More than 300 health care workers will be converging in Victoria this week for a conference to tackle some of the key issues facing health care and share experiences about life on the front line.
Several experts will speak at the conference, including UBC health economist Bob Evans. Researchers and university professors will participate in panel discussions and share ideas. They’ll address some of the myths surrounding the unsustainability of our public health care system and the supposed benefits of privatization. They will also propose ideas and reforms to improve the public system.
The keynote speaker at the conference will be Frank Dobson, former British Secretary of Health, who will talk about lessons learned from increased privatization in the U.K.
The meeting, organized by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), will take place on October 20 - 22, 2010, at the Victoria Conference Centre in Victoria, British Columbia.
CUPE’s national president, Paul Moist said, “This health sector conference is an important event and a wonderful way to allow workers from all across the country to share experiences. While tackling some of the myths around the so-called benefits of privatization, we are also committed to proposing solutions in order to make our public system work better”.
CUPE is Canada’s largest union, with more than 600,000 members, including almost 190,000 workers in the health care sector, where membership is comprised of licensed practical nurses, long-term care workers, care aids, maintenance and support staff, and technical and clinical workers.
For more information, contact :
Pierre Ducasse
CUPE Communications
819-209-2675
pducasse@cupe.ca