library 330 Lacewood Drive
Halifax Meeting Room C
7-8 p.m.

Thurs., January 14, 2010
Belmont House
33 Alderney Drive 5th Floor
Harbour view Room
6-7 p.m.

Tues. January 19, 2010
QEII Halifax Infirmary Site
Royal Bank Theater
1796 Summer Street, Halifax
Noon – 1 p.m.

Wed. January 20, 2010
22637 Highway #7
Sheet Harbour, NS
Multi-purpose Room
Noon – 1 p.m.

February

Wed., February 10, 2010
Spryfield , 339 Herring Cove Road
Suite 211Above Royal Bank, Halifax
5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Thurs. February 11, 2010
Dartmouth General Hospital
325 Pleasant Street, DartmouthBoardroom
Noon – 1 p.m.

Thurs., February 11, 2010
QEII Halifax Infirmary Site1796 Summer Street
HalifaxRoyal Bank Theatre
7 – 8 p.m.

Tues., February 16, 2010
Hants Community Hospital
89 Payzant Drive, Windsor
Room: Conf Room A
3-4 p.m.

Tues., February 16, 2010
Cobequid Community Health Center
Room: 321540 Freer Lane, Sackville
7-8 p.m.

Tues. February 23, 2010
QEII Halifax Infirmary Site
Royal Bank Theater
1796 Summer Street, Halifax
Noon – 1 p.m.

Thurs. February 25, 2010
Dartmouth General Hospital
325 Pleasant Street Dartmouth, NS
6-7 p.m.


There is no need to register, just arrive at a Getting Started Session.

All Capital Health tobacco intervention programs are free of charge. Bring a friend!

To learn more, please call 424-2025.

A Fable About Community

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.
"What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered. He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed this warning : "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it." The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers." The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."

So the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's
mousetrap...alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house, the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.

The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it. It was a venomous snake whose tail was caught in the trap. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. When she returned home she still had a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup. So the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued. Friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock.
To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. But alas, the farmer's wife did not get well. She died.

So many people came for her funeral that the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them for the funeral luncheon.

And the mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness. So the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and you think it doesn't concern you, remember -

When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life.
We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.

Who can you encourage today?

H1N1 Clinics

Between public clinics, family physicians, workplace occupational health and private nursing agencies, we estimate that more than half of the Capital Health district has been vaccinated so far. We encourage you to attend any of the following public H1N1 vaccination clinics in December, being held mostly in high schools throughout the Capital Health district. Students and staff can be vaccinated during the school day and the clinics are open to the general public during the hours listed below.

The pandemic is not over. Vaccination is the best way to protect yourself and your family. These clinics are open to all, but if you can't get to one, contact your family doctor, employer or nearest walk-in clinic.

Monday, December 7
Musquodoboit Rural High, 11980 Highway #224, Middle Musquodoboit 3:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Avon View High School, 225 Payzant Drive, Windsor 3:30 pm - 8:00 pm
East Preston Recreation Centre, 24 Brooks Drive, East Preston 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Tuesday, December 8
Lockview High School, 148 Lockview Road, Fall River 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Prince Andrew High School, 31 Woodlawn Road, Dartmouth 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Wednesday, December 9
Charles P. Allen High School, 670 Rocky Lake Drive, Bedford 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Dartmouth High School, 95 Victoria Road, Dartmouth 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Thursday, December 10
Halifax West High School, 283 Thomas Raddall Drive, Halifax 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Eastern Shore District High School, 35 Petpeswick Road, Musquodoboit Harbour 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Friday, December 11
Millwood High School, 141 Millwood Drive, Lower Sackville 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Cole Harbour District High School, 2 Chameau Crescent, Cole Harbour 2:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Monday, December 14
Sir John A. Macdonald High School, 31 Scholars Road, Upper Tantallon 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
J.L. Ilsley High School, 38 Sylvia Avenue, Halifax 3:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Tuesday, December 15
Duncan MacMillan High School, 481 Church Point Road, Sheet Harbour 3:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Auburn Drive High School, 300 Auburn Drive, Dartmouth 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm

What you need to know when you come for your vaccine:
• Bring your health card (but you can still be vaccinated if you don’t have one)
• Wear short sleeves and loose clothing
• If you aren’t well, come for your vaccine when you are feeling better

For Vaccination Clinic locations and directions, or to learn more, call 811 or visit:
www.cdha.nshealth.ca
www.iwk.nshealth.cagov.ns.ca/h1n1 or
www.fightflu.ca
www.iwk.nshealth.ca

Tips for Responsible Hosting

Planning a party? Entertaining is both an art and a responsibility. Your duties as host extend to
being aware of the alcohol consumption of your guests, particularly if this is a workplace sponsored activity. If you do, you will be making sure that everyone has a great time, from the beginning right through to a happy ending. Planning ahead is important so that all you have to clean up afterwards is dirty dishes and lots of crumbs!

• Serving alcohol involves responsibility. For example, did you know that you can be held legally responsible for injuries or damages that are caused by someone to whom you have served alcohol? Our tips for responsible hosting can help you plan a successful party that’s hassle-free and protects the well-being of you and your guests.

• Don’t overindulge at your own party so that you can react quickly to situations that may require you to make responsible decisions. If this is a workplace-related actvity, have at least two or three people in charge who will be able to monitor the responsible serving of alcoholic beverages. Make safe transportation plans a priority ahead of time.

• Determine who is a designated driver before the party starts. Then you can serve them accordingly.

• Consider having a party where no alcohol is served - particularly if children will be home. Consider the messages your actions will be sending them. Let children know that it is possible to have a good time without relying on alcohol.

• Plan some activities other than drinking: a carol sing, party games, or charades. How about acting out seasonal songs? At work you could hold a contest for the tastiest non-alcoholic punch. Hold tastings at lunch during the weeks before Christmas!

• Being a good host means providing beverages for everyone, not just for those who want alcoholic ones. Have attractive alternatives for the non-drinker. “Mocktails,” fruit juices, flavoured waters, and soft drinks are quick and easy. There are now a wide variety of new flavour sensations on the market. As well, many people enjoy chilled spring water. If you are serving punch, provide a choice: one with alcohol and one without. Be sure to label them.

• If you are serving any mixed drinks consider having someone responsible acting as bartender or provide measures beside the bottles. Don’t ask underage individuals to take this responsibility. Avoid pouring or encouraging doubles or pushing refills. Accept “no thanks” the first time it is spoken.

• Make sure that you serve food as this helps to slow down the absorption of alcohol. High-protein snacks such as meat, nuts or cheese are good choices. Consider serving a small meal instead of snack food. Avoid highly salty, very sweet or greasy foods as these only make your guests more thirsty.

Blue Christmas

Blue Christmas Service
Monday, December 7, 2009
7:00 PM - St. Columba Chapel
Atlantic School of Theology 660 Francklyn Street, Halifax


If you feel blue at this time of year, if you are sad, ill, lonely, challenged…or if you would just like to attend a calm, non-denominational service, with music, readings and a symbolic candle lighting.

Join Us!

For more information: bluechristmas@bellaliant.net or 454-4834

Light refreshments will be served.

A Learning Moment

It is an inevitable human trait for us to say things we later come to regret. If we are humane and compassionate, we should give Gerald Keddy the benefit of the doubt and accept his apology as sincere. And in fact, we might even thank him – not for his opinion about “no-good bastards sitting on the sidewalk” – but for exposing our ignorance as a society about the links between homelessness, mental illness, job security, food security, and other social and economic divides.

Mr. Keddy's misstatement was a learning moment for us all. He inadvertently showed that many factors are at play if people are to be healthy participants in all aspects of a healthy society. People don't wake up one day and decide never to work, live in poverty, leave their home, spark up an addiction, spiral into mental illness, or aspire to be "no-good bastards sitting on the sidewalk." This is why there are many agencies in Halifax and elsewhere that work hard to address these social divides from a holistic health perspective. They understand that physical and genetic factors are only pieces in a complex puzzle of what makes someone healthy enough to fully participate in society.

With so many of these factors influenced by socio-economic conditions like poverty, homelessness, and addiction, it is clear much work still needs to be done. Indeed, if we are humane and compassionate, we need to support these great organizations that are improving each of the facets of health for people who find themselves in this situation.

Each of us cannot single-handedly ensure there are winter shelters, supported housing, mobile medical and social care, addiction treatment, employment training, education and literacy training, job opportunities, transportation, friendship and encouragement. However, each of us as citizens has a responsibility to take the time to educate ourselves and our political representatives about the connections between healthy people and a healthy society. This will lead to better public policy and a better society for everyone.

On behalf of the Halifax Community Health Board,

Michael A. Poworoznyk
Co-chair