Latest news with #Hiebert
Winnipeg Free Press
4 days ago
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Tory request to curb mobile drug site ‘regressive'
The operators of Manitoba's only mobile overdose prevention centre decried the Progressive Conservatives as 'fear-mongering' after the party's leader wrote a letter urging Ottawa to deny its application to continue providing services Thursday. Sunshine House's Mobile Overdose Prevention Site — an RV that included a space for people to use drugs around staff members trained in harm reduction — was totalled in a hit-and-run July 2. It featured a machine that can test drugs for dangerous additives and free harm-reduction supplies. The Salvation Army gave the organization a decommissioned ambulance to use, but Sunshine House is in the process of re-applying for the federal exemption that allows them to operate. Tory Leader Obby Khan and PC housing, addictions and homelessness critic Carrie Hiebert said in a news release Thursday they wrote a letter urging federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel to deny that application. Khan pointed to publicly available data showing there were fewer calls to the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service about overdoses and fewer naloxone administrations by paramedics while the van was out of commission in July than there was in June. He suggested that shows 'the van is contributing to the number of overdoses' on city streets. 'We're just looking at putting the brakes on this,' Hiebert told the Free Press Thursday. Data sets published by the city show the WFPS administered naloxone 466 times to 264 patients in July, compared with 619 naloxone administrations and 340 patients in June. Hiebert said she and her colleagues are calling for an extended pause to allow for more data-gathering and analysis over the coming months. The MLA for Morden-Winkler also warned restoring services with a decommissioned ambulance could confuse users and members of the public alike about the staff and resources on board. 'We need to look at how (this program is) affecting treatment and recovery. That should be our No. 1 goal, always — treatment and recovery,' she said. Levi Foy, Sunshine House's executive director, dismissed the comments as 'cheap political points to demonize drug users.' The WFPS gave out a particularly high number of naloxone doses in May — 598 — and the next month. The last time there were more than 600 naloxone doses administered in a month was December 2023. The high numbers could mean there was enough naloxone distribution in the community in July, and people might have been more aware of that and less reliant on emergency services, Foy said. 'It's naive, and it's fear mongering to say that our services are contributing to overdose deaths when it's clear our data doesn't support that,' Foy said. 'Anecdotally, the service providers who we partner with all the time, they also will say that when we're not able to operate our services, that they see a spike in responses.' The RV required an exemption under section 56.1 of the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to operate. Summer typically has higher than usual overdose numbers. The average number of naloxone administrations from January to April 2025 was 260. Not all naloxone and other harm reduction is reported to the WFPS, Foy noted. 'It's a very regressive and hateful kind of approach to take to this because at the end of the day, if you take this service off, and then we see a spike, then what's your solution?' Foy said. While the vehicle is out of service, Sunshine House staff are still providing most services near its Logan Avenue building, including handing out harm-reduction supplies and allowing people to use the drug-checking machine. In its most recent annual report, the van recorded more than 26,000 visits from Oct. 28, 2022 to Oct. 31, 2023. There were 7,086 visits to consume drugs, which resulted in 20 overdose incidents, four trips to the hospital and no deaths. There were 81 deaths related to substance use in Manitoba in the first two months of 2025, the most recent data available show. Preliminary data show there were 570 deaths related to substance use in 2024. — with files from Maggie Macintosh Malak AbasReporter Malak Abas is a city reporter at the Free Press. Born and raised in Winnipeg's North End, she led the campus paper at the University of Manitoba before joining the Free Press in 2020. Read more about Malak. Every piece of reporting Malak produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba's first hyperbaric oxygen therapy hub to open
Inside the chamber: a bed and pillow, a wrist strap, enough space for a 6 ft. 6 in. cotton gown-clad individual. Outside the chamber: Martin Hiebert, pointing to gauges and a phone attached to the vessel. 'You are in constant conversation with the patient,' Hiebert said. Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Martin Hiebert aims to open the St. James clinic at 1863 Portage Ave. on Sept. 1. Patients haven't yet laid in one of Prairie Hyperbarics' three chambers. Hiebert aims to open the St. James clinic on Sept. 1, marking Manitoba's first hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) hub. He gave the Free Press a tour of 1863 Portage Ave. ahead of time. Up to 21 clients will be treated daily. Health Canada recognizes HBOT as effective in treating 14 conditions. The range of ailments is vast — embolisms, carbon monoxide poisoning, crush injuries, decompression sickness, skin grafts. Clients will, most often, arrive with a prescription, Hiebert said. They'll enter a hyperbaric chamber room with three tubular chambers ready to pump a high concentration of oxygen into the body. Hiebert anticipates great demand: another three chambers could arrive within a year. 'The key here is to make (people) feel comfortable,' Hiebert said. Hence the TVs. Clients lying in each chamber for 80 minutes can watch movies. Meanwhile, they'll be consuming near-pure oxygen in four 15-minute stretches. Air composed of 94 per cent oxygen will circulate the enclosed tube. 'Compare it to 33 feet down in the water,' Hiebert described. 'That's the amount of pressure you get.' Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Martin Hiebert shows Prairie Hyberbarics' oxygen storage room. Those periods are broken by five-minute stretches of consuming typical breathing air, which has 21 per cent oxygen, via a supplied mask. It's a therapy that's grown since the 1950s. The goal is to 'fill the blood with enough oxygen to repair tissues and restore normal body function,' a summary by Johns Hopkins Medicine reads. Hiebert got exposed roughly eight years ago when he had prostate cancer and accompanying organ damage from its treatment. His oncologist recommended HBOT. However, there were no options in Manitoba, so Hiebert travelled to a Calgary clinic. It cost Manitoba Health around $35,000, Hiebert said. HBOT clinics have sprouted in Toronto and Vancouver. Several Canadian hospitals have hyperbaric units. Hiebert and business partner Dr. Karen Moran de Muller will run Prairie Hyperbarics, a private clinic. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba has approved Moran de Muller as the site's medical director. Still pending is the CPSM accreditation needed before the clinic can operate. The association's Manitoba Quality Assurance Program has been in communication with the clinic, spokeswoman Wendy Elias-Gagnon wrote in an email. The accreditation process hasn't been started, but CPSM will work with Prairie Hyperbarics 'once the clinic is ready.' 'We're very close,' Hiebert said. Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Health Canada recognizes HBOT as effective in treating 14 conditions. Hiebert says a session at Prairie Hyperbarics will cost roughly $600. Later, he showed a thick binder Prairie Hyperbarics must adhere by to meet medical standards. Hiebert is envisioning athletes among the clients walking through the doors. A session will cost roughly $600, he said. He underwent 35 sessions in Calgary. An average case might involve daily sessions for 30 days, he said. He's in the midst of hiring two technicians to monitor treatments. The chambers can shut down in 120 seconds if need be. Another room holds a large fire extinguisher; it can fill the chamber room in 10 seconds, Hiebert said. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba isn't aware of another accredited hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber in the province, Elias-Gagnon confirmed. Shared Health doesn't oversee such chambers. 'We're really excited to have something at that level of innovation happening right in St. James,' said Melanie Maher, executive director of the St. James Village BIZ. 'It's really unique to bring it to the neighbourhood.' The new clinic comes with a $4.6 million start-up price tag, Hiebert said. Each Perry Baromedical hyperbaric chamber cost roughly $225,000. The clinic hasn't received government funding. Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Martin Hiebert, founder of Prairie Hyperbarics, underwent 35 HBOT sessions in Calgary eight years ago at the recommendation of his oncologist. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Hiebert believes Prairie Hyperbarics can save Manitoba Health money. Hyperbaric therapy would only be considered insured for critical care in a tertiary facility attached to care by a specialist, a provincial spokesperson wrote in a statement. 'While the province is open to further review, non-acute treatment is not currently covered in a private clinical setting,' the spokesperson continued. Hiebert is a marketing executive, and Moran de Muller is a family doctor practising out of Crestview Medical Clinic. Other family doctors may eventually join Prairie Hyperbarics — a wing of the 4,400 sq. ft. facility holds five offices for practitioners. Gabrielle PichéReporter Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle. Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Hamilton Spectator
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Holocaust education ‘not just a Jewish topic,' educator says
Lessons that build empathy through Holocaust survivor testimonies and case studies of Jewish life before 1933 are at the core of Manitoba's newest curriculum. Starting this fall, Grade 6, 9 and 11 teachers will analyze the systematic killing of six million Jews during the Second World War and what antisemitism looks like 80 years later. The curriculum developer told the Free Press that Manitoba students will be challenged to identify bystanders, victims, perpetrators, collaborators and survivors to grasp how propaganda and indifference enabled genocide. 'This is not just a Jewish topic, and I always try to tell this to people,' said Kelly Hiebert, who teaches high school history in Winnipeg. 'This is looking at the longest hatred of all time — but this can also relate to other marginalized and minority groups that have been persecuted over time.' The Nazi regime sought to exterminate Jews, but its early victims of persecution included members of the LGBTTQ+ community, Jehovah's Witnesses, communists and people of colour, among others, Hiebert noted. The career teacher, who does not practise Judaism, specializes in Holocaust and antisemitism studies. He's spent much of the last 10 months meeting with other teachers, museum curators and ethno-religious leaders to design a new social studies framework. The result is a curriculum that explores the Nazi seizure of power in Germany and subsequent creation of ghettos and concentration camps, Canada's response to Jewish refugees, and the lasting impact of the genocide on the world at large. Hiebert said the 'progressive scaffolding' model will teach students foundational knowledge and help them develop compassion for others through 'take action' assignments. The Manitoba government announced on Yom HaShoah in May 2024, also known as Holocaust Remembrance Day, that it was introducing mandatory education to combat antisemitism. Further details were revealed in the spring. One of the early tasks involved drafting a list of definitions. Both the Manitoba and Canadian governments have adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, 'a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.' 'Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities,' it adds. Examples of it include the denial or downplaying of the use of gas chambers to target Jews and calling the state of Israel a 'racist endeavour,' as per the IHRA understanding. Hiebert called that definition the 'gold standard.' At the same time, he recommends teachers ask older students to critically examine the IHRA definition, along with the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism and a summary published by the Nexus Project, an American non-profit organization. As far as he is concerned, criticism of Israel becomes antisemitic only when it involves demonization, delegitimization and 'double standards that you're not using against China, you're not using against Russia, you're not using against Myanmar and the Rohingya people.' 'There will be disagreements (in Manitoba classrooms),' Hiebert said, reflecting on his 18-year career in education and the complex history in the Middle East that has led to current events. Incidents of both antisemitism and Islamophobia rose in the wake of Hamas militants' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel and retaliatory violence that has turned into a 21-month-long war. 'Why this is so necessary now is to help students understand the historical significance of antisemitism, develop critical thinking and develop compassion and empathy for others,' he said. Hiebert said he is urging colleagues to prioritize building relationships, trust and respectful classroom environments before introducing these sensitive topics. Marianne Cerilli, a former teacher and NDP MLA who now runs her own consulting firm in Winnipeg, recently facilitated a workshop on teaching controversial topics. Cerilli said she was called upon by a rural teachers union to share her tips with its members in the spring. A survey of attendees revealed many of them felt unprepared to discuss politicized topics at school and they wanted more time to talk to colleagues about their experiences, she said. She advises teachers to brush up on conflict de-escalation and resolution techniques, consider personal biases and practise active listening. The education department will be available to work with teachers who have questions or concerns about the curriculum this fall, said Tracy Schmidt, minister of kindergarten-to-Grade 12 schooling. 'But we don't anticipate a whole lot of concern,' Schmidt said, adding she believes the rollout is 'a really positive step.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Winnipeg Free Press
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Holocaust education ‘not just a Jewish topic,' educator says
Lessons that build empathy through Holocaust survivor testimonies and case studies of Jewish life before 1933 are at the core of Manitoba's newest curriculum. Starting this fall, Grade 6, 9 and 11 teachers will analyze the systematic killing of six million Jews during the Second World War and what antisemitism looks like 80 years later. The curriculum developer told the Free Press that Manitoba students will be challenged to identify bystanders, victims, perpetrators, collaborators and survivors to grasp how propaganda and indifference enabled genocide. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES History teacher Kelly Hiebert specializes in Holocaust and antisemitism studies and spent much of the last 10 months meeting with other teachers, museum curators and ethno-religious leaders to design a new social studies framework. 'This is not just a Jewish topic, and I always try to tell this to people,' said Kelly Hiebert, who teaches high school history in Winnipeg. 'This is looking at the longest hatred of all time — but this can also relate to other marginalized and minority groups that have been persecuted over time.' The Nazi regime also singled out members of the LGBTTQ+ community, Jehovah's Witnesses, communists and people of colour, among others, Hiebert noted. The career teacher, who does not practise Judaism, specializes in Holocaust and antisemitism studies. He's spent much of the last 10 months meeting with other teachers, museum curators and ethno-religious leaders to design a new social studies framework. The result is a curriculum that explores the Nazi seizure of power in Germany and subsequent creation of ghettos and concentration camps, Canada's response to Jewish refugees, and the lasting impact of the genocide on the world at large. Hiebert said the 'progressive scaffolding' model will teach students foundational knowledge and help them develop compassion for others through 'take action' assignments. The Manitoba government announced on Yom HaShoah in May 2024, also known as Holocaust Remembrance Day, that it was introducing mandatory education to combat antisemitism. Further details were revealed in the spring. One of the early tasks involved drafting a list of definitions. Both the Manitoba and Canadian governments have adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, 'a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.' 'Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities,' it adds. Examples of it include the denial or downplaying of the use of gas chambers to target Jews and calling the state of Israel a 'racist endeavour,' as per the IHRA understanding. Hiebert recommends teachers ask older students to critically examine the IHRA definition, along with the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism and a summary published by the Nexus Project, an American non-profit organization. As far as he is concerned, criticism of Israel becomes antisemitic only when it involves demonization, delegitimization and 'double standards that you're not using against China, you're not using against Russia, you're not using against Myanmar and the Rohingya people.' 'There will be disagreements (in Manitoba classrooms),' Hiebert said, reflecting on his 18-year career in education and the complex history in the Middle East that has led to current events. Incidents of both antisemitism and Islamophobia rose in the wake of Hamas militants' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel and retaliatory violence that has turned into a 21-month-long war. 'Why this is so necessary now is to help students understand the historical significance of antisemitism, develop critical thinking and develop compassion and empathy for others,' he said. Hiebert said he is urging colleagues to prioritize building relationships, trust and respectful classroom environments before introducing these sensitive topics. Marianne Cerilli, a former teacher and NDP MLA who now runs her own consulting firm in Winnipeg, recently facilitated a workshop on teaching controversial topics. Cerilli said she was called upon by a rural teachers union to share her tips with its members in the spring. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. A survey of attendees revealed many of them felt unprepared to discuss politicized topics at school and they wanted more time to talk to colleagues about their experiences, she said. She advises teachers to brush up on conflict de-escalation and resolution techniques, consider personal biases and practise active listening. The education department will be available to work with teachers who have questions or concerns about the curriculum this fall, said Tracy Schmidt, minister of kindergarten-to-Grade 12 schooling. 'But we don't anticipate a whole lot of concern,' Schmidt said, adding she believes the rollout is 'a really positive step.' Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Dog owner describes 'unnerving' encounter with aggressive deer in Winnipeg neighbourhood
A moment of fascination turned into discomfort and fear for a Winnipeg dog owner who encountered a deer Thursday. "At first it seems like it's really kind of this magical moment, this really interesting animal that we're making a connection with," Marlowe Hiebert told CBC News. "Then the next thing the deer gets aggressive. It's like, 'OK, this script is going off.'" Hiebert and his eight-year-old Sheltie dog, Macy, were walking down Browning Boulevard in the city's Westwood neighbourhood on Thursday morning when a deer darted out from in front of a group of parked cars. The deer came to a full stop almost two metres from them and locked eyes with Macy, before it started to stomp its hooves aggressively, Hiebert said. Hiebert and Macy began walking up the sidewalk, trying to get away for their own safety, but the deer tagged along, following them down the front lawns. "This little girl would probably be really hurt if a deer would attack," Hiebert said, referring to his dog. Left to their own, with no one else around to distract the deer, Hiebert stopped and stomped his own feet, trying to give the deer an aggressive posture, but the animal didn't flinch. "It wasn't until we came past pine trees and got some visual break between us that she did let us go," Hiebert said. It's not unusual to see a deer coming through the neighbourhood, Hiebert said. During the winter he has seen up to four deer laying under a pine tree on his front lawn. "They don't seem that big when you're standing near them," he said. "But you begin to look at the length of those legs and the speed with which they could likely move them. "It was a little unnerving to have an animal like that be that aggressive." A spokesperson for the province said they received several reports about the deer aggressively defending its fawn in the area, but there have been no reports of the animal making contact with residents. The protective behaviour of the deer is expected to be short-lived, lasting a few weeks until the fawn can move on its own, the spokesperson said. Relocation will only be used as a last resort, the province said, given it can cause stress to the deer and the fawn. In the meantime, warning signs have been installed by the province, and the public is urged to be cautious and avoid the area or use an alternate route. Deer sightings on the rise Wildlife encounters like this are very rare, only happening once every year or two, the province said. But Winnipeg is not isolated from having wildlife, especially when considering the city's design, said Barret Miller, manager of education and programming at Assiniboine Park Conservancy. Developments around the city are being built to co-exist with forested areas in open grasslands that sit along river streams, he said, making Winnipeg an ideal habitat for whitetail deer. "It's no longer just open yards and big houses, it's now a mix of shrubs, trees," he said. "It's not necessarily that the numbers are increasing. We're just seeing them more widespread across the city." Any animal species, regardless of how docile it might seem to be, can be aggressive, Miller said. Deer have tight and muscled legs designed to help them jump, but they can also be used to kick, Miller said. The same amount of force they use to jump three metres in the air can be used to kick. That's the reason Miller said it's best to be at least five to 10 metres away from a deer while keeping a smaller posture and making as little noise as possible. But if the deer starts "taking an unhealthy interest in you" and it is becoming a rather unsafe situation, he recommended to be large, loud and back away. "Just talk to that animal in a very deep, bassy voice. Puff up your shoulders, pull the dog in on the leash and skirt around that animal," said Miller. It is also important not to approach the fawn when the deer isn't around. People might think the animal has been abandoned, but the fawn was, in most cases, only left behind while its mother looked for something to feed it, Miller said. "Give them the space to be the mom they need to be, and they're going to give us the space we need to be human, and we'll get along," he said.
