Letters to the Editor of the Toronto Star:

Last weekend (May 4) the Toronto Star devoted a whole section of the Saturday paper to the continuing crisis in Health Care. It talked about the critical shortages of doctors and nurses and also devoted one short article to the shortage of pharmacists. Unfortunately, the Star totally ignored the equally critical shortages of other allied health professionals working in hospitals throughout Ontario. These professionals include physio and occupational therapists, different kinds of counsellors, medical laboratory technologists, respiratory therapists, radiation and ultrasound technologists to name only a few. These professionals are also experiencing critical shortages and are struggling with huge increases in their workloads. Because they do not get the publicity the doctors and nurses get, they are largely ignored by the media and often, by the Ontario Hospital Association as well.

Ten years ago registered technologists / therapists used to be paid at the same rate of pay as registered nurses. It was recognized that they had the same amount of education and every bit as much responsibility. But because a shortage developed in the nursing profession, the nurses were given huge raises, while the other hospital professionals fell further and further behind. Now we’re seeing this same crisis developing in these other professions. For example, ten years ago, at the Michener Institute of Applied Health Sciences in Toronto, 150 students graduated each year in Medical Laboratory Sciences. This year, the Michener will only graduate 13 students in that program. (The provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan will not graduate any!) Students with the intelligence to pursue these vocations are instead choosing to enter other fields where they are assured much better salaries and working conditions. Consequently, those still working in hospitals are forced to work an escalating amount of overtime and are quickly burning out. In some of these departments, the workload has increased by more than 20 % over last year and overtime is a daily occurrence.

The hospital I work in is currently undergoing a major expansion as a result of the recommendations made by the Sinclair Commission. Both our community and the government have generously contributed to the building expansion project. But in order to staff the larger hospital, we will need approximately 100 more FTE’s (full time equivalent positions). It is not going to be easy to find the additional educated staff that we are going to need. Health care also desperately needs more funding for staff salaries in order to retain the professionals they already have on staff and to make these professions more attractive to students. And just attracting more doctors and nurses will not solve the problem. Doctors and nurses are completely dependent on these other professionals to give them the information they need to properly diagnose and treat their patients. Hospital staff must work together as a team. With an aging population, the continually increasing workload and the enormous stress that these professionals have to deal with on a daily basis makes everyone’s job very difficult.

Mr. Eves has announced that he and his government greatly value the nurses and obviously wants to stay on good terms with them. I wonder if Mr. Eves equally values the other groups of hospital professionals. Talk is nice, but hospitals are in desperate need of funding to allow them to substantially increase both staffing levels and staffing salaries, particularly the salaries of those hospital professional groups, who have fallen so far behind during the past ten years. Our excellent public health care system is one of Ontario’s greatest assets. But health care must be paid for, even if it means raising taxes. If we argue that the province can’t afford to pay these professionals properly, what we are really saying is that we expect these professionals to subsidize the costs of health care for the rest of the province. I hope Mr. Eves will do everything possible to make certain that all hospital professional groups are recognized and properly compensated for the outstanding contribution they make to our health care system.

Susan Wallace
City of Kawartha Lakes (Lindsay)

As a Health Science Professional working in the hospital sector for over 30 years , it amazes me that the Ontario government continues to suggest to the public that funding for capital expenditures such as MRI will decrease the waiting times. What good is state of the art equipment without the professionals to run it? In order for hospitals to recruit and retain these highly skilled professionals this government must increase operating funds and direct the hospitals to use this funding to improve working conditions and wages for Health Science Professionals. One only has to look at the number of advertisements in newspapers for Laboratory, Nuclear Medicine, CT, Mammographers and X-ray technologists as well as Respiratory Therapists and Ultrasonographers to quickly determine that there are an abundance of opportunities available for these professionals.

Meanwhile the government recently released through the Public Salary Disclosure Act the lists for those making over $100,000. At our hospital the number jumped from 17 in 2000 to 28 for 2001 and the CEO received a 14% raise in one year in the amount of $39,000. Hospital operating plans are approved by the Board of Directors and ultimately by the Ministry of Health yet healthcare professionals are continually told there is no money.

Quality patient care does not equal only funding for bricks and mortar. Quality patient care requires a team of highly skilled professionals who can provide the diagnostic and therapeutic services that doctors and nurses require to treat patients.

Patricia Collyer
Scarborough