Who owns and operates our hospitals and how hospital services are provided matters. Public hospitals cost less, provide better care, and serve the public good
Did you know?
- Privatized health care poses a direct threat to patient care and services. But our governments are allowing private, for-profit companies to design, build, finance, and operate our hospitals in what are known as public-private partnerships, or P3s.
- P3 hospitals cost more. In North Bay, Ottawa, Montreal, Brampton, and Vancouver they’ve gone billions of dollars over budget. P3 hospitals have also been built with fewer beds than promised and haven’t met community needs.
- Despite these failures, Conservative and Liberal governments are moving forward with future P3 hospitals, such as redevelopment projects in Red Deer, Bowmanville and Halifax. Dozens of new health care facilities in Newfoundland and Labrador will also be P3s.
- To generate profits, companies cut hospital services, staff, beds, and resources. This causes overcrowding. Patients end up receiving treatment in hallways, which results in longer stays and an increased risk of infection.
- Hospital services, like cleaning, food, and laundry, are often contracted out for profit. When cleaning services are contracted out and staff are cut, the rates of hospital acquired infections – superbugs – increase. This results in longer hospital stays, preventable deaths, and higher costs.
- Contracting out leads to fewer work hours, lower pay, heavier workloads, and understaffing. This creates more risks to workers’ health and safety and hurts the quality of care patients receive.
Public hospitals work best for patients and our communities.
- Building public hospitals for the public good is the best value for money. Governments can borrow money at lower rates than private companies, which can make construction costs more affordable.
- Our hospitals should also be publicly owned and operated. This keeps public health care dollars invested in patient care, not company profits.
- It’s vital that hospitals stop contracting out and bring support services back in-house. When privately run hospitals contract out services and reduce staff to maximize profits, patients suffer.
- Hospitals need to increase in-house levels of cleaning staff to optimize cleanliness, decrease infections, and ensure a healthier and safer environment for patients.
- High quality, freshly prepared food, cooked-in house, can be tailored to meet patient needs. This can improve patient satisfaction and health.
- In-house laundry services cost less than contracting out. It also protects local jobs that would be lost when private companies centralize services to boost profits.
- More funding and investment in the public health care system is the way to fix the problems in our hospitals.
Public solutions deliver more, cost less and cover everyone.
Public hospitals cost less, provide better care, and serve the public good. Public funding and management protect our hospitals and our health better than P3s do.
We need governments to act now to save our hospitals.