Village Squire, 1975-01, Page 16presented in the Mustard Report.
DANGERS TO THE HOSPITALS
I must again state that there is every
indication that there will be indeed fewer
hospitals, that hospitals must be of a 300 bed
size, that there will be one appointed board
for several hospitals, that is the Area Health
Services Management Board, that there will
be only special services of a limited type in
the community hospital that is allowed to
remain, and that most of the more specialized
services will have to be obtained in the
catchment area of the large London health
area. For any detailed special service, I think
it is implied and can be concluded, that we
will indeed be required to go to our catchment
area, that is to the London University Centre.
In the hospitals also, the danger is the lack
of the voluntary organizations. There was
strong objection registered from the
Women's Auxiliary of the Goderich Hospital
at the time of the County Council discussion
of the Mustard Report indicated that the
Women's Auxiliary over the years had gone
out of their way, put much effort into raising
funds to buy necessary equipment for the
hospital and to furnish the hospital and that
this type of voluntary work should not have
been overlooked and cannot be expected to be
becomes strictly a
continued when it
government hospital.
At a recent meeting of District No. 2 of the
Hospital Auxiliaries of Ontario, it was pointed
out that in the past year $148,000.00 had been
raised by the member auxiliaries to buy
equipment and furnishings for the hospitals
in the areas they serve. This is only one year
of many that they have been in existence and
operation and fund raising..
PROFESSIONAL DANGERS
As a professional myself, I must speak for
my colleagues and say that it is obvious that
there will be a set number of doctors and
health professionals for any area, and that
there would be no O.H.I.P. payment for a
doctor who decides to come into the area
when there is no vacancy on the quota
system.
I am personally concerned 'too, as a
physician, with the dissolution of the
doctor -patient relation, that a barrier will be
erected to patient -doctor relation and that it
will become most unacceptable with first of
all the patient being filtered out by an
intermediary to say whether he may or may
not see the doctor and the doctor also being
filtered out from the patient by an
intermediary who determines whether the
doctor should or should not see the patient.
We must remember also that in the
Community Health Centre set-up, that the
Health Centre must be staffed 24 hours a day
with all health professionals and that,
therefore, doctors will be on shift work and
that the possibility of the consumer seeing his
favorite physician at the time that he is ill is
remote on sheer mathematical probability of
the patient being ill when the doctor is on
duty or on his particular shift at the Health
Centre.
Another professional danger is the
demoralizing effect that this total report has
had on hospital staff and on all health
professionals by making them feel that they
are no longer needed as personally interested
professionals looking after a patient's
Radiant Life
Centre
57 Albert St., Box 546,
Clinton, Ontario.
482-3128
Make this a
"Happy" New Year
SEE OUR SPECIAL
on Living Bibles.
Various sizes and styles
for young and old.
Dec. 23 - Jan. 15
welfare, but rather only as push-button
pawns to do a specific technical job and show
no interest or personal concern for the health
consumer
POLITICAL DANGERS
The loss of local control of our health
services to a more distant body as implied in
the District Health Council for the area
encompassing the five counties and involving
the tremendous centre of population and
specialized health care in the university area
of London.
A political person must be concerned and is
concerned that there would be in practicality
no way that we would have a voice on the
Health Council when we are only 50,000
people in a total population of 550,000. We
would be overwhelmed and soon forgotten.
Many have said to me, "What can we do,"
when they have read the report and I think
everyone should avail themselves with a copy
of the report and read it, (although it is heavy
reading and tends to give you a strong feeling
of sleepiness) bear with it, and as you read
through it you will find the points I have
outlined above to be as stated. If you
conclude, as I have concluded, that this
proposed health care delivery system is a
disaster to health care in Ontario and as many
have wondered what can a person do,
certainly would urge you to sit down and write
a letter of rejection to the Minister of Health,
to your local M. P.P.s and to the Premier of
Ontario. Letters of objection, letters of
rejection and letters of concern must be sent
as soon as possible if there is to be any hope
of stopping the implementation of this report
as presented.
ENTIRE STOCK
OF SHEARLING AND HEAVY
PILE LINED WINTER FOOTWEAR
Discount
ALL OTHER LINES OF
FOOTWEAR
10% to 50% DISCOUNT
Red4 Sloe
S!�
142 The Square
Goderich, Ont.
VILLAGE SQUIRE/JANUARY 1975, 15