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'ZAK'S 1êkn PHARMACY~~' I MlIln's Indepenathray * *WUt Dmg kiiomaton Aib eAt Zaka We Cam. Ab« eu * «M»eJi AMetroland Communitv NewsDaDer Vol. 140 No. 103 Fniday, March 10, 2000 28 Pages$1O 3(GST inchsded) Photo by GRAHAM PAINE Learning the ropes Little Brandon "Sparky" Pys, a kînagatn stud-rint at Holy Roaary, leamai about flreflght- Ing from fireflghter Paul Holllngahead at a fire aaf.ty presentation Wednesday. The Learn Not To Bum program lncluded a vidmo, aafely talli and tour of a firetruck. flouse destroyed in blaze A famnily cat and smoke detectors alerted occupants of a $300,00 Campbellville home that their house was on fire early Iast Friday momning. The strange behaviour of a pet cat woke the two occupants of the wood-frarned bouse on Twiss Road. The home' s smoke alarma also went off. The Milton Fire Deparîrnent received the calI at 5:51 am. Ail three local fire stations, with the assistance of the Halton Hilîs Fire Departrnent's tanker and can- teen truck, battled the blaze for several hours. Crews stayed on the scene for 24 hours; making sure the fire was out and helping with the investigation, said Captain Mark Cross, Milton Fire Department spokearnan. . The fire, which started in the basernent, was electrical in nature, he said. "The bouse is a total loso," he said. Luckily, both occupanta, as well as the cat, escaped the fire unin- jured. Jiospital emergency department getting continuous coverage A doctor will be on-site, non-stop By IRENE GENTLE The Champion A novel method of paying doc- tors wiII provide Milton District Hospital (MDH) with non-stop, on-site physician coverage in the emnergency department. The new fee formula is being touted aa an alternative to the traditional fee-for-ser- vice model employed by OFttP. Under the conventional fee set up, emter- gency depsrtment physicians are only paid if there are patienta to treat. That can leave doctors reluctant to man sluggish erner- gency departrnent shifts. But the new formula seta aaide a pool of rnoney to assure payment on even the JB-oy f ails 30 feet from lift A seven-year-old Milton boy is at the Hospital for Sick Children with serious head injuries after falling 30 feet from a chair lift at Glen Eden Ski Area last Friday. The 8:45 p.rn. incident is still under investigation. Not much was known at press time, but Halton Regional Police did say the bar of the chair lift waa up.. The young boy waa treated at the scene by the Ski Patrol before being taken to Milton District Hospital and then trans- ferred to Toronto. He's expected to recover. Det. Larry Brassard of Halton police told The Champion that Sick Kids Hospital officiais said "he was a very lucky young boy." slowest shifts. "Now they can cornte in and do a shift and know they're going to be paid," said Cindy McDonell, leader of the Milton family practice program. "Lt doesn't depend on volume." And it suits everyone, she said. "The benefits to the physician 1 think are obvious. It's guaranteed payment for low volume times," said Ms McDonell at a Hospital Board meeting, held Tuesday at MDH. "And the hospital gets continuous coverage. This is sornething we've been wanting for a long tirne." So far, $60 million has been earmarked for smaller hospitals reporting leas than 35,000 annual ernergency department vis- ita. 0f that, $1.25 million hs been set aaide for MDH, which sees between 30,000 and 35,000 visita each yesr. 'The arnount of money is totally volume driven. It has nothing to do with the acuity of the patients," said Ms McDonell. And though the pay is up-front, physi- cians are aaked to submit durnry invoices se MILTON on page 7 -Comment.......5 HS Report ....... 8 Datolns ....... 14 Lit ostyls ..16-18 Sports ...... 21-23 Classitiled . ... .25-27 MILTON ATfO COLLISION e Lfte Warraty on Paint e 5 Yoar Warranty e Insuranc Preferred Shop "Wei make your body beautifMou *rdifmA - Ty" Nausi T~us *SATURDAY MARCH 4. S.I.st ams eani ecouné