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Important to address concern over Picton hospital cuts to LHIN

Eleanor Lindsay MacDonald and Fran Renoy at the council meeting at Shire Hall wearing their “Keep Our Hospital Strong” buttons created more than a decade ago when PECMH was facing cuts. Fran is holding Alan R. Capon’s book This House of Healing PECMH.

On Jan. 24th, QHC made a presentation to the mayor and councillors in a packed Shire Hall. Mayor Peter Mertens and all the councillors were on the same page as they objected very strongly to QHC’s proposals to  cut services at PECMH.
There were also deputations by some citizens who shared the same sentiments as council.
President of the Family Health Team, Dr. Elizabeth Christie, also gave an excellent deputation. She stated that we must focus on the positive. She added that PECMH is a highly-efficient and effective hospital. It has a great opportunity to build on initiatives begun by the Prince Edward Family Health Team, staff of PECMH and Prince Edward County doctors. Even though she was speaking on behalf of the medical community, she knows only too well how important our local hospital is to all the residents of the County. Dr Christie was raised in the County and her family has used PECMH  including the original hospital located on Hill Street for more than 80 years.

When Mary Clare Egberts spoke to Trenton Council on Jan. 22nd,  they too vowed to fight the proposed cuts. Mayor John Williams stated that they had  “drawn a line in the sand”.
Local Quinte West MPP Rob Milligan said that he was disappointed with the SELHIN as he was not getting any cooperation with regard to numbers. In the media last week, Trenton Memorial Foundation said they were considering donating their funds to other areas rather than Trenton Memorial Hospital if the service cuts took place. It is hoped that the boards of the PECMH Foundation and Auxiliary will also make statements regarding the proposed cuts at PECMH.

Mary Clare Egberts and her senior staff are only the messengers of this fiasco. Make no mistake, these proposals are Ministry of Health and SELHIN”s driven. This is why it is very important that you direct your comments and objections to the SELHIN.

To show how dire the situation is at both PECMH and Trenton Memorial Hospital, I can only echo Dr. John Bonn’s words. Dr Bonn is a doctor who has worked at Trenton emergency room for more than 40 years. He described the proposed changes as “startling”. I think that most Trenton Memorial and PECMH stakeholders would agree with that  description.

Fran Renoy, Picton

South East LHIN
71 Adam Street
Belleville, Ontario
Canada K8N 5K3
(613) 967-0196
Toll-free – 1-866-831-5446
Fax (613) 967-1341
email southeast@lhins.on.ca .

Quinte Health Care
Corporate Headquarters
265 Dundas Street E,
Belleville, K8N 5A9
969-7400 ext 2027
Fax: (613) 968-8234
email: info@qhc.on.ca
website feedback: http://www.qhc.on.ca/feedback-form-p1321.php

Contact information for Todd Smith, MPP

Belleville Office
81 Millennium Parkway, Unit 3
Belleville, ON
Tel: 613-962-1144
Fax: 613-969-6381
Toll Free: 1-877-536-6248
todd.smithco@pc.ola.org
Mailing Address:
PO Box 575
Belleville, Ontario
K8N 5B2

Picton Office
Unit C
The Armory 206 Main Street
Picton , Ontario K0K 2T0
Tel: 613-476-9616

Queen’s Park Address
Room 357, Main Legislative Building
Queen’s Park Toronto, Ontario M7A 1A8
Tel : 416-325-2702
Fax: 416-325-2675
todd.smith@pc.ola.org

Filed Under: Letters and Opinion

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  1. Wolf Braun says:

    In response to my letter to QHC about our hospital I received the following PR spin today. Here it is…
    ———————————————————-
    Thank you for taking the time to submit your comments and concerns about the proposed changes at Quinte Health Care. It is only by hearing from our health care providers, partners and communities that we can ensure we are making the best possible decisions for the future of health care in this region.

    I do want to directly address a number of common misperceptions about the QHC proposals that I read in many of the letters and emails we have received.

    1. I want to reassure you that all QHC hospitals will continue to have 24 hour, 7 day a week emergency rooms. When you require emergency services, PECMH will continue to be there for you. The only types of patients who would be transferred to BGH are ones who are being transferred now because they need surgery or more specialized services.

    For example, if a patient breaks their hip in southern Prince Edward County , the ambulance will first stop at PECMH where the patient is assessed, then a second ambulance is called to take them to BGH for surgery. We are proposing, based on input from the ER doctors and EMS , that the ambulance would take the patient directly to BGH so they can access the care they need faster, and with less use of ambulance services.

    2. Patients who are receiving inpatient care in PECMH now would continue to receive their care at PECMH, in their own homes or from another health care provider in Picton in the future. The only exception would be obstetrical services for the average of 35 babies born per year at PECMH.

    We are not moving inpatient services to Belleville . Instead, we are proposing to reduce the number of beds at PECMH, BGH and TMH by bringing the length-of-time people are spending in hospital to be in line with other best-performing hospitals in the province, and by ensuring patients are receiving the care they need in their own homes or through alternate providers in the community.

    While hospital budgets are being reduced, the government is making investments into other care providers in the community. This will help our patients to be able to stay healthy longer and return home faster with the right supports after a hospital stay.

    3) The QHC Board and Senior Leadership Team remain committed to a strong, viable QHC Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital . Over the past two years, we have been working closely with the Prince Edward Family Health Team to develop a very creative model for a new hospital that we want to build in Picton. We believe this could be the model for accessible, high-quality rural health care and will continue to advocate for the new hospital in Picton with the Local Health Integration Network Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

    Thank you again for taking the time to write to QHC. All of the comments we have received are being compiled and given to the Board and Management Team to be used as part of the decision-making process. QHC is required to have a plan in place for April 1st on how we can deal with the funding changes. However, the implementation of this plan will occur over many months and perhaps the entire year as we work with our physicians and partners in the community to ensure patients can be safely discharged with the right supports, or receive health care services from other providers in the local community.

    Please feel free to give me a call at the number below, or respond to this email, if you have any other comments or questions.

    Respectfully,

    Susan Rowe

    Director of Communications

    Quinte Health Care

    (613) 969-7400, ext. 2331

    srowe@qhc.on.ca

    http://www.qhc.on.ca

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