Gary Stoopler, , director of programs for intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorders at CISSS de Laval, is seen here with the committee that worked towards the implementation of the Snoezelen multisensory room at the Résidence Louise-Vachon.
(TLN)
For the 30th edition of the Quebec Week for Intellectual Disabilities, the CISSS de Laval proceeded recently with the official opening of its new Snoezelen-based multisensory room at the Résidence Louise-Vachon.
Developed in the Netherlands during the 1970s, the Snoezelen approach involves sensorial and therapeutic experiences meant for various types of clientele.
Over the last few months, a team at the Résidence Louise-Vachon worked to put into place this room which will allow users with intellectual disabilities or with an autism spectrum disorder to take part in new activities determined by a team of clinical specialists.
Users can explore
The activities will stimulate sensations involving the senses, including hearing, eyesight, touch, smell and motor control. The new room is equipped with fiber optics to project videos and still images as required. Users will also be able to explore at their own pace various other kinds of sensations leading to physical and mental relaxation.
“We have noticed that the users who come to this new room see a reduction in their anxieties as well as a higher level of awareness,” says Gary Stoopler, director of programs for intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorders at CISSS de Laval. “These are just some of the numerous benefits from this approach that reinforce the therapeutic link between users and their various interveners.”
‘Snoezelen’ room launched at Résidence Louise-Vachon
Special training in approach
In order to master this therapeutic approach, 15 interveners from the Centre for Readaptation in Intellectual Disabilties and Development Problems at CISSS de Laval have received special training in this approach. Over the coming months, training will continue so that the employees develop familiarity for the method.
“With this new technique, the interveners will be able to add goals to individualized intervention plans for each user,” says Nicole Lanteigne, head of health and assistance services at the Résidence Louise-Vachon. “This will encourage the development of users and will furnish them at the same time with a better quality of life.”
This issue covers local events such as politics, sports and human-interest stories. It features editorials and other columns. Click on the image to read the paper.
Front page of Laval News. March 21 2018Click here to read the newspaper.
This issue covers local events such as politics, sports and human-interest stories. It features editorials and other columns. Click on the image to read the paper.
Image of Laval News Volume 26 Number 05CLICK HERE To read the newspaper.
Laval’s new housing code came into effect March 1, 2018
(TLN) A new housing code that was adopted by Laval city council last September came into effect on March 1. The new regulations set out ways for tenants as well as landlords to safeguard themselves against nuisances and unsanitary conditions.
Intervention required
They also allow the city to intervene and ask for repairs or renovations when a dwelling that isn’t necessarily unsanitary needs basic repairs all the same.
One important aspect of the new code requires property owners and pest exterminators to reveal infestations of bed bugs. Tenants are also required to advise owners immediately of any bed bug infestations.
Sanitary housing assured
“The city’s new housing code offers to all tenants and all landlords a tool to assure sanitary and secure habitats,” says Mayor Marc Demers.
“In addition to legitimizing the interventions of the city in cases of insalubrity, the code allows us to demand repairs or renovations so that dwellings which are lived in are sanitary and secure.”
Preventive actions
Among other things, the new housing code forbids property owners or tenants from doing anything that may lead to unsanitary conditions, such as allowing mould to propagate, neglecting the presence of insects or ignoring other types of parasite.
The code also obliges landlords to do basic renovations or repairs on fundamental fixtures in a dwelling, such as the kitchen sink, the toilet, shower or bath, while requiring them to repair the roof, doors or windows.
With the adoption of the 2018 budget city council voted for a 50% increase in the home support program for seniors aged 65 and over. This announced increase in budget will have immediate effect as it is to be implemented in the year 2018. Regulation L-12573 modified by the members of the executive committee amends by-law L-12221 to reflect this increase.
When the new by-law is adopted by city council Laval’s subsidy program for seniors will increase from $ 100 to $ 150 per year per eligible person aged 65 or over acting as a tenant, owner or occupant. It will also increase from $ 200 to $ 300 per year when the eligible person receives the Guaranteed Income Supplement from the Government of Canada under the Old Age Security Act (RSC, 1995, cO-9).
Second MADA Action Plan
The city of Laval which has been recognized since 2014 as a municipality that is friendly to seniors and gained the (MADA) accreditation has tabled and adopted its report on the achievements of the municipal MADA Action Plan for 2014-2017. This activity was related to the measures taken to achieve this certification.
The report which will be transmitted to Quebec’s Ministry of Family will also be made public. Also, the summaries of briefings, consultations and the modes of communication employed to achieve this end will be released. The members of the executive committee also authorized the submission of an application for financial assistance of $ 80,000 to Laval’s Seniors Secretariat (Secrétariat des aînés) to support the development of the second action plan MADA (2018-2020). The MADA Partners Committee will be given the mandate to act as the steering committee for the development of this action plan.
Initiated in Quebec by the Department of Family and Seniors, the MADA (Municipalité amie des aînés) program recognizes municipalities that adapt their services and structures to the needs of seniors.
Local Investment Fund
The Executive Committee approved the recommendations of the Investment Committee of the Local Investment Fund (FLI) and authorized the payment of a loan of $ 70,000 to consolidate the start-up of La Boîte maraîchère (The Vegetable Box). The mission of this company is to produce organic fresh quality produce without pesticides or GMO which can be sold in local food markets twelve months a year. To achieve all year-round production the company has designed a system of intensive agricultural production in containers.
Through the Local Investment Fund (FLI) the City of Laval stimulates the growth of local entrepreneurship, to develop promising economic sectors and emerging markets by providing access to capital for the start-up or growth phase of new businesses.
Assessment of the development plan of the agricultural zone
The members of the executive committee tabled the annual report for the Development Plan of the Agricultural Zone committee (PDZA) for the period ending on December 31st 2017 and the action plans of the Laval Agri-Food Development Committee Table (TDAL) for 2018. Activities proposed for 2018 highlight five major orientations and nine priority projects and also include the proposed actions agreed to by the six committees of TDAL, which has a total of 42 members.
Laval is one of the few cities in Quebec where urban life is close to a permanent agricultural zone, which occupies 30% of its territory, or 7,000 hectares. This area is farmed by no less than 121 operations in addition to a network of 53 farm kiosks. Annual revenues of $ 60 million are derived from the sale of local products. Agriculture is a major component of Laval’s economic vitality and is integrated with urban activity in the same way as trade and industry.
On June 13th 2016 Laval unveiled its Agricultural Zone Development Plan (PDZA) to enhance the agricultural area of Laval by promoting the sustainable development of agricultural activities. The work surrounding the PDZA made it possible to draw up a strategic diagnosis of the agricultural sector in Laval and to identify the orientations and the priority projects for the next 5 years.
Jeux du Québec Laval in 2020 looking for a volunteer to represent Laval on its board of directors
The City of Laval, through its Governance Secretariat, is looking for a person to act as an administrator of the board of directors the 2020 Quebec Games as a representative of the community. The chosen candidate will sit on the Organizing Committee of the Final of the Jeux du Québec. This non-profit organization is responsible for organizing the event.
In addition to duties as an administrator the successful candidate will be responsible for volunteerism and be the acting community spokesperson. Responsibilities include overseeing training, supporting the management in the recruitment process, mobilization and recognition of volunteers. This is a 3-year term.
Full details of this position are available on the Laval website Governance Secretariat page https://www.laval.ca/Pages/Fr/A-propos/secretariat-gouvernance.aspx
Those wishing to apply must send their curriculum vitae and cover letter before March 16, 2018 by email.
The War Amps begins its 2018 key tag mailing to households this week with the theme, “Still Much to Do,” as the Association celebrates its 100th anniversary.
Éloi is a member of The War Amps Child Amputee (CHAMP) Program.
Amputee veterans returning from the First World War started The War Amps in 1918 to assist each other in adapting to their new reality as amputees. They then welcomed amputee veterans following the Second World War and established the Key Tag Service to gain meaningful employment and provide a service to the public. The War Amps innovative programs have grown over the past 100 years from assisting war amputees – whom they still serve – to all amputees, including children. But there is “Still Much to Do” to ensure amputees have the artificial limbs they need to lead independent and active lives.
Louis Bourassa, Director of The War Amps CHAMP Program (Quebec), wrote the letter which accompanies this year’s key tags. He lost his right leg at the age of four in a lawn mower accident. A member of The War Amps Child Amputee (CHAMP) Program, he later started work with the Association, the war amputees he had come to know while growing up continued to provide advice and support on living with amputation. He says, “It moves me greatly to think of how these remarkable First and Second World War ‘amps’ enabled me to overcome my amputation, and I have been proud to, in turn, help the younger amputees who have come after me.”
The Key Tag Service continues to employ amputees and people with disabilities and has returned more than 1.5 million sets of lost keys since its inception. Each key tag has a confidentially coded number. If you lose your keys, the finder can call the toll-free number on the back of the tag or place them in any mailbox, and The War Amps will return them to you by courier, free of charge.
The War Amps receives no government grants. With the public’s continued support of the Key Tag Service, the Association’s programs for amputees will carry on long into the future.
Those who do not receive their key tags in the mail can order them at waramps.ca or call toll-free 514 398-0759.
Who needs ice when you’ve got enthusiasm: A group shot of Laval Senior Academy Hockey Day supporters, including LSA students, Canadian Forces soldiers and elected officials from the Laval area.
Martin C. Barry
The unpredictable weather that the Laval and Montreal regions have been experiencing in recent years played havoc with Laval Senior Academy’s annual Hockey Day event recently.
Scheduled to take place on Feb. 23 and 24, the two-day gathering – which has been highly successful in past years – was reduced this year to just two hockey matches when unseasonably warm temperatures melted the frozen surface on the Chris-Karigiannis and 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infrantry Memorial Rink behind the school on Souvenir Blvd.
MNA Guy Oullette helped with the ceremonial face off.
Mother Nature stole the ice
“The rain and the temperatures stole our ice,” said Daniel Johnson, a special education technician at Laval Senior Academy, who has been the driving force behind the tournament each year. “We had to improvise. We decided to join the weather rather than fight it.”
Had Mother Nature cooperated, the schedule on day one would have seen teams from Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board elementary schools play some outdoor ice hockey games, followed by matches of student sledge hockey, followed by an LSA vs. Laurentian Regional High School hockey match.
The schedule on Saturday would have included some Laval minor league hockey games, student ringette, a regular Memorial Cup game involving Canadian Armed Forces soldiers with local police and staff, followed by a ceremony celebrating Laval Senior Academy Hockey Excellence and Alumni.
The guys from the Laval-based 4th Batallion of the Royal 22nd Regiment were on hand to face off against their comrades from the Alberta-based 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.
Memorial Cup mini-match
However, going with the flow, the participants – including the soldiers from the 3PPCLI who flew in from Alberta as they do every year to take part – played ball hockey in the warm sunshine on a quickly-improvised rink set up in the asphalted area just behind the school, and settled for a short and improvised Memorial Cup match.
Soldiers from the Laval-based 4th Batallion of the Royal 22nd Regiment also helped out with a BBQ. A La Belle Province restaurant operator pitched in with a donation of hot dog and hamburger meat for the grills. Although there was no hockey action on the ice, the LSA students and the military personnel got the chance to renew friendships.
Opportunity to make friends
While the number of spectators was lower than in years past, those who did attend enjoyed the celebration, while helping to promote student leadership and access to community sport. In the Memorial Cup game, soldiers from 3PPCLI in Alberta played the 4R22R battalion stationed in Laval.
The soldiers from 3PPCLI spent the days leading up to Hockey Day with students at the school. Chomedey MNA Guy Oullette helped perform the ceremonial face off. The Laval Police Department’s Cst. Jimmy Mourelatos was among those who turned up to show support.
Mar 2 – Police are investigating a home invasion in Duvernay that left three people in hospital after being pepper-sprayed during the incident. The trio of unidentified victims were maced at around 1 a.m. at a house located on Montpellier St. They were transported to hospital for decontamination.
Police could not confirm if the three individuals were residents of the house.
Body of Missing Teen Girl Found Behind School
Mar 1 – Police confirmed the lifeless body of 14-year-old Athena Gervais was found Thursday afternoon in a stream behind her school. She’d been missing for three days.
She was last seen leaving her school at lunchtime on Monday, February 26th, and was reported missing after she failed to return to school or home after lunch.
Laval police set up a command centre at the school she attended in Fabreville, École secondaire Poly-Jeunesse, and urged anyone with information about Gervais’ whereabouts to come forward and speak confidentially with investigators.
Firefighters participating in the search for the missing teen discovered Gervais’ body in the creek behind her school on Thursday, March 1st, at around 4:30 pm. Police had also called in a canine unit and a helicopter to assist with the search.
According to one report, Gervais and some friends allegedly stole cans of the alcoholic energy drink FCKD UP from a nearby dépanneur during that fateful lunchtime. The drink contains 11.9 % alcohol and extremely high amounts of sugar. It was denounced by health experts last fall as a dangerous drink being marketed to adolescents.
Geloso Group states their alcoholic drink, called FCKD UP, was created in response to American-made Four Loko
A preliminary report from the autopsy comfirmed that there were no signs of violence on the body, and concluded the girl’s death was accidental. The exact cause of death was not disclosed. A more detailed autopsy report, expected in the coming days, will reveal whether she consumed any substances and establish the official cause of her death.
Grief counsellors were sent to the Fabreville high-school on Friday to assist students and staff cope with the loss and shock.
Suspicious Fire at Hair Salon
Mar 1 – Laval’s arson squad is investigating a suspicious fire that broke out in a hair salon in a strip mall on Boul. Samson early last Thursday.
Firefighters were summoned to the hairdresser’s when the fire alarms went off just after 3 a.m. They arrived to find smoke coming from the salon and a small fire burning inside the locale. After quickly putting out the flames, firefighters found traces of a liquid that may have been used to start the fire.
The salon’s owners could not be reached
Third Round of Drug Raids Nets Zero Arrests
Feb 22 – Laval police officers were among the task force that carried out a third wave of raids aimed at breaking up a drug trafficking network linked to the Hells Angels. More than 60 police officers fromvarious police services were involved with executing warrants in five municipalities north of Laval.
Eight raids were carried out in residences, warehouses, and a commercial establishment.
Spearheaded by the Sûreté du Québec’s anti-organized crime task force, the third wave included members of the Laval and Montreal police services, as well as the RCMP. The raids took place in Mirabel, St-Colomban, St-André-d’Argenteuil, Ascension, and Prévost.
National Human Trafficking Hotline Human trafficking is a heinous crime that disproportionately affects women and girls, particularly Indigenous, newcomer and low-income individuals. The Government is committed to putting an end to gender-based violence and proposes to provide $14.51 million over five years, beginning in 2018–19, and $2.89 million per year ongoing, to Public Safety Canada to combat human trafficking by establishing a National Human Trafficking Hotline, including an online portal and a referral mechanism to social services and law enforcement. This hotline will help protect those vulnerable to being trafficked and enable victims to access the necessary social and law enforcement services they need. As this initiative proceeds, the Government will work with provinces and territories to ensure effective implementation.
