| Poutine's turning 50 - time for some respect, please
If you thought poutine, Quebec's favourite fast food concoction, was made of french fries topped with gravy and salty cheese curds, you're wrong. According to the political scientist who wrote a book on Quebec's signature dish, the real recipe is a generous portion of shame fried gently in an inferiority complex and topped with a hint of denigration from the ROC (Rest of Canada) - and a touch of guilty pleasure. "Love it or hate it, poutine has become a strong symbol of Quebec," said Charles-Alexandre Théorêt, author of Maudite poutine! .
Natividad program extended to cut emergency room wait times
Since 2005, emergency-room wait times at Monterey County-run Natividad Medical Center in Salinas have dropped from several hours to about 30 minutes. An outside physicians group that helped cut those wait times was approved Tuesday to retain its management of the emergency room through June 2009 and strive to improve services even further. .
Get it checked
A lump need not necessarily be the dreaded big C. LYING all curled up on the sofa in my sister�s house set me thinking about the gamut of emotions that had assailed me these past two weeks. I guess one could say that my recuperation has given me an opportunity to set straight an issue that has bugged many a woman � a lump in the breast. That �dreaded� lump may not be as ominous or life-threatening as you think it is. The important thing is, when you discover a lump, be it painful or otherwise, do check it out. Confide in a friend if you need to; drag one along to the doctor�s for moral support if you have to. But get a diagnosis on the lump. Taking pro-active measures helps set your mind at ease. It enables you to consider the options available, fast.
Professional associations and trade unions reject constitutional reform
Twenty-nine Venezuelan professional associations and trade unions called upon Venezuelans to cast their ballots next December 2 to reject the constitutional reform advanced by President Hugo Chávez, branding the proposed changes as "illegal" and "anti-democratic." In the headquarters of the Venezuelan Doctor's Federation, its chairman Douglas León Natera read a communiqué where workers and professionals rebutted the 69 items comprising the constitutional reform. "The reform does not ensure personal security and integrity, it will not lower prices, it will not improve hospitals, and it will not stop illnesses such as dengue, measles, malaria, tuberculosis, and others from continuing to spread. It does not mitigate food shortage, it does not prevent low birth weight or growth or development disorders resulting from the lack of milk consumption during pregnancy, it does not ensure plans for road maintenance, it does not provide for credit plans of plans to build houses, it will not lower inflation," they claimed.
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