24 - Sunday, March 18. 1990 - North Shore News AFFLUENCE A Top doc a busy guy NORTH SHORE Medical Health Of- ficer Dr. Brian O'Conner likes to trade his wing-tips and tie for a jogging outfit and sneakers every chance he gets. “Thinking of Selling” LIST WITH ME AND GET THE PROFESSIONAL SERVICE YOU WANT BOB KESSEL “The name your friends recommend” Othce 986-9321 Pager 645-3346 Cellular 240-2800 sutton group west coast realty Chicken Fajita Burrito”. with regular Mexi-Fries° and medium soft drink 99’ *Not inctuding tax. U JJ TaccTime. Put a iittie spice in your life! 1811 Lonsdale Avenue North Vancouver, B.C. HE NORTH Shores top docs running tor hes lite. When he ant bogged down with medical meetings, or at home taking care of kis two teenaged daughters, the North Shore's Chief Medical Health Otficer, Dr. Bran O’Con- ner, can be tound pounding the pavement of the Stanley Park seawall, “T love running. | love to run around the Stanley Park seawall or just lay back on the grassy hills watching the people go by. In my past life i've run two marathons,” boasts O'Conner. But as much as he might like to kick off his wing-tips for a pair of sneakers, the only chance O'’Con- ner gets to jog these days is when he’s running from one meeting to the next. He has an extremely busy work schedule to thank for that. O'Conner, who looks as if he could pass for millionaire jimmy Pattison, is divorced and raising his daughters, aged 17 and 19. Born in Toronto, the 44-year-old O'Conner attended medical school at the University of Toron- to, where he obtained a master of health science degree. He took over as the North Shore’s medical health officer in July 1987 and prior to that worked in the department of community and occupational health in Alber- ta. O'Conner says the B.C. health industry is in a healthy state cur- rently, but warns that the health- care field must continue to reccive support from alt levels of govern. ment. “LE think we have a very well- developed health-care system. We must promote and underscore the opportunities that exist for health,” said O'Conner, “Those opportunities require addressing the social aspects of the communi- ty.” ve adds that) maintaining a tyle ophistication ervice gw Draperies gm Blinds g Specialty Treatments g Complimentary Window Decorating Service. JABOT WINDOW DESIGNS Dundarave 2413 Marine Dr. West Vancouver healthy lifestyle in today’s society requires more than just taking medicine, “A lot of the things that make people healthy are outside of the health industry.” O'Connor says. “The biggest thing now is the environment. Attardable housing, day Care and transportation are all health-promoting things.”’ While there 15 more information now available on AIDS, O'Conner admits there are still misconcep- tions about the issue. “To othink there is more and more information available to Ca- nadians. The information is always coming out, but whether that in- formation is always transported in- to appropriate behavior is another thing.’” he says. A non-smoker, O’Conner frowns upon people who continue to take up the deadly habit, especially to- day's youth: “We have the lowest smoking rates of Canada in B.C. But people, particularly the young, still take it up. Smoking is the largest preventable contributor to death.”’ One of O'Conner’s jobs is to supply the North Shore’s health program directors with the tools to provide the best possible health- care service to this community. In many instances, O’Conner says, those tools translate into dollars, and he admits it is becom- ing increasingly difficult to con- vince the federal and provincial yovernments to hand over those tunds. “This is a big probiem, At the moment we are seeing a move by the feseral government to put the onus tfor health-care funding) on the pravincial government for health-care costs.” “We'll soon see the provincial goverament pass off the health. care Costs to private and local tax- payers, That could mean more of the dollar (tor health care) will come trom the taxpayer's dollar.” — By Sury Rattan