As many of you will have heard by now, the Chief Medical Officer of Health for Ontario, Dr. Sheila Basrur, has been forced to step down for health reasons.  Dr. Basrur had to undergo emergency back surgery and, as a result of the investigation, was diagnosed with a rare tumour known as ‘hemangiopericytoma’.  This is a rare vascular tumour which unfortunately has already spread to other sites, and Dr. Basrur will require months of treatment and investigation.  Although it depends on the extent of the spread, Dr. Basrur should have a good chance of recovery.  In the interim, Dr. George Pasut has assumed the position of Acting Chief Medical Officer of Health while the search for the new Chief Medical Officer of Health takes place.  As Dr. Pasut was the lead on the mandatory programs review project, this will slow down the review scheduled for completion by March 2007 and extend the government’s comments on Capacity Review.  Dr. Basrur has been very supportive of the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, especially in regard to our tobacco program.  Her expertise in judgment in public health in Ontario will be greatly missed.  At the upcoming Board meeting I will be circulating a card to all Board members that we will forward to Dr. Basrur.

Over the last several weeks we have been following two potentially serious cases of tuberculosis.  The first case was that of a Windsor-Essex resident with multiple drug resistant TB, and the second case was the investigation of two possible contacts of a case of extreme drug resistant TB.  Multiple drug resistant and extreme drug resistant TB, ‘MDR’ and ‘XDR’, while rare in Ontario are extremely serious because they require extensive follow-up and complicated treatment.  Drug resistance in tuberculosis is becoming more common because of inadequate or incomplete treatment which is becoming more common in developing parts of the world.

The influenza immunization season is well underway.  We completed our formal clinics on December 15.  The attendance at the clinics was down somewhat this year compared to previous years.  So far we have immunized approximately 8,000 individuals through our clinics.  The distribution of vaccine has remained similar to previous years.  Thus far we have distributed 163,000 doses of vaccine to physician offices and clinics.  It will be some weeks before we know how much of that vaccine was used this year.  We will continue to distribute vaccine and offer vaccine at the Health Unit.

On November 22, 2006 I attended the wrap-up meeting for the 2006 West Nile Virus program.  At the meeting a presentation was made on the breeding site study done in Windsor-Essex.  The results of the 2006 program and the study are being distributed to our municipal partners.  The final invoices to our municipal partners for the 2006 program have been sent out.  In discussing the program with the Ministry staff in Toronto on November 22, 2006, the statement was made that the program was going to continue for 2007.

I am in the final stages of confirming the June 2007 alPHa conference with Linda Stewart, the Executive Director of the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alPHa).  We are finalizing arrangements to hold the conference on June 10-12, 2007 in Windsor.

As noted in the e-mail sent by Ms. St. Denis, the Board meeting will be held beginning at 4 p.m. at the Tecumseh Municipal Hall in their Council Chambers on Thursday, December 21, 2006.  Following the board meeting, the Board Christmas dinner will be held at La Cucina in Tecumseh.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of the Board for their assistance and support this past year and to wish them and their families best wishes for the holiday season!

Respectfully submitted,

G. Allen Heimann, MD, MHSc
Medical Officer of Health