Eddie Joyce, MHA for the District of Bay of Islands, says now that
government has made the right decision to remove three recommendations from
the Hay Report that would have negatively affected Stephenville, now is the
time to treat long-term care patients from the Corner Brook area in a
similar fashion and remove recommendation 172 from consideration.
Recommendation 172 of the Best Practices Review for the Western Health Care
Corporation states that elderly people on the wait list for long-term beds
should be transferred to Sir Thomas Roddick Hospital in Stephenville until
appropriate space is available in Corner Brook for their return transfer.
"Last month, the Minister of Health and Community Services told the House
of Assembly that he could not make a decision on this issue until the
Western Health Board completed its assessment of the Hay Report and reported
back to him by the end of June," said Mr. Joyce. "Today we see government
picking and choosing which recommendations will be taken off the table as a
result of political pressure. While I agree that the recommendations for
Stephenville made no sense and should have been removed, government must now
respond accordingly and listen to the concerns of long-term care patients in
the Corner Brook area and remove Recommendation 172.
"If implemented, this recommendation will see elderly people live out the
final years of their lives with strangers, without easy access to family and
friends, and no guarantee they will ever move back to Corner Brook. The Hay
Group stated that if government eliminated obstetrics and surgical services
from the Sir Thomas Roddick Hospital, enough room would be made to
accommodate these patients, something that was today removed as an option.
"While it appears government can no longer move forward with this
inhumane recommendation, the Premier refused to give any assurances that it
would be removed. This is absolutely shameful and unless government plans to
house these seniors in trailers in the Stephenville area, this scenario must
be removed from consideration.
"This government has once again proven they are in disarray and will bend
to intense public pressure. Will it take 32 sick elderly people and their
families to stand on the steps of the Sir Richard Squires Building to make
their point? I hope the Premier realizes his double standard and addresses
the concerns of these people before it is too late."