Editorial page
Wednesday, July 8, 1998

A good prognosis for long-distance diagnosis

Move over Marcus Welby, here comes "telehealth." Using audio, video and data-scanning technology and a computerized communication system, people in the health-care business are working on a project that connects patients with diagnosticians across the North.

The plan is run by the Western NWT Health Network Project. Should the project be successful, patients in smaller, more remote communities would be able to take advantage of the medical skills of physicians working at major hospitals.

The potential benefits are terrific. Most importantly, the immediate benefit to the patient is in getting a speedy diagnosis. As well, nurses would no longer be dependent on long-distance telephone calls to doctors for advice on medical emergencies. The system would provide a direct link to major medical centres and databases.

There would be considerable savings. No longer would the taxpayer be on the hook for medevacs from the communities to hospitals in either Yellowknife or farther afield.

At a time when budgets are feeling the pressure from reduced government spending this comes as welcome news. Anything that advances the distribution of health-care services without throwing the taxpayer further in debt sounds like progress.

As the North, and particularly the Western Arctic, moves towards community-based government, prudent management of health-care budgets is going to become a priority. Affordable systems that optimize a community's ability to take advantage of medical resources will go a long way towards making community empowerment viable.

As all this medical information races back and forth across the telephone lines, all that remains to be seen is the bedside manner of NorthwesTel.


Mural mania

Among the more welcome additions to the Yellowknife cultural scene each summer is the ever-growing mural on the Franklin Avenue side of Canadian Tire.

Dawn Oman's work is the perfect antidote to the brick-and-mortar and the aluminum dreariness that covers much of the downtown. Our only fear is she is rapidly running out of wall.

Let's hope she, and other muralists around the city, keep up the good work and continue to make our city that much brighter. And our thanks to Canadian Tire for giving Oman a high-profile canvas that can be shared with the population at large.


Traffic fun

Last week's experiment with the traffic lights on Franklin Avenue brought out a bit of the beauty and the beast in Yellowknifers.

Some gaseous drivers laid on plenty of horn at people who didn't instantly catch the difference between flashing yellow and flashing red lights. These hornblowers wouldn't last long on L.A. freeways without taking a .45 slug up the tailpipe.

But there were drivers who stopped at the yellow lights to give people waiting at the crossroads a chance to get into the rush hour rat race. These easy-going Samaritans make Yellowknife a good place to live. In fact, traffic flow with the four-way flashing reds at the intersection by the Correctional Centre was remarkably smooth, far better than the irritation of waiting for the normal sequence.

Maybe the city's traffic department should experiment more.