Hamilton home care faces crisis

January 8, 2008 About 225 skilled health care staff will lose their jobs after the VON and St. Joseph’s Home Care contracts with the province expire in April. Who will replace them is unknown. A rally to support these workers and the services they provide will be held:

Wednesday, January 16 / 7 pm
Michelangelo Banquet Hall
1555 Upper Ottawa, Hamilton (South of the Lincoln Alexander Parkway)

Frustrated by being treated as second-class health care workers, many will never return to the work they have loved for the better part of their careers.

These agencies have been discarded in a costly and confusing bidding process that has never been proven to be of any value.

Policy experts say what’s needed is more integration and collaboration in health care. Instead, the official policy encourages “cutthroat bidding,” pitting agencies against one another in a race to the bottom.

Thankfully, no other sector in Ontario’s health care system works this way.

The system of bidding for contracts in home care has devastated the sector,

creating shortages across the province. Nurses, therapists, social workers and personal care staff are regularly dismissed simply because of who they choose to work for.

“This means starting over.

I will probably leave nursing.”

Susanna De Trillo, VON Nurse

-Hamilton Spectator, Dec 13, 2007

Shortages of skilled home care staff mean patients will remain longer in hospital, taking up beds that could be used to reduce wait times. It means families must take more time from their busy careers to provide what limited care they can to loved ones.  It means more nursing home beds will have to be built and funded.

The government needs to replace this destructive policy. It’s time for home care to be given stability within the health system.

All Ontarians need to speak out about this issue.

In Brampton the government recently took action when 1500 people marched on their local hospital. In Hamilton we can do the same if enough concerned citizens take the time to show their support

An indoor rally is being held on Wednesday, January 16 at 7 p.m. at the  Michelangelo Banquet Hall. Please come out and show you care.