FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thunder Bay, ON – Health care workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees will be holding a rally outside local Ontario PC MPP Kevin Holland’s office in Thunder Bay in response to the provincial government’s “blatant disregard for working conditions and patient care.”
More than 70 per cent of Ontario’s hospitals are facing budget deficits, as provincial funding fails to keep pace with population needs. Consequentially, thousands of hospital jobs have already been eliminated in the GTA, North Bay, Hamilton, Ottawa, Niagara and London, despite chronic understaffing in most institutions.
“Our hospitals are struggling to meet people’s needs because the government refuses to cover the actual costs of managing our health care system,” said Michael Hurley, president of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE), which represents 45,000 health care workers.
“This government promised to clear surgical waiting lists and to end hallway medicine. However, 200,000 people are currently waiting for surgeries, 73,000 patients are waiting longer than clinically recommended and 2,000 are on hallway stretchers waiting for beds,” he said.
The staffing and capacity shortfall is glaring in hospitals across the province. At the Thunder Bay hospital, only 24 per cent of ER patients are admitted within the 8-hour target time. The average wait-time for ER patients at TBRHC requiring admission (19.2 hours) is higher than the provincial average (18.7 hours).
CUPE estimates that Thunder Bay needs significant investments to bolster staffing and capacity to clear backlogs, eliminate hallway medicine and ensure timely care. However, the union says, the provincial government’s funding cuts will make that impossible.
“Patients are not receiving the care they deserve in our hospitals, including here in Thunder Bay,” says Sharon Richer, secretary-treasurer of OCHU-CUPE. “Health care workers are stretched to their limits trying to provide the best care possible, but they need more support in the form of safe staffing levels, manageable workloads, and a properly funded hospital system.”
OCHU-CUPE is holding its annual convention in Thunder Bay which ends on April 30. Over 200 delegates from the convention are expected at the demonstration.
Who: CUPE health care workers Michael Hurley, president of OCHU-CUPE Sharon Richer, secretary-treasurer of OCHU-CUPE
What: “Fund our hospitals properly” rally by CUPE
Where: MPP Kevin Holland’s office, 774 James Street North, Thunder Bay, ON
When: 12pm on Thursday, April 30
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For more information, contact:
Zee Noorsumar,
CUPE Communications
znoorsumar@cupe.ca 647-995-9859
