I have tried to attach the sad article that appeared in the Cochrane Eagle a short while ago. I have also sent a courtesy copy of this letter to your colleague, the Hon. Peter Guthrie, and I’m sure that he will be able to provide you with a copy of the article if my efforts are not successful.
Perhaps the worst part of this tragedy was that it was entirely predictable. The Ernst and Young study, “Alberta Health Services, a Performance Review" dated Dec.31 2019 Final Edition, tabled by Premier Kenny on that date showed that Alberta had over 100 hospitals, only 17 were any good and 77 could be closed or amalgamated. How Alberta chooses to run its health system is beyond the scope of this letter, but a few highlights are germane. Oyen, a village of less than 1000 people has 24/7 urgent care, Sundre a town of less than 3,000 has the Myron Thompson Hospital, Diamond Valley a town of about 5,000 people has a hospital.
My point is that a community of 40,000 plus a service area of approximately another 10,000 doesn’t even have 24/7 urgent care.
This can be easily corrected by a word from you. If you no longer have the managerial staff available to make the budgetary adjustments necessary, I’ll volunteer my services on a pro bono basis. I am already receiving a pension as the previous Executive Director of extended care services, Alberta Mental Health.
I would start with the people who have edited the Ernst and Young’s “Final Report” and did not sign their work but left the reader thinking that a reputable consulting firm could miss such an obvious way for the government to save money. Namely by closing and consolidating health facilities in very small communities.
I got my start in the health field in a hospital that opened in 1835 and states proudly that the front door has never been locked in all that time. This is a claim that we can strive for and easily meet. An urgent center should never lock out Albertans who need its services.
Sincerely
Robert Cameron (B.A. Queen’s, M.H.A. U. Ottawa)
Cochrane, AB
