I have been hearing from Nova Scotians, employed in government and the Nova Scotia Health Authority, that when they present the facts and the reality of what is happening and disagree with their leaders, be it health care, community services or justice services, they are met with pushback. They are asked to keep their information to themselves, not to bring it up.
Similar instances within NSHA have been described, where one is told not to present anything unless it is positive; when, in fact, the information felt to be “negative” happens to be real, the true facts. The former deputy minister of health, Dr. Peter Vaughan, once said it to me at a meeting, where I raised my concerns about the health care crisis. He chided me for all the “negativity” I was spreading in my columns, and explained that it was taking a painful toll on people in his department and the health authority, who were all just trying to help. That was 2016; here we are in 2019, still experiencing the effects of the immoral austerity measures that have been used to reform the health-care system in this province.
Meanwhile, citizens are coming together to identify local deficits in health-care access. They are speaking out both as individuals and collectively.
When the health authority and minister of health have stated that they cannot speak to individual cases, due to health privacy concerns, individuals have gone online and posted harrowing stories of what they and their loved ones have endured. That includes information presented through groups like Capersforhealthcare; novascotiahealthcarecrisis Fcacbook group (novascotiahealthcarecrisis.ca); community initiatives like Building Bridges by the Digby-area health coalition; Laurel Walker’s online 60 days, 60 stories, with personal stories related to mental health crises; and individuals like Inez Rudderham, who spoke out on social media about how the system repeatedly was not available to offer access to necessary health care.
Citizens are countering the stance taken by NSHA and this government, and refuting the administrative rhetoric that senior officials are putting out, in response to cries that the health-care crisis is mounting. What was once a trickle is now building up behind attempts to dam the flow of information.
Paul Schneidereit’s recent column (“N.S. health-care anguish leaps off Facebook page,” Aug. 22) sought to present this human suffering, to be met by NSHA’s counterpoint article “COUNTERPOINT: NSHA’s patient-relations operators are standing by,” Aug. 27.
As we struggle with mounting despair, and make public what was once very privately held information, we are even bearing witness to a death from lack of timely access to health-care service delivery. David Benedict needed an ambulance. It never came.
People and the media are doing what is necessary. The citizen-led movement to hang a lantern on our health-care crisis is holding to account those charged with managing our health-care system. We are witnessing the evolution of a new frame of accountability which now, and in the future, can be used to gauge the responsiveness and effectiveness of the health,care system.
If NSHA and the government have been listening, and have held many focus groups in order to understand the issues, why do they not share their solutions and progress with us?
Dr. A.J., Ajantha Jayabarathan, has 25 years of experience in medicine, broadcasting, e-health and education.
