Legislative Report

NDP on Wrong Track with Health Care

Imagine having to rush a family member to a hospital. But when you get there with your loved one, you find out the hospital is closed. It’s closed because there aren’t enough doctors or nurses to staff it.

Sadly for many people living in rural Saskatchewan today, this is the reality of health care. Rural Saskatchewan is suffering from years of NDP denial and inaction when it comes to the recruitment and retention of health care professionals

Families in communities like Arcola, Central Butte, Spiritwood, Kamsack, Preeceville, Canora and Big River have all had to live with temporary hospital closures in recent weeks. Some are still facing those closures. This is not what the people of Saskatchewan deserve. They deserve access to good quality health care and a government willing to provide it. In 2001, the NDP government promised that all Saskatchewan people would have primary care within a thirty minute drive from home. So much for that commitment.

According to the November 1 edition of the Regina Leader Post, “the suspension of hospital services in rural Saskatchewan is a fact of life, Health Minister Len Taylor said.” Taylor asserts that from time to time, hospitals may have to be closed because of the lack of health care professionals in the province. What Taylor is forgetting to mention is that his government that has been in power for the last fifteen years and has failed to deal aggressively with the shortage of health care professionals in Saskatchewan.

A perfect storm has developed in Saskatchewan’s health care system because the NDP government failed to address these problems earlier, despite repeated calls from nurses and the Saskatchewan Party. It’s this inaction that is now causing hospitals to shut their doors. It’s this inaction that’s forcing families in rural Saskatchewan to live with substandard health care. There’s no question that the NDP government is leading the province down the wrong track when it comes to health care in Saskatchewan.

Past Legislative Reports