First we want to note that the cost to healthcare is often paid in lives and is not acceptable. We have to start thinking about the cost in terms of people and their families and there is not enough money for this to ever be acceptable.
We know from looking at the annual financial reports from the public hospitals that government has to fund our hospitals to meet the needs of Ontario both in large urban areas and also in small rural communities including in the North. We have to take care of not just the patients and their families but also the healthcare workers and Doctors and technicians, and maintenance in our hospitals and ensure that our infrastructure is kept up to date. We know that this requires millions of dollars, and we know that people are worth every penny.
We need to to make sure that we maintain our support for our public healthcare system. We cannot nickel and dime our system, we need to take care of our people. The benefits of a healthy community will give back more than it will ever cost. We need your help in reaching out to the community and getting people to understand what will be lost if we cannot keep our hospital open.
We don’t have a good public transportation system, we are overburdening our two remaining hospitals in the Region of Niagara and often the wait times to be seen are in excess of 8 hours. We are told to stop using the emergency room as our primary source of care, when 10’s of thousands of the people don’t a primary care physician and even if they did, EVEN IF THEY DID, they cannot be seen in the middle of the night when something has happened and the person does not want to wait to call tele-health to see if they should go to emergency.
Small rural communities that were able or that had philanthropists to build community hospitals did so in order to provide a level of care for the people in their community so that they wouldn’t have to travel distances in an emergency. So that their families or friends could visit and to help them get better. Communities were able to draw professionals into their small rural hospitals by providing housing or office space close to work; and this was seen by many as an opportunity to continue to advance their careers close to home.
This is still needed and in some instances the current government is building new hospitals or retrofitting other hospitals but in the case of Niagara where at one time we had six hospitals we are now looking at two main hospital sites and one site for rehabilitation. Our area is growing, more families and retirees are coming into Niagara and the two hospital plan is not feasible. We only have to see the harm that cutting hours in our Urgent Care Centers has done. Trying to centralize care out of the large urban areas comes at the cost of lives.
The people in Fort Erie that we have spoken to do not accept this, and want to ensure that their comments do not fall on deaf ears. Come out and sign the petition, come out and volunteer an hour of your time at our table; at the Ridgeway market, or Crystal Beach Supper Night. Come out to our meetings to discuss our plans and strategy to SAVE OUR HOSPITAL. Meetings are currently monthly (June 12th) is our next meeting at the Fort Erie Library from Eleven until 2 pm. All are welcome to attend. We would love to hear from you. Contact us here on the web page, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Email us at fo******@***********os.net or call 905-993-2078.
These pictures are from our visit at Queens Park with your petitions and postcards trying to make a difference!
