Taft Calls for Public Inquiry Into Calgary Health Region Emergency Room Crisis
This comes from the Alberta Liberal Party:
August 1, 2006
Taft Calls for Public Inquiry Into Calgary Health Region Emergency Room Crisis
Edmonton – Alberta Liberal Caucus Leader Kevin Taft has sent an official request to Premier Klein, calling for an independent public inquiry into the management and operations of emergency room care in the Calgary Health Region.
“There’s a serious problem with wait times in Calgary’s emergency rooms, and we need to tackle that problem now,” said Taft. “People sometimes wait for days in Calgary ERs. Those waits have resulted in avoidable deaths and who knows how much needless human suffering. In an emergency, you need care as quickly as possible.”
Just days ago Rose Lundy experienced a miscarriage in front of 40 other patients as she waited for medical treatment at Peter Lougheed Centre. People routinely spend hours and even days waiting for treatment in Calgary emergency rooms – too often with similarly tragic, and in some cases even fatal, consequences.
“People don’t visit the ER because they’re feeling a little under the weather, they go because they need urgent, immediate help,” Taft said.
Taft has an even more serious concern: because the system clearly lacks the capacity to deal with everyday emergency needs in Calgary, it will be completely unable to face unanticipated disaster.
“What happens if the province is hit with a natural disaster, an epidemic, or even a bus crash? A sudden influx of patients could bring Calgary’s health care system to its knees,” Taft writes in his letter.
Taft urges the Premier to quickly begin an independent public inquiry.
“I would hope that the Premier understands the degree of this crisis, just as I hope he understands that a public inquiry will help us fix the serious problems the CHR faces. This government must take action now to solve this problem.”
-30-
Attached: Text of the letter from Kevin Taft to Premier Klein
For more information contact:
Earl J. Woods
Communications Coordinator
(780) 904-5430
Come on Ralph, Alberta Taxpayers want to know!
August 1, 2006
Taft Calls for Public Inquiry Into Calgary Health Region Emergency Room Crisis
Edmonton – Alberta Liberal Caucus Leader Kevin Taft has sent an official request to Premier Klein, calling for an independent public inquiry into the management and operations of emergency room care in the Calgary Health Region.
“There’s a serious problem with wait times in Calgary’s emergency rooms, and we need to tackle that problem now,” said Taft. “People sometimes wait for days in Calgary ERs. Those waits have resulted in avoidable deaths and who knows how much needless human suffering. In an emergency, you need care as quickly as possible.”
Just days ago Rose Lundy experienced a miscarriage in front of 40 other patients as she waited for medical treatment at Peter Lougheed Centre. People routinely spend hours and even days waiting for treatment in Calgary emergency rooms – too often with similarly tragic, and in some cases even fatal, consequences.
“People don’t visit the ER because they’re feeling a little under the weather, they go because they need urgent, immediate help,” Taft said.
Taft has an even more serious concern: because the system clearly lacks the capacity to deal with everyday emergency needs in Calgary, it will be completely unable to face unanticipated disaster.
“What happens if the province is hit with a natural disaster, an epidemic, or even a bus crash? A sudden influx of patients could bring Calgary’s health care system to its knees,” Taft writes in his letter.
Taft urges the Premier to quickly begin an independent public inquiry.
“I would hope that the Premier understands the degree of this crisis, just as I hope he understands that a public inquiry will help us fix the serious problems the CHR faces. This government must take action now to solve this problem.”
-30-
Attached: Text of the letter from Kevin Taft to Premier Klein
For more information contact:
Earl J. Woods
Communications Coordinator
(780) 904-5430
Come on Ralph, Alberta Taxpayers want to know!