President of CUPE Nova Scotia Danny Cavanagh says the province has its priorities wrong with yesterday’s announcement about its healthcare transition team and merging health districts. Says Cavanagh, “It just shows how the province and the Liberals lack vision for healthcare. There are so many internal matters that could use fixing within the health care system.”
Cavanagh believes the Premier, the Ministry of Health and the leaders of the health authorities should find practical, common sense ways to work together to ensure the best possible care for patients and the best possible working conditions for all health care workers.
Says Cavanagh, “Let’s face the facts. We have overworked staff in facilities. There are concerns that we can’t recruit enough health care staff or doctors in this province. We have buildings that need work, hospitals with rodent infestation problems, acute care facilities filled with patients who should be in long-term care, and a government hell bent on aligning health districts and consolidating collective agreements. Something’s not right.”
“I would suggest that if the people running our health care system want to make improvements, they focus on fixing our buildings, hiring more staff, providing more doctors in communities, ensuring we do not have hospital-acquired infections, and eliminating the rodent problem in buildings. Addressing these problems will lead to good health care for the patients in this province and ensure better working conditions for all our health care providers.”
“Merging health districts has cost more than expected when it was done in other provinces. Our priority should be good patient care, particularly as we have an aging population.”