As the health region spending the most, Prairie Mountain Health has been directed to reduce private agency nursing costs by 15 per cent by the end of this fiscal year.

Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara issued the directive last week as part of a systemwide effort to refocus funding on nurses in the public system.

“Prairie Mountain Health has consistently been dealt a bad hand,” said Asagwara.

“Alongside the challenges in the area, the previous government gave the region little to no support by cutting services, closing ERs and firing nurses resulting in millions overspent on private nursing agencies. Enough is enough. It’s time to put a hard stop on private for-profit nursing agency over-spending and re-invest in the public system. Our government is committed to working with all health regions to bring nurses back into the public system.”

In an emailed statement Prairie Mountain Health indicated patient care will be a priority as it works to fulfill the government’s directive.

“Prairie Mountain Health (PMH) is committed to providing consistent, safe, reliable and quality care. PMH commends the work of the Province in reducing reliance on agency nursing. We are diligently working to reduce our dependency on private agencies,” the statement read.

“The recent issue of the request for proposal referenced in the provincial announcement is a step toward redirecting nurses into the public system. In addition, reducing the number of agency organizations will assist in streamlining administrative processes, and in reducing costs. Utilizing the provincial travel nurse team is also proving to be an effective way to reduce agency nurse usage.”

The statement also indicated the health authority remains committed to hiring nurses into the provincial system.

“We remain focused on recruitment strategies including promoting the advantages of working for PMH versus agency.  PMH offers robust staff wellness resources, a pension plan and benefits that are not usually available through private employers,” the statement read.

“Regional recruitment initiatives also include attendance at career fairs, offering student practicums, and local and provincial grants and incentives.”

PC Health Critic Kathleen Cook said attempts by the government to shift the focus to PMH is simply a distraction from their own failures to address problems in the system.

Documents obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests show agency nursing costs in PMH have increased by 25 per cent this year, with the province on track to spend more than $25 million on agency nurses in Prairie Mountain Health alone.

Read the full story in this week’s edition of The Dauphin Herald.

Grade 4 students from the Swan Valley and area converged at the SVRSS on Wednesday (Jan. 29) for My Vision 4 My Education, where the elementary-level students get a sneak peek at the opportunities that await them at the secondary regional school where they are projected to attend in less than five years...

The former chief administrative officer of Gilbert Plains Municipality has been officially charged in connection with allegations of fraud following a two-year investigation.

On Jan. 16, as part of a joint investigation involving the Dauphin RCMP detachment and Manitoba RCMP Cyber and Financial Crime Unit (CFCU), Amber Fisher, 40, was arrested and charged with fraud over $5,000, theft over $5,000 and use of proceeds knowing it was obtained by the commission of an offence.

The investigation began following a complaint  in 2022 that Fisher had defrauded the municipality of upwards of $500,000 while employed there.

Reeve Jim Manchur said the municipality has been anticipating this day for some time.

“We initiated this process over two years ago, so we had hoped it would happen sooner than it did, but we’re glad that we’re at this point,” Manchur said.

The investigation involved numerous witness statements, along with the obtaining and review of extensive financial records and other reports.

“Any time you have an investigation of this duration that reaches the charge stage it’s a major milestone. However, the work is not complete,” said Const. Ricky Perkins of the Manitoba RCMP CFCU.

“We realize for the people affected, a lengthy investigation can feel as if there is no progress being made. In reality, there are many investigative steps taking place behind the scenes, and we’ll continue to work with the Dauphin RCMP Detachment until it’s conclusion.”

However the municipality has not been idle while they have been waiting for the investigation to process.

One step they have taken, Manchur said, was to sue Fisher in an attempt to recoup their losses.

“We’re still in the process of that. That’s another, kind of, frustrating thing, it takes time so we’re hoping that will move forward as time goes by,” he said.

He added the municipality has also been working closely with it’s insurance company in an effort to minimize its losses.

“I would say that of the $500,000 plus that we lost, $400,000 did come back from insurance, but we still have other funds to recover in terms of  legal fees and interest and those sorts of things,” Manchur said.

“Ultimately, we’d sure like to recover all our funds and go back to business as normal.”

But it will not be business as it once was.

“We’ve really tightened up everything on our financial side. We revamped our whole administration staff and all our financial controls are really, really tight now. So I really don’t think this could happen again, certainly in our municipality,” Manchur said.

Those changes include  eliminating the ability to etransfer from municipal accounts without dual authorization and requiring council approval on all financial reports. There have also been increased controls put in place to ensure bank statements are reconciled on a regular basis, as well as requirements for regular and up-to-date audits.

“You wouldn’t believe the stress and the frustration that this did cause for us on council over the past few years and, you know, it’s hard to believe that we’d be the victim of it, but that’s what we ended up with. I think a lot of ratepayers aren’t totally happy with how it happened, but in the end we have to continue to be vigilant and go from there,” Manchur said.

“We appreciate the efforts of the RCMP. We were in contact with them through the whole process and they did a great job.”

Fisher was released from custody with conditions and will appear in Dauphin Provincial Court on Mar. 18.

The Town of Swan River is in another period of transition as CAO Derek Poole stepped out of his role and away from the Town of Swan River this week, making way for the incoming CAO that is scheduled to begin his duties in March.
Mayor Lance Jacobson announced the hiring of Will Tewnion last week. Tewnion is a retired RCMP member who worked in Swan River once before as Detachment Commander from 2007 to 2010, and is excited to return back. For the past five years, he has worked in various Director roles with the Yukon Government.
Until Tewnion is able to return to Swan River, Darren Harvey has been appointed Interim CAO. Harvey was otherwise working as the Director of Public Works.
Poole’s exit from the Town of Swan River ends a 16 year tenure that saw him start as Superintendent of Public Works when he was 28 years old. He kept that role for 12 years. During that time he had some stints serving as Interim CAO until finally taking on the job full time in 2021.
“I was young for the position but now I’m 42 and have 16 years of Municipal Administration under my belt,” said Poole. “I’ve achieved a lot and I’m proud of it.”
During his time as Superintendent of Public Works and later Director of Public Works, Poole was focused, of course, on public works but also the utility, which saw a lot of improvements during Poole’s time.
“I did what any manager would do, I did a large assessment, and discovered that the number one priority was the utility, the lift stations, the lagoon, the well control sites,” said Poole. “All of it was aging. That was the focus for a good 10 years to get everything retrofitted. It took millions of dollars of grants. It was lot of work but the people didn’t really see it because it was a lot of underground work and might only see it at budget time.”
Even during crisis times when the Ross Lift Station failed in 2012 during the Manitoba Summer Games or in 2018 when a well control site failed, Poole sees the management of those crises as one his proudest moments because, through careful water management and conservation from everyone that uses the utility, the Town was able to make it through that time without a boil water advisory.
“Everyone did what they were supposed to do,” he said. “Even council was able to help get an O-ring that we needed for one of our wells that we could only locate in Phoenix, Arizona. Council did what they had to do to get a plane to cross the border through customs directly from Chicago to Swan River.”
Once he stepped into the role of CAO, he found it to be, naturally, more political, and did a lot of work in updating policies and bylaws.
“We did full reviews of our bylaws and policies, everything from the enforcement of it, to the filing of them, so it’s easily changeable when its time to review it for council,” said Poole. “It’s so important for our operation and it saves time, keep everything running smoothly and your employees can enforce a policy without a fear of missing a process.
“There has also been changes in the general professionalism of the Town of Swan River and how council carries itself. That of course I can’t take the credit for that, as Mayor Jacobson deserves credit for that. It was his vision and I implemented it through orientations with council and we got our strategic plan fixed, a proper one with objectives.”
Looking back on his tenure as leader of the Town’s administration, he sees the Town of Swan River being put in a positive light.
“A lot of the time, if you’re struggling, it’s in the news and it’s loud,” he said. “Your failures are in the news. I don’t believe that was us. I believe we were in the news for things that we controlled. We spoke loudly and lobbied loudly. We weren’t so much in the news for HR issues or legal battles. And, we do have our fair share of legal issues, but not because of operational missteps.
“During my tenure, I feel I wasn’t loud as a leader. Behind the scenes, everyone was doing their job.
“I think the Town’s greatest asset is their employees.”
Poole also added that he feels the most important relationship in a municipality is between a Head of Council and a CAO, and he feels that he and Jacobson were able to accomplish a lot during their time together.”

The Swan Valley Historical Museum held their Winter Warm-Up event this past weekend (Jan. 24), welcoming the band, The Pugs, featuring Steve (Left), Ken
(Middle), and Claude. The Swan Valley Co-op provided appetizers and along with some craft beer sampling courtesy of Black Wheat Brewing

One Mountain View School Division trustee is upset with and speaking out against a new divisionwide directive that will require students to sing “God Save the King” as part of their daily morning exercises.

Jarri Thompson took to Facebook to spread the word after learning about the requirement secondhand, last week.

“This wasn’t a directive of the board. It was a directive of the chair (trustee Jason Gryba), not on behalf of the board, even though he thinks so,” Thompson said.

“I had given him the opportunity to call a meeting and discuss it as a board, but he seems to think that because it is in the Public Schools Act he doesn’t need to go through the board.”

As part of the 1988 Schools Patriotic Observances Regulation under The Education Administration Act, students are required to sing the opening verse of “God Save the King” at the end of the day or as part of the opening exercises.

The practice was abandon by school divisions in the province following direction from the education minister of the time, approximately 25 years ago. However, the regulation was never officially removed from the legislation. No public school in Manitoba currently includes the song in its opening exercises.

As of Monday, MVSD schools were told to include the song in their opening exercises immediately following the land acknowledgment and announcements.

“I don’t know the procedure behind it except for the one that has been leaked online. Nobody’s shared any procedure with the board itself,” Thompson said, adding the directive is causing concern among the division’s teaching staff.

“It was brought to my attention that teachers don’t know what to tell the students. They’ve been working on reconciliation and the true past of Canada and how the monarchy plays into that. Now they’re going to tell these students to stand to an anthem that is not our own anthem.”

Thompson has received direction from the Manitoba School Boards Association indicating the MVSD board as a whole is required to discuss the issue “as presented by the CEO.”

“Regardless of the fact that it’s still in the act, the board chair was still supposed to talk to the whole board. We were still supposed to sit and discuss this procedure and none of us have done that as far as I know,” she said.

In an email response to a request for information, Gryba stressed that   board approval is not necessary.

“The decision to align with the legislation outlined in The Education Administration Act and Regulations does not require a vote or discussion at the board table. When trustees take their oath of office, they swear to uphold the PSA and other governing Acts and Regulations. Following this legislation is not a matter of debate; it is our duty as trustees to enforce the law. Any concerns with the PSA should be directed to the provincial government, as boards lack the authority to override or disregard provincial legislation.”

Gryba also indicated the new directive offers the opportunity for educating students about their country’s history, including the treaties signed between the Crown and Indigenous people.

Read the full story in this week’s edition of The Dauphin Herald.

With the frosty temperatures going down to a blistering -35 degrees, some snowmobilers took advantage of the cold day. Tucker Thompson pops a wheelie.

Grandparents are also the biggest fans when it comes to watching a student compete in a high school sport. Murray and Sheila Mullin were a couple of the proudest grandparents ever when they went down to Texas to watch their granddaughters, Scarlett and Lily Nichol, compete in the Texas State National Cheer Championships.
Scarlett and Lily are the daughters of Tanya Nichol, Murray and Sheila’s daughter. Scarlett is in Grade 8 and Lily is in Grade 10.
“This was our first time watching our granddaughters in competition,” said Murray Mullin. “During the year they cheer at their high school’s football and basketball games.
“We’ve watched them at regular games, but not at a competition,” said Sheila Mullin. “The Texas State National Cheer Championships were held at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. It was a huge event that started at 8 a.m. All through the day, there were competitions and I would say the crowd ranged from 1,500 to 2,000 people at certain points.”
Not only was it a big event for both Scarlett and Lily, but for Murray and Shiela as well as they awaited the final results.
“It was quite good and there was lots of excitement and cheering; it was quite the experience,” said Murray. “When they announce the finalists, they start by announcing the placements in reverse order. For example, if they have 12 teams, they announce the twelfth-place team and so on until they announce the championship team.
“For Scarlett, her team finished in third place in their division. With Lily, they kept announcing the placements until they got down to the final three. I was sitting there with my head in my hands, and when they called out the second place and it wasn’t her team, we knew they were the championship team.
“Just watching the team hugging each other and their excitement over winning the Texas State Championship brought tears to my eyes,” said Murray. “They work so hard at this because they started before the beginning of the school year. In July, there is a camp they attend and throughout their summer holidays, they are practicing. Then every day at school, each student is required to participate in sports. Lily practices every day and then after school, they are there until 5:30 p.m. practising. They are very dedicated and to be on the team, they must maintain an 80 percent average in their school work.
“It was amazing because as a grandparent, it’s an honour to watch grandchildren participate in their chosen sport or activity,” said Sheila. “Then when they excel, and the dedication and determination come to fruition, and the result is being a state champion, it’s beyond thrilling.
“Lily’s team performed flawlessly and hit zero. When a team hits zero means they have no deductions, which is ultimately what these teams strive for in competition.”
The Mullins also go to see their grandchildren perform their best under some adversity and pressure, as they had to bounce back from some obstacles that were in the way.
“Scarlett is one of the flyers that are at the top,” said Murray. “When one of her teammates was dismounting the formation, she put her hand down to stabilize and they received a deduction for that, which was one of the factors that led them to place third.”
“Saturday was the competition day, so on Friday Lily’s team was going through their last preparations for their performance and one teammate fell and was injured. They had to change their performance last minute because they were missing a flyer. They went in Saturday afternoon and practiced for three to four hours, changed their routine and when they performed it, they got a perfect score. That alone was pretty exciting to know they achieved that under those circumstances.”
Scarlett and Lily Nichol have been immersed in the world of cheerleading since they settled in Texas and started school there.
“I always saw my sister doing cheer when I was in sixth grade and she was in eighth grade, and I thought it would be fun,” said Scarlett. “I saw some tumblers on the team and thought it would be cool to learn. In seventh grade, I tried out and made the team.
“The first time I went to a State Championship, it was very nerve-wracking. I was really scared, but my coaches were good at talking to us and making sure we were ok. Once we got out there, it was really fun.
“This time, it was less nerve-wracking and more team bonding, because I’m in eighth grade this year, I had to help the ones in seventh grade prepare for this. I was providing more support for them, but I still was nervous during parts of it.
“It was fun for my grandparents to see us compete in a State Championship,” said Scarlett. “I felt like they thought we did really good.”
Lily has had a remarkable year in cheerleading this year, for she is co-captain of the team and this has been hailed as a rare opportunity for someone of her age.
“This is my third time going to State Championships and placing at them,” said Lily. “I started in my eighth grade year when we moved down here. My Spanish teacher was the coach and I heard her talking about tryouts and asking people if they were interested. I took home a flyer and talked to my mom about it, and things just went from there. I wasn’t in any other sports or clubs at the time. I figured I would try out and see where it took me. I fell in love with the sport and now am a State Champion.

The cold temperatures didn’t turn away the skiers and snowboarders too much as the Thunderhill Ski Area was still populated on the weekend, with people coming out during the day on Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 11 and 12) as well as Friday evening (Jan. 10).

Every year, the Swan Valley Fire Department selects amongst their ranks a firefighter who they feel worthy of being awarded the Firefighter of the Year. This year’s recipient is one who has grown up watching the commitment and dedication it takes to be a local firefighter and found the calling for it at an early age.
“I joined the fire department in 2013,” said Swan Valley Firefighter Brendan Fedorchuk. “My dad was on the Swan River Fire Department as a firefighter during my youth and then later the Fire Chief. Growing up and seeing the passion he has for the department, being a firefighter, and helping people led me to begin to come to fire training.
“While attending the training, I enjoyed the comradery, learning new skills, and the physical aspect of the job, so I decided to apply.
Fedorchuk has found the position of firefighter to be a very rewarding one. He attributes a big portion of that to the relationship and bond between the members of the department.
“The most rewarding components of the job are helping people in their time of need as well as the comradery amongst the other firefighters, Lieutenants, Captains, and the Fire Chief,” said Fedorchuk. “It takes a great amount of trust and teamwork amongst fellow firefighters and leadership in order to perform the demanding tasks that the situations require.”
Fedorchuk feels that during his time as a firefighter, he has grown on a couple of different levels.
“I feel that during my time as a firefighter, I have grown both personally and professionally due to the incredible leadership core we have and had in the department,” said Fedorchuk. “Our Lieutenants, Captains, and Fire Chief are outstanding role models in our community both in their professional and personal lives. Over the years, I have learned a great deal from our leadership core and I would like to thank them for helping shape who I am today.”
The Swan Valley Fire Department has had another solid year and puts a lot of focus into the community it serves, whether it be through events or by developing its accreditations to enhance its service to the community.
“This year, our department has hosted several well-attended public education nights and participated in Emergency Services Day,” said Fedorchuk. “We have an average of 100 calls per year and our average response time from the time of the page until we leave the hall is six minutes. Also, we have hosted a Vehicle Extrication Course, a Traffic Control Course, and we currently have three firefighters training to obtain their Level 1 Firefighting Certification.”
Fedorchuk is honoured to be presented with this award but feels that he is among many top-notch community firefighters in the Valley who give their time and dedication to service. He also accredits the community for their support in the work that the local fire department does.
“It was an honour to receive the award,” said Fedorchuk. “Although my name is on the award this year, every one of our 27 members goes above and beyond in their own way, as well as working within the team as a cohesive unit to provide an exemplary service for the community. I would like to thank our families, workplaces, and the community for their continued support and for allowing us to attend calls at a moment’s notice, even when it creates an inconvenience. I am proud to be part of such a great group of firefighters and the department.”