Letter: MP says lack of action at SDH is ‘disappointing’

wallaceburg-hospital-sydenham

I am writing to you today on behalf of my constituents who fall within the hospital care catchment area of the Sydenham District Hospital (SDH). In particular, I have been approached by a number of concerned citizens relative to what they see as a somewhat pedestrian pace in terms of change and any improvements at Sydenham District Hospital since the Investigator’s Report this past August.

As you are aware, the report noted conditions imposed by management and officers at the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) which put SDH communities and families at some risk:

9. Th[e] Boards have been complicit in administration’s long pattern of decision- making regarding resource allocations that have resulted in the deterioration of SDH’s physical plant and related ability to provide the program and services to its community in accordance with the Rural and Northern Healthcare Framework principles clearly set out in the Alliance Agreement.

MP Bev Shipley
MP Bev Shipley

After more than three months, I am certain a status report would be welcomed by the communities, the volunteers and the staff of Sydenham District Hospital. It is essential to keep them informed on the specific actions you have taken to date which address the issues referenced in the report, in addition to the issues arising after the report’s publication regarding equipment, supplies, services and therapies available through the Emergency Department.

I have been advised by SDH staff members that there have been no changes, investments or improvements whatsoever since the Supervisor’s report. If this is accurate, it is extremely disappointing to those who saw the Investigator’s Report as a ray of sunshine in a decade and a half of darkness. The complexities of dealing with the long-term governance issues should not be a barrier to addressing the acute needs of SDH now.

The constituents in my riding certainly understand and appreciate the enormity of the task before you, in terms of remedying the years of systematic abuse suffered by the Sydenham District Hospital at the hands of the CKHA. They will continue to be patient; but they have been clear to me – that in the absence of real and immediate action to address the acute needs at SDH, patience and good will are apt to dissipate quickly.

Further, they accept that developing a governance model and addressing the current projected deficit are important issues. However, they are seeking assurances that patient and staff care is your first priority and not part of some grand, down-the-road consultant’s report. And I must tell you, they are very concerned with the language they have heard to date, and in particular your comments in a November 8th Chatham Voice which were remarkably similar in tone and content to what they have been hearing for the past 16 years.

This needs to change. They want and deserve straight talk.

I hope you will receive this in the spirit it is intended. As a Member of Parliament, it is my duty to be the voice of my constituents on the issues which concern them most. This is the issue which concerns them most.

I would encourage you to provide an update, not through representatives, but directly to the communities and staff most affected in Wallaceburg. I would encourage you to do it without delay. “Soon”, in my estimation, will not be a helpful response.

Bev Shipley
MP, Lambton-Kent-Middlesex


Editor’s note: This letter was addressed to Rob Devitt, supervisor for the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, and Ken Deane, president and interim chief executive officer for the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, and was distributed to the media.

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