Another wait time death

A story, “Wait times longest for seniors: study” (St. Catharines Standard, Oct.19,2007) reported that across Canada, 10% of patients admitted to ER had to wait 15 hours or longer for a bed and that the average age of those waiting 24 hours or more was 67, and 52% of these patients were female.

Three days earlier on Oct. 16, 2007, the St.Catharines Standard ran another story, “Warning sounded on bed shortages” stating that “bed shortages in local hospitals are getting worse”, with an eyewitness account from Dr. Keith Greenway about a cancer patient right in Niagara who passed away while waiting in the hallway for a bed.
Yet, it was only on Sept.30, 2006 that the Standard ran a story, “More hospital beds not in the cards: premier”, where Dalton McGuinty “deflected answers about funding additional beds to alleviate wait times.”

On Sept.29, 2007, during the election campaign, the Standard ran a story, “Emergency in health care”, as well as another story featuring Suzanne Aucoin, “Groups call for improved cancer care”, as well as James Wallaces’ “Clock ticking on healthcare system”, all detailing a plethora of problems within our health system.

Yet during the Sept. 2007 election campaign, Liberal Jim Bradley said precious little about these healthcare issues that have been fermenting under his government’s reign, as he was busy fear mongering about an imaginary fragmentation of our school system!

In each of these preceding St. Catharines Standard stories, no mention was made of, and no reaction was reported from our local MPP, Jim Bradley. Readers would like to know whether Jim Bradley is being contacted for local story reactions or not, with a comment in the story from the local reporter such as ‘Bradley’s office was contacted for reaction about this issue, but declined comment’.

It's as if good ol’ Jim Bradley, Minister for Seniors, conveniently doesn’t have much to do about any of these severe systemic healthcare problems which he and his party have helped create.