March 7, 2023
Overcrowding in our hospitals affects patient care
This morning during question period MPP France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) asked the Minister of Health, Sylvia Jones what the government has to say to families who have suffered because of the overcrowding of Ontario’s hospitals.
“Since the Ford’s government came into power, they have talked a whole lot about solving the overcrowding problem in our hospitals. Unfortunately, last week in Collingwood, a 32-year-old father was seriously injured at work. He fell victim to the overcrowding problem the government has not dealt with. It took almost eight hours from the time of his accident until they were able to locate a hospital with a vacant ICU bed to care for him. What does the government have to say to the families who are victims to the overcrowding problem they promised to fix 5 years ago?’’ Gélinas asked.
On March 1st Global news reported a small business owner from Angus, On. fell onto concrete while working in Collingwood. No hospital anywhere closer than London had an ICU bed available leading, to an eight hour wait to receive necessary urgent care. The surgery was unsuccessful, and the man did not recover.
“The health care workers crisis in our hospitals is real, the overcrowding of our hospitals is real. They have a direct impact on the care available to people. This time the consequences are a dead worker, a young widow and a fatherless 2 year old son. How many more families will be broken before your government address the health care workers crisis in our overcrowded hospitals?”
On February 7, 2023, a report from the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario showed that $6.8 billion allocated in the Provincial Budget is not being spent on the services it was designated for, like healthcare and education.