Government needs to face the facts and address health care funding shortage
Metroland - Durham Division
Sunday, May 29, 2005
Page: 01
Section: Oshawa-Whitby-Clarington This Week - Editorial
Byline:
Column: 1
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Today it's a crack, tomorrow the foundation gives way.

That's what the GTA/905 Healthcare Alliance is warning in its report The State of Hospital Care in the GTA/905 2005. The hospitals surrounding Toronto, including Rouge Valley and Lakeridge Health, are projecting a $544-million funding shortfall if something isn't done by the health ministry in short order.

Tariq Asmi, executive director of the health care alliance, is quick to point out that area hospitals are underfunded to the tune of $212 per patient when compared to other regions in the province. The report examined four segments: access to hospital services and wait times, patient satisfaction and outcomes, hospital efficiency, and quality of work life and staff satisfaction. In Durham Region and the GTA only 73 per cent of patients received care in their area while the number was 93 per cent in Windsor and 89 per cent in Sudbury. So, not only are local hospitals being shortchanged but they are unable to meet the demands of their patients.

Lakeridge Chief Executive Officer Brain Lemon says Durham's facilities are "bursting at the seams" with full capacity the norm. The GTA/905 hospitals have a 94 per cent occupancy rate while the provincial average is 77 per cent and 83 per cent in Toronto.

Over the years hospitals in the GTA/905 have cried poor, but these numbers reinforce the obvious discrepancies they face on daily basis.

Municipalities across Durham have all demanded the Province pay attention to the funding crunch. In Pickering, council earlier this month passed a resolution calling for immediate action. Pickering Councilllor David Pickles reminded his colleagues that Durham residents are paying a health premium and not getting much for it. "The people of Pickering and Durham deserve their fair share."

Something needs to be done to address this inadequacy before the growth in Durham Region furthers cripples the demand on health-care infrastructure. Durham requires the health ministry to take this report and act on it. Health Minister George Smitherman must be held accountable for his recent statements about hospitals always "crying wolf" about funding.

There is nothing in these numbers to suggest this is a crisis created by hospitals; rather it's a cry for help that can't be ignored.