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Petition
Presented April 28, 2009
Dialysis Unit for Western Newfoundland
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MR. SPEAKER: The
hon. the Opposition House Leader.
MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate an
opportunity to present a petition with regards to
dialysis for south western Newfoundland, particularly in
Port aux Basques, and the questions directed to the
minister today by the Leader of the NDP are certainly
appropriate.
Anyone who has been
aware, and I am sure the minister is aware because he
had a meeting with a group from that particular area,
the Port aux Basques town council in the City of Corner
Brook last fall. Now, mind you, they are still waiting
for a letter from him. He said he would take it under
advisement and get back to them. That was some six or
seven months ago and they still have not had a response
from the minister as to what happened in that meeting.
Just for those who are
not aware, we are not all fortunate enough in our neck
of the woods, in south western Newfoundland, to have
dialysis. Right now, we have – it ranges, of course,
we have nine to ten people at any given time who have to
travel from their homes to Corner Brook to get dialysis.
Now you can imagine, you are doing this three days a
week. You are not doing this because you enjoy a
shopping trip in Corner Brook. You are doing this three
times a week. You are travelling 500 kilometres three
times a week, in and back, because you have to go in
there and spend a full day hooked up to a dialysis
machine. You are going through the roughest weather, I
would suggest, that we have in this Province when it
comes to wintertime, when you are going through the
Wreckhouse. So you are not doing this because you are
enjoying the drive for at least six months of the year
when you go through the Wreckhouse.
Now, we have had every
excuse in the book given in the last five years as to
why this cannot be done. First we were told that it was
an equipment issue. Well, Mr. Speaker, the people of
south western Newfoundland have said, do not let the
cost bother you when it comes to the equipment; we will
raise the money in south western Newfoundland to buy the
equipment. We will not ask this government for one penny
if they are prepared to allow dialysis to be done in the
Dr. Charles L. LeGrow Health Centre in Port aux Basques.
It is that important to the people of that area. We will
pay for the equipment, not a question.
The issue then was
raised: well, we cannot do that because it takes a
certain staff complement in order to operate the
equipment. It is not rocket science. There are lots of
people who can be easily trained –
SOME HON. MEMBERS: Oh,
oh!
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
MR. KELVIN PARSONS: -
in order to operate the dialysis equipment. In fact, our
institution in Port aux Basques is known for having some
of the longest standing nursing practitioners in this
Province. We do not have a flow through. Usually they
are there – for example, right now we have six young
nurses there who just moved in. They were all born in
the area. They all went away and got their training.
They are back there, they are married there, they are
living there. So there is no question that they are
going to up and leave next year. They are there and they
intend to stay there for life.
Now, if it is an issue
that the government cannot afford to pay for the
training for them, we will look at that too. We are
concerned enough and serious enough about it that if the
government is prepared to say you can have the dialysis,
we will raise the money for the equipment. We will pay
for the training costs if we have to for the nurses to
operate it. Now I do not know what further an area can
do to say, please let us do this in our area so that we
do not have to drive 500 miles three times a week.
Incidentally, when I was
given one of these petitions by a gentleman I said:
Thank you very much; I will present your concerns on
your behalf. Unfortunately, I cannot do that today
because he is not with us anymore, that quick. That is
why the numbers vary, and they vary so drastically. He
is not with us any more to speak for himself or hear me
speak on his behalf because we did not have the dialysis
that has been asked of this government, of this
department, for four to five years.
Now, fortunately, it is
not only myself, I am not the lone soldier on this
initiative. There is a lady in Isle aux Morts by the
name of -
MR. SPEAKER: Order,
please!
I remind the hon.
Opposition House Leader that his time for speaking is
certainly over lapsed.
MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.
I will not abuse my time
because I have enough petitions here that will keep me
going until 2012 easily. I intend, with the permission
of the House, to get up everyday and speak on this issue
so there will not be anybody left in this Province who
is unaware of this issue of dialysis in Western
Newfoundland by the time we are finished.
Thank you. |
