This post was originally published May 27, 2024

Jean Kearney leans in close to speak to Mick, smiling widely as she grasps his hand and holds his arm like a lifelong friend. They chat about his wife, Jill, whom he met in Sheffield, England. In his soft Yorkshire accent, Mick tells Jean he’d marry Jill all over again. “I married her 61 years ago and I’ve been chasing her ever since,” chuckles Mick.

Your child’s first word is one of those moments that’s written down, caught on video and remembered well into their adulthood.

But did you know before—and long after—that celebratory milestone, there are a lot of other speech and language milestones a baby will reach? In the first year of life, your baby has so much to tell you and is such a good communicator, even if they’re not talking yet. Up to about two years of age, your baby’s speech and language skills are evolving rapidly. Skills continue to advance until five years old.

100 Mile House and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at 100 Mile District General Hospital.

Emergency services will be unavailable from 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 24 to 7 a.m. on Sunday, May 25, 2025. Patients can access emergency care at Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake during this time.

Please see the attached documents to learn more about the look, contamination, and risk associated with the current drug alerts.

Drug Alert - Carfentanil

Drug Alert - Medetomidine

Lillooet and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at Lillooet Hospital and Health Centre.

Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 a.m. on Saturday, May 24 to 10 a.m. on Monday, May 26, 2025. Patients can access emergency care at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops during this time.

All other inpatient services will continue at Lillooet Hospital.

Please see the attached document to learn more about the looks, contaminations, and risks associated with the current drug alerts.

People living in Elkford and the surrounding community are now benefiting from more access to team-based urgent primary care with the opening of the Urgent and Primary Care Centre (UPCC) on May 21, 2025.

The UPCC, open seven days a week, is built into the existing Elkford Health Centre at 212 Alpine Way. The UPCC is co-located with other community health services, X-ray and lab services. 

The UPCC enhances health care in Elkford to offer urgent and same-day primary care appointments. People should visit the Elkford UPCC:

Barbara was enjoying the sunset on her porch on a warm summer evening in Penticton when a bat fell on her legs.

“It flapped around a bit, fell on the deck, flapped around a bit more, then flew away,” she recalls. “I felt its soft, skin-like wings on my legs. My husband and I looked at each other, shrugged, and carried on with our evening.”

A few days later, she recounted the story to a friend. “She told me to get myself to the hospital. I learned that you should get a rabies shot after any interaction with a bat because they can leave tiny scratches you may not notice.”

Name:  Erik Reimer (he/him/his)
Job Title: Spiritual Health Practitioner
Years of Service: Seven months
Worksite:  Vernon Jubilee Hospital
Community: Vernon
Ancestral Territory: syilx