Patricia Jackson journeyed to the Legislature just as her town’s emergency room was again closed due to short staffing on Wednesday. The Kipling ER also closed Nov. 3, from Nov. 7-12, Nov. 19, and Nov. 20.
“That’s nine days where the emergency room wasn’t open in Kipling in November alone,” said Keith Jorgenson, Saskatchewan NDP Deputy Health Shadow Minister. “This is unacceptable, it’s dangerous and Scott Moe still refuses to lift a finger despite overwhelming evidence that healthcare is worse now than it’s ever been.”
“We're in the oil patch. We have been blessed. We have not had a major oops. But some day we might have and we need to know that we've got the services available if and when that happens,” said Mayor Jackson.
Chaos has erupted on the frontlines of rural hospitals since a new policy was issued by the Saskatchewan Health Authority on Oct. 29 mandating that emergency rooms stay open if just one registered nurse is present onsite. The move was made just before the SHA began publicly posting emergency room closure notices online daily. Frontline workers say they were never consulted on the policy change and have said it intends only to create the “illusion of healthcare.”
Further adding to the challenges for Kipling, specifically, is that the emergency room in Arcola is also where patients are routed in the event of a closure; however, it has also been closed repeatedly.
Jackson said the healthcare crisis plaguing her community has been horrible for residents and local businesses trying to get by.
“If people go off to another community because they're sick, whatever. They end up buying fuel, having lunch, maybe going and picking up groceries. Ours is not a huge community. It's a little under 1,100 people. Our businesses need their business in order to survive,” said Jackson.
Rural emergency room closures across Saskatchewan have increased by 800 per cent since Scott Moe became Premier.
“Saskatchewan, we don’t have to settle for this,” Jorgenson said. “We are the birthplace of Medicare; however, Scott Moe and the Sask. Party have driven us to last place and they can’t be trusted to fix things.
“We need big bold change to end the crisis and get rural Saskatchewan residents the healthcare they need and deserve. The Saskatchewan NDP will deliver that for you.”
People wanting to weigh in on the future of healthcare are encouraged to visit YourCareYourSay.ca.
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