Coming Soon to a Hospital Near You

The Minden ER closed June 1, 2023. A recent article in the Minden Paper explains why this should worry all of us.

Jeff Nicholls said,

"After we analyzed the decision-making processes before, during, and after the closure of Minden ER, our team audited teh audited financial statements of every hospital in Ontario. . . . For FY22, 25% of Ontario hospitals posted a deficit . . . For FY23, 75% of Ontario Hospitals posted a deficit. . . . Their average deficit was $5.9 million. . . . One healthcare system -- Mackenzie Health [in Richmond Hill] -- posted a $93 million surplus. . . . 

The funding allocation inequities suggest disparities and necessitate a review of funding processes to ensure fair distribution and a transparent, data-driven approach to meeting each hospital community's needs and concerns while maintaining system integrity. . . . The picture we paint herein is not reflected in Ontario's 2024 budget. Four factors have led Ontario's healthcare system into financial ruin. . . . Chronic year-over-year underfunding. . . . hospitals became dependent on one-time funding, which has now been removed. . . . Bill 124 incapacitated hospitals' ability to recruit and retain staff. . . . Bill 124 led to private nurse agency dependence, forcing hospitals to spend 3x (+) on labour. . . . 

Our recommendations: Introduce emergency funding provisions in Bill 180 to address our healthcare system's financial constrainsts. Develop a funding formula that considers the social and commercial determinants of health relative to each localized region. Establish mandatory financial health assessments for each Hospital in Ontario, led by an external organization instead of the Ministry of Health and/or each healthcare board. Mandate public reporting with committee-established, dedicated Key Performance Indicators and /or Objectives and Key Results for all hospitals receiving provincial funding."

They weren't unfortunate. They were just first. 

Nate Bear pointed out, 

"Of all things that you can't leave up to individuals or the market, public health is number. There are no consumption patterns or market mechanisms that can influence the trajectory of public health. Once you let the handbrake off, the downward trajectory is steep and inevitable. We are right now witnessing the devastating consequences of neoliberal political thought being applied to public health."