The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Flin Flon remains without a public health inspector more than a year after the position became vacant. Manitoba Conservation has conducted a province-wide advertising campaign in an effort to fill the opening, but the results have been disappointing. "There's a general shortage of health inspectors right across the country, so it's a bit of a problem that we have to work through," said Steve Davis, Conservation's northwest region director based in The Pas. With The Pas also in need of a health inspector, the plan is to have an inspector from elsewhere in the province come in one week per month to cover the Flin Flon-The Pas area. A plan is also in place to access a health inspector in the event of an emergency. Until inspectors are found, the northwest region's environmental engineer and drinking water officer will also be covering portions of the inspection duties. Davis hopes these measures won't have to be in place much longer. "We're going to continue to carry out a recruitment drive and talk to the five Canadian schools that produce health inspectors to see if any students are interested," he said. Duties of a health inspector include inspections of public facilities, environmental sampling, and helping to educate the public on health matters. The shortage of inspectors is being felt nationwide. In Manitoba alone, there are ten vacancies. Davis said rural areas face a particular challenge in recruiting inspectors because most seem to want to work in cities.
