The Chair’s Message to Members
Save the Date – 5pm – June 23rd – UAW Hall
That’s the date for our annual meeting. A lot of new members will join with us that day to stand up to the corporate bullying that we have experienced and, importantly, to save the services delivered from our hospital – services that we have come to rely on. Please plan to be there.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to thank you for your support at our members’ meeting on the 19th of April. A great night culminating with a unanimous support of our Vision for the future of Healthcare in the Sydenham – Walpole – St. Clair District. We are appreciative of the support we received from Walpole Island Band Council with their resolution to maintain an ER at Wallaceburg. We have the support of our MPP and our municipal councillors. We have also received support from the NDP Health Critic and the messages delivered in the legislature by the Premier and the Minister of Health are very encouraging.
We have begun the process of meeting with partners to share our Vision. Prospective partners have been invited to an “in camera” meeting on May 18th. We will share our VISION with them at that time and begin the consultations that should lead to an integration of all healthcare services from a single location. We will work to ensure that the services that are provided now and in the future includes a 24/7 ER. To assist us, we have engaged a governance advisor to further refine the development, promotion and implementation of our VISION. We will update you on our efforts at the AGM in June.
You should know that the road to our success will be filled with obstacles. As you know, the other boards have acted, “suspending all Alliance activities” until further notice explaining that they need time to put together a plan for the future relationships between our boards. That action to suspend is without any credibility and is not authorized by the terms of our Alliance Agreement. All three boards need to meet and approve a number of routine matters including the approval of Financial Statements prior to our respective annual meetings.
At our Board meeting on May 4th, we passed a resolution directing our Secretary and CEO to convene a meeting of the Alliance to consider regular and routine matters and to set a date for a special meeting to consider options for new relationships within our Alliance partners. We don’t intend to wait any longer. This is authorized by our Alliance Agreement and that meeting will be called for May 26th at 4pm in Chatham. We hope that our Alliance Partners will attend. If they don’t, then more serious actions will have to be taken.
At our meeting on May 4th, we also heard that our membership for 2016 -2017 is over 535 members. Congratulations to Conrad and his Membership Committee for a job very well done. The Board also approved a Nominating Committee to report on nominations to be considered by the Membership at the Annual Meeting. No applications were received following our advertisements in local media. If you are interested in serving on the Board or on Committees that we name, please advise any member of the Board.
Also considered at the May 4th meeting was a motion to include an additional director position to be named by Walpole Island Band Council. We believe that this will strengthen our relationship with the First Nations Community that we share so much with.
A few days ago, the Chief of Staff for CKHA and the Medical Advisory Committee held a news conference to promote the downgrading of our ER with the transfer of all CTAS 1 and 2 cases (most acute) to the Chatham Campus bypassing our ER in Wallaceburg. They are beginning to make the case that our ER staff is not as capable of managing these types of cases. We have issued a media release expressing our confidence in the physicians, nurses and the staff that provide these services and all the services we need. We will do everything that we can to provide the facilities and the resources for a safe and professional ER service. We are beginning the process of contacting ER and local physicians to find out what their thoughts are on the continuation of ER services at Sydenham. We don’t believe that their valued opinions have been considered by CKHA staff or the Medical Advisory Committee.
CKHA staff are continuing with their clear actions in support of the plan to eliminate our ER. This was the plan that was not approved by CKHA, but forwarded to the LHIN by the other two boards in spite of that. This was contrary to the spirit and the intent of the Alliance Agreement, something that they have accused us of. We have always and will continue to abide by the letter and the spirit of the Alliance Agreement and believe fully that a strong board representing SDH at the Alliance table can and will protect the services that need to be provided to and within our catchment area.
Much has happened and much needs to happen before we can celebrate any successes. We need your support as we move forward with our plans and your participation at the Annual General Meeting at the UAW Hall on June 23rd is important. We hope to see you there.
Sheldon Parsons
SDH Chair
