Island Health backs out of town hall meeting, refuses to face public over controversial care model

Skipping out of the meeting indicates that Island Health lacks answers to the key questions nurses are raising about the safety of doubling their patient load.

The panel, hosted by Oak Bay MLA Andrew Weaver at 7:00 tonight at the Oak Bay Rec Centre, includes representatives from the BC Nurses' Union and the U Vic School of Nursing, but not Island Health. Dr. Weaver had hoped "to bring together the different perspectives so that we can all get informed about this significant change to our healthcare system."

"I think that an appointed body responsible for delivering healthcare to three-quarters of a million people should be willing to defend its patient care model in a public forum," says BCNU President Debra McPherson. "Part of the job of managing change in healthcare is engaging in public forums that give the public a chance to weigh the pros and cons."

Last September, Island Health replaced 26 RNs and LPNs with care aides at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, cutting over 48,000 annual hours of nursing care from some of the sickest patients in the hospital. Island Health plans to replace more than 100 nurses with care aides, this April, cutting at least 187,000 annual hours of nursing care.

"Island Health has repeatedly said it has to do a better job of communicating with nurses and hearing their concerns for safety when patient loads double," says BCNU South Islands region co-chair Adriane Gear. "I don't see how ducking discussion of these concerns contributes to better communication with nurses or the public."

The burden of proof that a care model isn't unsafe for patients falls on those designing it, but CDMR has never been properly evaluated. None of the materials published by Island Health examine the safety implications, of replacing nurses with care aides and reducing the hours of nursing care patients have access to.