Community Action articles from April 2005

Community Action archives from April 2005

More than a pill.(COMMENTS)(health care system cures)
April 18, 2005... More than 30 years ago, Marc Lalonde, Minister of National Health and Welfare at the time, issued: A New Perspective on the Health of Canadians. This paper was a remarkable contribution to our thinking about health policy and programs. Well...

Million dollar study of the social economy sector launched.(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... MONTREAL -- The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada is putting $1-million for project that aims to help Canadian non-profit and community organizations contribute more effectively to the economic and social development of...

Children can't be pawns in disputes between parents and CASs, Judge says.(Children's Aid Societies)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... ST. THOMAS, ON -- "In child protection proceedings, the children are the innocent focus of the hearing; they cannot be used as pawns in a procedural gambit between the parents and the [Children's Aid] Society that could result in harm accruing...

U.S. consumers with disabilities satisfied with disability rights law.
April 18, 2005... WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Consumer interests of people with disabilities have been well served by the Americans with Disabilities Act though there is more to be done. A study published in the March issue of the Journal of Consumer Affairs...

Ontario appeals autism ruling.
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- The Ontario government will appeal the ruling of Justice Frances Kiteley that found discrimination based on age and disability when children were denied autism treatment in the education system beyond age of 6. Mary Eberts, a lawyer...

Calendar Canada.(Calendar)
April 18, 2005... Apr. 22: Workshop: Acceptance and commitment therapy; Toronto; www.leadingedgeseminars.org Apr. 23: Workshop: Assessing parenting capacity ill; Faculty of Social Work, Continuing Education; University of Toronto; Toronto; email...

Foreign calendar.(Calendar)
April 18, 2005... Apr. 24-27: Conference: National Indian Child Welfare Association; Albuquerque, NM; www.nicwa.org/services/conferences/protecting/index.asp May 4-7: International Conference: National Association of Perinatal Social Workers; St. Louis, MO;...

Judge reprimands Windsor CAS on protective custody of young refugee.(CHILD & FAMILY)(Sharman S. Bondy)(Children's Aid Society)
April 18, 2005... WINDSOR -- An Ontario judge strongly reprimanded the Windsor-Essex Children's Aid Society for the lack of detail and lack of update of a care plan for a young Sudanese refugee when he dismissed the Society's motion for a continued protective...

Manitoba Child Advocate want's scope of office expanded.(CHILD & FAMILY)(Janet Mirwaldt)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WINNIPEG -- Janet Mirwaldt, Manitoba's Children Advocate, now completing her second and final term, wants to see the broadening of the scope of the Office, so that it can work on behalf of children in all government departments, not just those...

Adoption bill will break promise, privacy commissioner claims.(CHILD & FAMILY)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- Ontario government's new adoption bill which aims to open adoption records has been subjected to criticism by Information and Privacy Commissioner Ann Cavoukian. She claims that making the adoption bill retroactive will break...

Family day care not a good welfare-to-work option, report says.(CHILD & FAMILY)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- Family day care as a welfare-to-work strategy is not a quick fix option for women on social assistance and, at times, produces alarmingly poor child care says a recently released study published by the Ontario Coalition for Better...

Child traffic rivals drugs and arms.(CHILD & FAMILY)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... NEW YORK -- Illegal trafficking of children is an industry that is believed to generate $10 billion a year, UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy stated as she urged countries around the world to do more to stop trade, which rivals the drug...

Yukon readies for national child care.(CHILD & FAMILY)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WHITEHORSE -- The Yukon government is reconvening its Child Care Working Group. The move is the territory's response to Ottawa's plans to create a national child care program, and its promise to fund it to the tune of $5 billion over the...

Funding.
April 18, 2005... Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Ottawa 613-944-4347 Belinda Leach, University of Guelph: team of 20 Canadian researchers and community organizations will identify the unique challenges of rural women, and examine better...

Canada's voluntary sector is vibrant but future threatened.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- Canada's non-profit and voluntary sector is one of the largest and most vibrant in the world, but its future vitality is threatened by changes in government funding policies, by a * drop in volunteers, and * stagnant donor...

New evidence-based social work research group opens at U of T.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(University of Toronto)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- The Research Institute for Evidence-Based Social Work has opened at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Social Work. The Institute aims to collaborate research with local and national front line social service providers and...

Name change.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... KELOWNA, B.C. -- The National Federation of the Blind: Advocates for Equality has changed its name to Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians.

Western agency executives named Muttart Fellows.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(Denise Morrell)(David Sax)(Patricia Turnbull)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... EDMONTON -- Three agency executive have been named Muttart Fellows for 2005. The award enables agency leaders in western Canada to take a sabbatical year to work on self-designed projects that are intended to benefit the broader voluntary...

NGO's called corrupt as Afghanistan eyes law to ban them.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... KABUL, AFGHANISTAN -- Afghanistan government officials are viewing foreign non-governmental organizations with suspicion and may bar them from the country. President Harid Karzai has labeled them corrupt, wasteful and unaccountable." ...

CUSO cuts admin costs in Canada.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(Canadian University Service Overseas)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- "In the face of adversity, CUSO's new design will ensure that it can continue to do its very valuable work," says Executive Director Claire Dansereau. CUSO is Canada's largest overseas volunteer-sending organization. The...

Non-profits share methods patents.(VOLUNTARY SECTOR)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Non-profit Inovation Alliance Members, including United Way groups in the U.S., have agreed to combat the threat of the highly controversial "business method patent" by sharing any current and future business method patents on a...

U.K. nurses may perform simple surgery.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... LONDON -- The United Kingdom Department of Health is considering proposals to have "surgical care practitioners"--specially trained nurses and other health workers--carry out simple surgical procedures. The Department of Health has launched...

Test program for police and mental health system in BC.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... VANCOUVER -- The Canadian Mental Health Association of British Columbia launched a program to improve responses by police to people with mental illness in crisis. The six-month pilot project, Building Capacity: Mental Health and Police...

Post-polio syndrome arriving in Canada.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- Increasing numbers of Canadian immigrants are facing a second wave of polio called post-polio syndrome. The influx of polio survivors is from countries such as Pakistan, India, the Middle East and Africa and has created a...

New fellowship for study in rural and remote health care needs.(HEALTH)(Brenda Elias receivs Gerry McDole Fellowship)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WINNIPEG, MB -- Dr. Brenda Elias is the first Gerry McDole Fellowship recipient, supported by AstraZeneca Canada Inc. The fellowship funds researchers at the University of Manitoba studying ways to improve health care access and delivery for...

Supreme Court supports Nova Scotia family court judge in protective care ruling.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- The Supreme Court of Canada agreed that a Nova Scotia family court had the jurisdiction to determine where an adult needing protective custody should receive care. An adult, (identified as "J." was found by a Family Court judge...

How many long term care beds in BC? Minister's count differs from CCPA's.(HEALTH)(Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... VANCOUVER -- The British Columbia Health Minister and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives are in a dispute over the count of long term care and home health services in the province. "The CCPA issued a report, Continuing Care Renewal...

Red Cross and SEIU agree on new contract for Ontario home care.(HEALTH)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- Red Cross Community Health Services and the 2,500 home care workers in the Service Employees International Union Local 1 have a new contract. The new contract includes new language on hours of work, travel time, weekend...

Still no WTO drug pact for poor lands.(HEALTH)
April 18, 2005... GENEVA -- Poor countries are still unable to import cheaper generic drugs because World Trade Organization members were unable to come to a permanent agreement. The temporary accord, concluded in 2003, is still considered valid but has...

Ontario and doctors agree.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- The Ontario government and the Ontario Medical Association have come to an agreement after a year of negotiations. The 24,000 doctors in the province will receive more than $2.0 billion over four years in payments and tax benefits...

Public health consults launched.(HEALTH)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WINNIPEG -- Federal Minister of State for Public Health Carolyn Bennett, and Manitoba Minister of Healthy Living, Theresa Oswald, acting for the provinces, are leading a Canada-wide consultation to develop public health goals for Canada. The...

Income levels not so important for test results, C.D. Howe study claims.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... TORONTO -- A C.D. Howe Institute Study suggests that schools with many low income families should be compared with other schools in the same type of neighbourhood especially when comparing the results on standardized provincial tests. Family...

Alberta increases assistance benefits.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... EDMONTON -- The Alberta Works program has increased the time low-income parents have at home with young children, making it easier for youth to finish high school and help families save for their children's education. A parent receiving...

Wolfowitz goal is poverty reduction.(GENERAL)(Paul Wolfowitz)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Incoming World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz said his main goal will be to achieve "real success" in "cutting poverty, particularly in Africa." The new and controversial bank head told the BBC that poverty reduction would be the...

Million dollar study of seniors housing in Atlantic provinces.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... HALIFAX -- A research team led by Donald Shiner, a professor of business and tourism at Mount Saint Vincent University, is creating a detailed demographic picture of Atlantic Canadian seniors in 2025. With more accurate forecasts about seniors'...

Property taxes are regressive and more so in the larger urban areas.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- Property taxes are regressive and low-income homeowners pay proportionately more of their income on property tax than their higher-income counterparts. This was true in every one of 342 municipalities examined in a report published in...

Visible minority groups likely to increase, mainly in urban areas.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... OTTAWA -- One out of every five people in Canada, or between 19% and 23% of the nation's population, could be a member of a visible minority by 2017, Canada's 150th anniversary, according to new ethno-cultural population projections by...

Dan George centre for training opens.(GENERAL)(Chief Dan George Centre of the VanAsep Training Society)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... VANCOUVER -- The Chief Dan George Centre of the VanAsep Training Society opened. It is sponsored by the First Nations Employment Society, and British Columbia Construction Association. The project enables training for at least 600 Aboriginal...

BC college child care remains open.(GENERAL)(Camosun College)(Brief Article)
April 18, 2005... VICTORIA, BC -- Camosun College will continue to operate its two child care centres, which were threatened with closing last year due to rising costs. A task force of board of governor members have worked on a revised business plan for the...