MR. SPEAKER: The hon. the Opposition House Leader.

MR. KELVIN PARSONS: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I appreciate the opportunity in this section of the House to again present a petition on behalf of the residents of Southwestern Newfoundland with respect to dialysis services in that area. As anyone in this House is familiar with, I think I have gone through something like six different Ministers of Health in the last number of years here. The only section of this Province right now that does not have a satellite dialysis services is the southwest corner of this Province. Whether you are in Burgeo, Port aux Basques, Burnt Island, Isle aux Morts, anywhere, it is the only section of the Province that does not get provided with some kind of dialysis service. We have been at this - this is my sixty-seventh petition in this House asking for some help for the people of Southwestern Newfoundland, who travel a minimum of over 200 kilometres to try to get this help.

As I say, I have asked previous ministers. The most recent step, just so that the people who watch this are aware of the processes taken place since we were last here before Christmas, I have been advised that the report was compiled in Western Health between Dr. Charles L. LeGrow health people personnel. They gave it to Western, and Western has forwarded it to the minister. I have written to the minister, as of a couple of weeks ago, to ask him if it is possible at all. There is not a lot involved from a budgetary perspective to do this. They basically needed the physical place to do it. They have confirmed that the physical facility is available at the Dr. Charles L. LeGrow Health Centre to do it.

They also had concerns about the staff that were required to do it. The staff at Charles LeGrow in Port aux Basques have agreed to undergo whatever training is necessary in order to provide that service. It is not like you are going to train someone and they leave. I think something like 95 per cent of the nursing staff in that area were born there, live there, still live there, work there and intend to finish out their careers there. You have the facilities to do it in; you have the nursing staff who are prepared to do it. The people of the area are prepared to fundraise, if necessary, to buy the equipment. We have raised millions of dollars in the past in Southwestern Newfoundland and provided it to Western to use for other necessary medical equipment. We are certainly prepared and committed to raise the funds to do it ourselves.

We submit there is no reason why one particular area of the Province should be treated in this fashion. It has gone on for years and years. I have a gentleman named Mr. Keeping - anybody who has listened to the Open Lines has heard him on there religiously, morning, noon and night - talking about how he travels from Burnt Islands. He is not a wealthy man. In fact, he cannot work because he needs dialysis so regularly. He does not know what it is to take a vacation, for example, because he needs dialysis regularly. The cost it takes him to go from Burnt Islands three times a week into Corner Brook - and you can imagine the stress it is not only causing him but his family, and that is just one gentleman.

I pledge to the people of my district, I will keep this matter on the front burner. There is no question, by the way; this is the primary, the number one priority for the people of that area, no question. Yes, you need roads; yes, you need educational systems, but first and foremost is your health. Number one is your health care, and in this particular case, as we see, there are several people – we have, for example, lost residents in that particular area because they just could not sustain the stress any more of living at home where they wanted to be with their families. They have had to take apartments hundreds of miles away just to get the use of this service.

Mr. Speaker, again I bring it back here. I have written to the minister, and hopefully we will see something positive in this Budget which is due to be delivered next Monday. I do not think, in the massive Budget that we have, $8 billion, to ask this for the people of one particular region is not a big ask, as we say, to get this done. We have the facilities to do it. We have the personnel to do it. It is a matter of putting your mind to it and saying we are going to get this done.