[Regina]

HSC in Winnipeg needs to be blown up and rebuilt. The place and staff culture there is in the dumper. It gives "free" healthcare a bad name.

[Reverend Blair]

It depends on the situation, Regina. When it comes to the ER, you're right. When it comes to specialty parts of the same complex...Cancer Care and the Women's Clinic, for instance...HSC provides some really excellent services.

The real problem is a lack of staff though...there simply aren't enough. It's been getting better, very slowly, but until the government(s) decides to train more people, ERs are going to be a combination of walk-in clinic and ER and that really doesn't work.

You'll notice that the federal NDP have come up with a solid plan to train more medical professionals.

The other problem is the ERs being used as a shelter. That's a problem that's been getting worse ever since Sam Katz became mayor here. He's got lots of money for his business pals, but not a lot for anybody else. We need more shelters and more public housing, but Katz would rather give corporate welfare to his pals.

[Regina]

Reverend Blair Reverend Blair:

It depends on the situation, Regina. When it comes to the ER, you're right. When it comes to specialty parts of the same complex...Cancer Care and the Women's Clinic, for instance...HSC provides some really excellent services.

The real problem is a lack of staff though...there simply aren't enough. It's been getting better, very slowly, but until the government(s) decides to train more people, ERs are going to be a combination of walk-in clinic and ER and that really doesn't work.

You'll notice that the federal NDP have come up with a solid plan to train more medical professionals.

The other problem is the ERs being used as a shelter. That's a problem that's been getting worse ever since Sam Katz became mayor here. He's got lots of money for his business pals, but not a lot for anybody else. We need more shelters and more public housing, but Katz would rather give corporate welfare to his pals.

I’m sure there’s got to be a few areas in HSC that serve the public at a minimal level. HSC has a long history of problems dating back over 15 years. Most are hidden from the public unless they are a direct cause of death, like the Neonatal Cardiac program did. In the early 90’s 12 children died after having open heart surgery, which shut down the program. Many people concluded the deaths were due to one person, however the problems were systemic. (Davies & Sinclair reports) Those same problems therefore existed in other areas but do not raise flags because they’re statically acceptable. That aside they simply have people who work there that don’t care and are only there to collect a paycheck. The horror stories that come from that place are legendary in the province, many due to staffing attitudes towards the patients. I spent years in and around there (not as a patient) and have seen and heard it all first hand.

Every ER is screwed up and I see no reason to believe HSC would be different.

Short staffed? Probably but no more than St. B, The Vic, Miz, 7 Oaks or Concordia. In fact given a choice HSC isn’t the first choice for HC professionals, so training more staff like nurses wouldn’t help that place, same goes for Physicians. Notice you can always find a doctor at a walk in clinic but never a family doctor. That’s because there’s a shortage of Family Practitioners and not a shortage of General Practitioners. Next time you see a Doc in a walk in clinic, ask him why he doesn’t have a Family practice. The real answer? I’m just here for the lifestyle and money…..I don’t really want to deal with your problems all the time. That’s why I send you to the pharmacy for some pills and tell you to see your family doctor. Besides HSC is a teaching hospital which should tell you something if you think there’s a shortage.

The Federal NDP have a plan?? Wow, great but it’s a provincial problem and nothing the Feds can do will problem solve any healthcare facility in Manitoba unless the provincial government applies it. Same goes for Sam. While I’m sure he’s jamming cash in his and his buddy’s pockets, the healthcare situation is out of his hands. So Sam and a federal NDP “plan” is irrelevant to solving HSC or any other HC problems in Manitoba. Not to mention the last time an NDP government had provincial control of healthcare in Ontario, they slashed HC spending and introduced us to “Rae Days” sending wait times through the roof and sent trained nurses and doctors south by the plane loads.
I actually don’t trust any political party’s plan……their only missions are to rule and self preservation.

[therookieca]

I'll tell you what the real problem is. I think that the stupid thing is the amount of Doctors in canada are small. doctors are a huge scarcity in Canada. In Toronto there is too many hospitals what I say is make one large or very bug hospital with a floor of ER and two to three floors or rooms two to a room and hire all the doctors there. The thing is there is not enough doctors to fill all the hospitals but enough to fill on big hospital and give nurses better training right now it is horbille give them some trainign so they can admitt rooms to people and find proity people before others. You take the guy coughing blood before the guy with a nosebleed. So better training would be great to!!!!

[robmik43]

We do have a shortage of doctors. The CMA contibutes to this
by blocking so many immigrants with medical degrees from
practise. In rural areas, we have GP'S who have a full practise, act
as surgical staffers for such tasks as anesthesiology, and
are expected to "take their turn" as the on-call doctors in the ER...
on call all night after working all day. Many are opting out of ER work.
Some ER'S are closing altogether.
I agree the abuse is rampant, especially amongst hopeless, useless
parents who bring every minor "cut or abraded little darling" to the ER.

[Reverend Blair]

$1:

I’m sure there’s got to be a few areas in HSC that serve the public at a minimal level.

You know, I don't consider having top-level hematologists working with me to be minimal. That's done through Cancer Care, and I don't have cancer.

I also don't consider my wife being able to get excellent care at the Women's Clinic when she needed an operation to be minimal.

Health Sciences is much more than just the emergency ward.

Are there problems? You bet, and they need to be addressed, but we have to be careful to preserve the parts that are working, maybe even use them as models when and where they are applicable,

$1:

That aside they simply have people who work there that don’t care and are only there to collect a paycheck. The horror stories that come from that place are legendary in the province, many due to staffing attitudes towards the patients. I spent years in and around there (not as a patient) and have seen and heard it all first hand.

You should try the General in Regina, Regina. Want to see problems with staffing attitudes? They make HSC look like a finely-tuned watch.

The point is that the problem is widespread.

$1:

The Federal NDP have a plan?? Wow, great but it’s a provincial problem and nothing the Feds can do will problem solve any healthcare facility in Manitoba unless the provincial government applies it.

The plan is to encourage more training of GPs and family practitioners, Regina. It addresses the problem of a lack of family doctors and the shortage of emergency room staff.

$1:

Same goes for Sam. While I’m sure he’s jamming cash in his and his buddy’s pockets, the healthcare situation is out of his hands

Except that the staff at ERs in the city are providing de facto shelters to the homeless, which was a contributing factor in this case, and Sam has done nothing but further marginalize the poor and homeless since he got his useless ass elected.

$1:

So Sam and a federal NDP “plan” is irrelevant to solving HSC or any other HC problems in Manitoba. Not to mention the last time an NDP government had provincial control of healthcare in Ontario,

See, there has been a marked improvement here since the NDP took office. Have they been perfect? No. They have brought in things like the Access Clinics though. I spent a good chunk of last winter being treated at one of those...treatment that have otherwise had to be performed at a hospital.

There's still hallway medicine...especially at Concordia and HSC, but it's far better than it was. Treatment times for a variety of illnesses have been cut.


More doctors and nurses will improve things even more.

[uwish]

yup and jacks 50 billion in spending means every Canuck can have his own personal doctor, until we are more broke than the US.

[Reverend Blair]

And Harper's 50 billion in tax cuts means that average people get nothing while CEOs get huge raises for shipping jobs to foreign countries.

[ShepherdsDog]

Regina Regina:

HSC in Winnipeg needs to be blown up and rebuilt. The place and staff culture there is in the dumper. It gives "free" healthcare a bad name.

Frankly, I'm not a fan of the HSC because of its location. I really don't want me or mine mugged on my way to and from the parking lot, or go to the lot, only to find my car gone. We used St. Boniface all of the time, partly because it was a teaching hospital too.

[travior]

Shouldn't there be more nurses during all hours of the day and not just 10am to 10pm?

[saturn_656]

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

Regina Regina:

HSC in Winnipeg needs to be blown up and rebuilt. The place and staff culture there is in the dumper. It gives "free" healthcare a bad name.

Frankly, I'm not a fan of the HSC because of its location. I really don't want me or mine mugged on my way to and from the parking lot, or go to the lot, only to find my car gone. We used St. Boniface all of the time, partly because it was a teaching hospital too.

Much like the Miz... that area around Furby street is a shithole. I only worked there for six or seven months and I could go on for days on the crap I've seen there.