ELLIOT LAKE—Without a substantial increase to base funding for small and rural hospitals and regulations on agency nursing staff, as well as an overall plan to address the health inequities faced by Northerners, the current crisis in healthcare will continue and services will deteriorate, says Algoma-Manitoulin MPP Michael Mantha.
“From Manitouwadge to Manitoulin, our public hospitals are under tremendous strain to continue providing adequate healthcare,” MPP Mantha said. “The budgets of hospitals in small and rural Northern communities are being stretched to a breaking point and the Ford government is sitting on the sidelines letting a crisis worsen in our healthcare system.”
Following the recent Ontario Health Coalitions report on hospital closures and the Auditor General’s damning report on Northern healthcare, MPP Mantha spent last week meeting with hospitals across Algoma-Manitoulin to understand the extent of the crisis in our communities.
MPP Mantha said meetings with hospital leadership confirmed what the Auditor General reported is happening in communities across Algoma-Manitoulin. Chronic underfunding of hospital budgets is being compounded by the high cost of agency (nurse) staffing, the physician shortage across Northern Ontario and a one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare funding by the province that does not reflect the realities Northern hospitals face.
“I visited several of the hospitals this week and will be revisiting some in the near future,” MPP Mantha told the Expositor after a meeting with officials of the Manitoulin Health Centre last Wednesday. “I wanted to reconnect with the hospitals based on the Auditor General and Ontario Health Coalition reports on the alarming concerns that have been raised concerning Northern Ontario hospitals. There are a few common themes expressed by all those hospitals I visited, one being the absolute need for substantially more base funding for hospitals to provide and maintain services.”
“Another common theme among all hospitals is the attention the government needs to pay toward the ongoing high cost of nursing agency staffing. There is absolutely no control in place on this, including how much hospitals are being charged,” stated MPP Mantha. “Hospitals are mandated to have nursing services in place, but these agency nurses are calling for double or triple what hospitals normally pay. I have heard as much as $150 per hour.”
“There are also the challenges of a lack of doctors as well, and even administration professionals are hard to get. If hospitals lose one or two individuals in key executive, it puts the hospitals in a very difficult position. It’s the same issue with nursing, if they lose one or two individuals, it can be devastating,” continued MPP Mantha.
“It is a crisis. And has been for a long time. And the top executive and administration and front-line workers have been doing remarkable work with what they have available to them,” MPP Mantha told the Expositor. “They have gone over and above and will continue to do so. But the government needs to recognize there is a crisis in Northern hospitals and provide the help and support needed.”
Paula Fields, president and chief executive officer of the MHC, along with other MHC representatives, met with MPP Mantha. “We met with Mike on his visit. He is trying to better understand the current situation with small, rural hospitals. We’re hoping his advocacy along with that of the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) will result in a plan for small, rural hospitals.”
“It is a health crisis affecting small, rural hospitals,” said Ms. Fields.
“I want to recognize these frontline workers and leadership teams at these hospitals, for their hard work and using their resources effectively to provide care to communities,” said MPP Mantha.
“If the upcoming spring provincial budget does not include a substantial increase to base funding for small and rural hospitals, regulations on agency staffing and a plan to address the health inequities faced by Northerners, services will continue to deteriorate for Algoma-Manitoulin and we will be faced with a serious crisis in public healthcare in the not-too-distant future.”
MPP Mantha is encouraging people in Algoma-Manitoulin to add their voice by submitting to the pre-budget consultations. Written submissions or requests to appear can be sent to MOFconsultations@ontario.ca
“Absolutely, the public needs to raise concerns they are seeing or hearing about in healthcare and to express to the province what is required,” said MPP Mantha.
