Nurses say Fraser Health playing deceptive shell-game to cut costs to satisfy provincial Liberal government
By downgrading acute care hospital beds to "transition units," FHA is removing more than 200 beds for the seriously ill from the system, while its own research says it needs 1,300 more
Nurses say it's a deceptive shell-game the Fraser Health Authority is playing to cut its costs at the expense of patients and of the nurses who provide their care.
First FHA is downgrading and converting more than 200 badly-needed acute care hospital beds throughout the region into spaces for seniors waiting for care in the community — so-called Patient Assessment and Transition Units. To do that the health authority is displacing almost 100 nurses from their positions.
Then the FHA turns around and assures the public "this does not mean a loss of beds for any of these hospitals" and that "none of those registered nurses are losing their jobs."
"This is trickery and deception of the worst kind," says Debra McPherson, president of the BC Nurses' Union. "The Fraser Health Authority — which has its own study showing it needs at least 1,300 more acute care beds to meet growing needs in the region — is cutting more than 200 of the beds it has now, in order to meet the budget restrictions imposed by the provincial government. But to make this outrageous cut palatable, it's giving the beds it is cutting a new name, and using them for seniors who are in hospital awaiting services in the community that the health authority is also failing to provide. All I can call this is a deceptive shell-game."
McPherson is concerned about the frustration and anxiety the move is creating among nurses. "Despite the assurances of the health region CEO, there's no guarantee nurses will still have jobs when the dust clears. These are dedicated professionals who care deeply about their patients, yet the FHA is moving with unseemly haste to displace them from their positions and force them to scramble for vacant positions in a climate of cutbacks throughout the system."
Among the cuts to acute care beds for the seriously ill:
Surrey Memorial – 44 beds; Langley Memorial 24 beds;
Abbotsford Hospital – 20 beds;
Peace Arch Hospital – 17 beds;
Burnaby Hospital – 12 beds; Delta Hospital – 14 beds;
Ridge Meadows Hospital – 20 beds; Royal Columbian Hospital – 20 beds |
McPherson says the union will be exposing the negative impact of the health authority's plan for patients and fight to ensure nurses are provided with the rights they are entitled to under their contract and under the law. "We'll not be enabling the health authority to proceed on its reckless timetable simply to satisfy their budget priorities. We'll stand up for patients and for nurses every step of the way."
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