Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal MLA for Inkster, is circulating a petition to the legislative assembly requesting the provincial government allow all regional health authorities to be questioned on an annual basis by a standing committee of the legislature
The petition, which can be seen on Lamoureux's website at www.4kevin.ca, has four points to it. The first, stating that Manitoba's premier and NDP government need to recognize the need for more accountability in health care. The second point says that the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority's "incompetence" has led to a reduction of emergency services at community hospitals and an "explosion" of health care bureaucracy, while the third point states that "serious concerns" have been raised about the Burntwood Regional Health Authority's (BRHA) behaviour towards staffing issues and the need for more doctors in rural Manitoba. The fourth and final point states "as hundreds of millions of tax dollars are being spent on our health care system, MLAs should be allowed to question health care decisions being made my politically appointed health boards."
Lamoureux says that for him, the concerns about the BRHA aren't simply about the aforementioned items but also about the way they handle their critics.
"Awhile ago there was talk of a lawsuit from the BRHA against someone that was being a critic of sorts - Hussain Guisti - and I was offended by the fact that a regional health authority would threaten to sue someone by using the heavy arm of the government," he explains. "I thought it was highly inappropriate. I raised the issue in the Manitoba legislature and I understand the BRHA has since backed down, but I think it just speaks volumes in terms of the way in which regional health authorities attempt to intimidate people."
On May 25 of last year, Tracey Epp sent a cease-and-desist letter to Hussain Guisti on behalf of the BRHA after he published stories in Grassroots News about the regional health authority's doctor shortage and exodus of physicians due to conflicts with BRHA management. Taxpayers dollars - the BRHA won't say how many - were spent on legal fees for Pitblado Barristers & Solicitors in the regional health authority's response to Guisti.
On May 31 last year, Winnipeg Sun columnist Tom Brodbeck wrote a column slamming the BRHA for threatening to sue Guisti because they didn't like what he was writing. In his column Brodbeck stated Pitblado Barristers & Solicitors alleged that several of Guisti's articles contained defamatory language against the BRHA. He goes on to say that when he called BRHA CEO Gloria King to ask why the BRHA was threatening legal action against Guisti, she could not tell him which column included defamatory words or why it was not included in the lawyer's list of alleged defamation.
Blake Ellis, communications co-ordinator with the BRHA, responded to Lamoureux's petition by stating that the physician situation in the regional health authority is "the best it has been in 10 years", without giving any facts and figures to back the statement up.
"There is a full complement of family physicians at the Burntwood Community Health Resource Centre with doctors taking new patients and appointments available daily," Ellis goes on to say. He also points out that the BRHA has recruited anesthetist Dr. Ravi Kumbharathi, who began work with the regional health authority in December of last year. He cites that recruiting is looking "promising" for pediatric positions.
Ellis says that there already is a structure in place within Manitoba Health that allows for a "robust" reporting system, where regional health authorities report to Manitoba Health on a monthly and annual basis. He states Manitoba Health then collects volumes of information about healthcare services in the province and monitors regional health authorities at any time, depending on the discretion of the health minister.
