Leadership with the Northwestern Health Unit is warning the area about another drastic increase in syphilis rates across the region.

The Northwestern Health Unit has agreed to create three new directors positions.

These include a Director of Corporate Services, Director of Health Protection and Director of Health Promotion.

The creation of these positions are expected to free up the Medical Officer of Health and the CEO to oversee the the operation of their programs.

The new positions come after a review by a consultant and other comparable health units in the province.

The new jobs will add about 463 thousand dollars to the health unit’s budget each year.