MEDICINE HAT Ralph Kleins recent visit to a casino in Hull isnt the only example of his government gambling with health care.
Thats the message from Medicine Hat health care workers in a new ad campaign designed to alert the public to dangerous cuts to the health care system from the Palliser Health region.
The campaign, sponsored by CUPE, features a roulette wheel and the tag line, Hospital Management is gambling with your health care.
CUPE Local 189 President Colleen Morrison said that by attempting to force poor working conditions on health care workers, Palliser is lowering health care standards.
Our members are responsible for keeping the heat and electrical systems operating properly, sterilizing operating rooms, and for measuring the correct dosage of medications, said Morrison. We are a very important part of the system.
Morrison said that patients will suffer if health care workers are asked to work longer hours or give up rest breaks.
These things add up to making people stressed and overworked and take their mind off the job and thats not good for patient care, said Morrison. It’s about the working environment - this is not conducive to a healthy workplace especially where people are supposed to be healing and getting better.
One mistake is critical, you don’t want someone who’s stressed out about getting time off to deal with a family illness dispensing pills.
The CUPE ad campaign starts Thursday and will run on local radio stations and newspapers for almost five weeks.
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View the print ad at:
http://www.cupealberta.ab.ca/03news/releases/downloads/medicinehatprint.pdf
Radio ads at: http://www.cupealberta.ab.ca/03news/releases/downloads/medicinehatradio.mp3