I am composing this letter while sitting in a hospital ward attending a very ill family patriarch. It is troubling to see a loved one so vulnerable and totally dependent on our struggling health-care system. As a senior citizen myself, I can’t help but ponder my own fate, recognizing that some day I will likely be in this helpless situation.
It is in this context that I wish to share serious concerns I have regarding the recent announcement of proposed changes to our health-care system. Specifically, the plan is to replace two registered nurses (RNs) by less qualified Licenced Practical Nurses (LPNs) at the Palliative Care Unit (PCU).
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Forward, Haggie at odds over Eastern Health changes
I was astonished by the many inconsistencies in the announcement of this proposed change. First and foremost is the assurance that this change would not affect patient care. That is unlikely. As nurses’ union president Debbie Forward explained, RNs have a higher level of education (and expertise) than do LPNs and so carry a greater burden of responsibility. Further increase in that burden will increase the likelihood of natural human error and delays in treatment that would have serious negative effects on patient welfare.
This concern is particularly acute at the PCU where RNs are primarily responsible for care of the most unstable patients as well as for counseling distressed patients and their families.
Why then did Eastern Health select the PCU for its initial pilot project?
Could it be because it considers that the risks of patient death or increased misery associated with this change would be best mitigated at the PCU, where most patients are going to die soon anyway? They won’t be alive long enough to complain about the misery they endured, or to vote in the next provincial election.
It was also stated that this change would not save money.
How can this be true? If RNs are to be replaced by LPNs with lower salaries then of course it will save money; not much initially in the pilot project, but ultimately quite a bit of money if and when this is extended throughout Eastern Health.
Furthermore, if this change does not save money, then why would Eastern Health want to reduce the overall level of expertise of its nursing staff?
The explanation offered was that “the skill mix that Eastern Health has proposed matches nicely with national best practices.”
This is absurd! How can intentionally reducing the overall quality of nursing care be, in any way, relevant to “best practices”? Should we not be striving to maintain the highest standard possible rather than intentionally reducing the level of health care, especially given that saving money is supposedly not relevant.
I feel personally offended when I think about how we were expected to accept this lame attempt to deceive us. I can’t help but think that our own government is treating us as a stereotypically naïve and stupid people. I think that the provincial government owes us a rational (and preferably honest) explanation of the reason for this proposed change.
In conclusion, I remind readers that we are all responsible for holding our government accountable for actions that may not be in our best interests. Until now there has been virtually no opposition to this precedent-setting proposed initiative that would intentionally lower our standard of health care, without any sound rationale. If we take this ‘lying down’ then we can hold ourselves partially responsible when the time comes that we find ourselves helplessly dependent on whatever level of heath care remains. Therefore, I am soliciting public support my concerns and perspective. I encourage supporters to share these concerns with family and friends and to contact their respective MHAs to make it clear that this is totally unacceptable.
Geoff Dawe
Conception Bay South
