New ramp at medical clinic passes test

By Lawrence Gleason, Local Press Writer

The new handicap parking spaces at the Claresholm Medical Clinic have been tested by two handicapped men under the watchful eye of Public Works Superintendent Roy Johnson of the Municipal District of Willow Creek.

Johnson said a local man who is a quadriplegic, who has the use of his hands to operate a wheelchair, tested the ramp to see if it was manageable.

The local man was able to negotiate the ramp safely, Johnson said, adding the ramp looks deep and long but there was no trouble negotiating it and the person testing it said the ramp is not as steep as it looks.

Johnson also said a senior using a motorized scooter also found the ramp acceptable, but noted a four-wheeled scooter has to move back and forth a bit to make the turn to the entrance door, while a three-wheeled scooter is able to make a sharp turn in one go.

Councillor Darry Markle expressed concern seniors in a wheelchair may not have the strength to negotiate the ramp on their own.

Markle said he knows an elderly couple, the woman in a wheelchair “without much strength” and her husband “doesn’t have any strength to push her.”

Markle suggested putting a button at one end of the handicapped ramp to ring a bell or buzzer so if someone needed assistance those inside the clinic could help out.

“I expect that would be a rare circumstance,” Markle said, adding it could be something helpful the M.D. could do.

Councillors decided to put the suggestion to Cindee Sclossberger, the manager of the Claresholm Medical Clinic, for her opinion.

“We will confirm that with them and see if it is okay,” said Cynthia Vizzutti, the chief administrative officer of the M.D.