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Fire Protection
The Penticton Fire Department responds to emergency fire calls and medical calls as well as building monitoring. There is also an onsite fire services crew and equipment at the Penticton Airport. The fire department is currently staffed by 36 full-time personnel and 40 paid-on-call personnel. Equipping the two Fire Stations in Penticton are four pumpers, an 85 ft. snorkel with a pumper, a rescue unit, and utility vehicle. All personnel are kept up to date on fire fighting techniques at our training facility located at Number 2 hall. The Penticton Fire Prevention Bureau provides safety lectures and training for any business that is interested in fire safety training for its employees. It also provides children's fire safety education programs.
Police / R.C.M.P
In April 2001, the Penticton R.C.M.P. Detachment's forty-six police officers and twenty-three support staff moved into a new $5 million state-of-the-art facility. Thirty-six police officers patrol the City of Penticton, with the remaining ten police officers being responsible for the surrounding area. The surrounding area includes Highway 97 from Summerland to Osoyoos, Highway 3A to Keremeos and Highway 3 between Keremeos and Osoyoos. There are also City of Penticton by-law enforcement officers. Penticton's reported crime rate is 124 incidences per 1000 population for the year 2000, down from 1999's rate of 145 incidences per 1000 population. This is comparable to other similar sized centers and is well below the crime rates of major urban centres.
Emergency 9-1-1 Service
There is an emergency 9-1-1 central dispatch number for fire, police and ambulance for the City of Penticton and the surrounding regional district.
Health and Medical Facilities
British Columbia ranks the highest of all Canadian provinces in terms of per capital spending on health care expenditures. It is estimated that $2,631 per person is spent compared to the Canadian average of $2,478. Penticton Regional Hospital has been in existence since 1913. Today the Penticton Regional Hospital is a 137 bed acute care and 100 bed extended care facility providing referral services to a regional population of 75,000. Acute services include Emergency, Surgery, Medicine, Obstetrics, Gynecology, Psychiatry, Pediatrics, Intensive Care/Coronary Care, Rehabilitation with specialties in Oncology, Gastroenterology, Rheumatology, Cardio Pulmonary and Kidney Dialysis. The last decade has seen a dramatic development in clinical care programs for outpatients. The hospital currently operates a variety of clinics: pacemaker, cryotherapy, colposcopy, brace/prostheses, mastectomy, rheumatoid arthritis (in conjunction with the Arthritis Society T.A.S. program), renal and heart transplant, total joint replacement and chemotherapy. Penticton Regional Hospital also provides programs in back education, chronic respiratory disease rehabilitation, diabetes education, early discharge, psychiatric day care and cancer patient education. Social services, rehabilitation, physiotherapy, and occupational therapy are also provided. The Hospital provides clinical experiences for medical interns and students enrolled in nursing, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, radiology, administration and laboratory programs.
In addition to the local hospital there are a number of private facilities which include three medical centers: The R. B. White Clinic with 16 Physicians and Specialists, The Carmi Medical and Dental Building with 12 physicians and specialists, and the Skaha Medical Centre with 33 physicians on a scheduled basis, numerous dental laboratories, three naturopathic physicians and 10 Chiropractors. The South Okanagan Health Unit offers a wide range of services to the public. Some of these services are: prenatal and parent education classes, public health nursing, immunization/communicable disease control, public health engineering, genetic counselling, nutrition, speech/language pathology, continuing care division, dental health services, and public health inspection. A regional facility has been built with administrative offices and responsibilities for administration of health services across from the Penticton Regional Hospital.
New Medical Services
A number of new medical centers have been developed in Penticton and the Okanagan Valley. These services bring the most technologically advanced treatment and special services to the citizens of Penticton and area. The Interior Cancer Clinic in Kelowna is a $14 million facility and will provide leading edge cancer care to over 2,000 patients once it reaches its service capacity. The new $1.4 million Penticton Hospice has brought much needed palliative care to residents requiring this service. The Okanagan Similkameen Neurological Society also opened a new facility in 1996. The $1.2 million Child Development Centre further expands the medical and treatment facilities available to the people of Penticton.
Retirement
There are nine private and public retirement facilities operating in Penticton. These facilities offer both intermediate care and apartment style living. The Penticton & District Retirement Complex offers housing and recreation for senior citizens, as well as a care unit operated under the Long-Term Care Program of the Ministry of Health. Other large intermediate care facilities include Trinity Centre and Haven Hill Retirement Centre.
Medical & Hospital Insurance
British Columbia has a combined medical and hospital plan called Medical Services Plan of B.C. Employers are not required to pay the premiums for their employee's coverage. The basic monthly premium is $36.00 for a single person, $64.00 for a family of two, and $72.00 for a family of three or more. All hospital expenses are totally covered including drugs and x-rays. Not included are private or semi-private hospital accommodation, dental work, and some special nursing care outside of a hospital. These may be covered by supplementary private insurance plans.
Old Age Security
Old Age Security is payable to anyone who is 65 years of age or older and who meets the residency requirements. The amount of the basic pension is approximately $413.06 per month, but the figure is adjusted to the consumer price index quarterly. Pensioners with limited incomes are entitled to Guaranteed Income Supplements which ensure that the average monthly benefit for pensioners is $358.32 for a single person and $202.09 for married pensioners. Canada has signed reciprocal Social Security agreements with some countries. It is possible to include the time spent in those countries to meet the residency requirements.
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