Kincardine resident wants public input on choice of CT scanner for Kincardine hospital

To the Editor:

The following is a memo to the South Bruce Grey Health Centre (SBGHC) board of directors regarding the CT scanner for Kincardine hospital:

To: CEO Michael Barrett and members of the board (chairman John Gilbert, Leslie Hastie, Larry Allison, Jim Bagshaw, Sheila Dowler, John Haggarty, Doug Harris, Bill Heikkila, David Leonce, Betty MacDonald, Kylie Pike, Angela Stanley, Dr. Lisa Roth):

Having done on-line research into the Responsibilities, Mission, and Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) of the South Bruce Grey Health Centre, I have determined in several sections, the importance of engagement and communication with stakeholders, patients, and families, in the decision-making process.

It is stated, the “SBGHC believes that incorporating the voice of the patient in decision-making, quality initiatives, and design, will lead to the best possible outcomes for the communities that we serve.” The excerpts are at the end of this letter.

All residents are potential patients of the hospital and doctors are stakeholders (I believe). Also, the residents who donate to capital fund projects can be considered to be stakeholders.

As you are, no doubt, aware, the physicians group at the hospital is not in favour of the board’s selection of a CT scanner (Siemens Edge Plus) and believes the Siemens Drive machine is a better option. From the comments on your recent Zoom meeting, and comments in the press and on-line media (mainly Facebook), the residents of Kincardine overwhelmingly support their doctors’ position and not that of the board.

There is also a petition on Facebook to get the board to change its mind; it got in excess of 1,100 signatures in just over 24hrs!

My questions to you are:
 

• Are your Mission Statement, Responsibilities, and QIP initiatives to engage the “public,” a statement that you just pay lip-service to or do you give due consideration to the public’s opinion?
• Knowing that the public (effectively, the people who will pay for the CT scanner) overwhelmingly does not support the board’s recommendation, are you going to reconsider your decision?

I would request that the executive assistant (EA) forward this to each board member before Wednesday’s board meeting, and the members, in turn, reply through the EA, thus respecting their E-mails’ confidentiality.

Finally, you have a Zoom board meeting Feb. 3. Are these meetings generally open to the public and will you be reconsidering your decision at this meeting?

Thank you,
Dennis Flavell
Kincardine

Following are the extracts that I obtained from your web page:

The Board is responsible for:

• Overall governance of the affairs of the Hospital
• Setting the Hospital’s Mission, Vision and Values and ensuring that services fall within its principles
• Setting the Hospital’s strategic directions
• Ensuring suitable resources are obtained and allocated appropriately
• Ensuring the safety of patients, staff and visitor
• Facilitating open communication with its stakeholders
• Acting honestly, in good faith, and in the best interests of the Hospital as a whole, and in so doing, supporting the Hospital in fulfilling its responsibilities and accountabilities.

MISSION
QUALITY HEALTH CARE - CLOSE TO HOME
To provide high quality health care services to our rural communities by providing primary care, and some secondary care, in collaboration with our community and other health care providers.
Patient/Client/Resident partnering and relations
SBGHC values the partnership we have with our patients and families. The council they provide as we are striving to drive quality forward is invaluable.
Methods of patient and family engagement include the following:

• Focus groups
• Patient experience surveys
• Participation in PDSA cycles
• Care committee participation
• Patient and Family Advisory Council
• Engagement on QIP indicators and development

SBGHC believes that partnerships between patients, families, and care providers are mutually beneficial and essential to improve quality. Patient stories are shared at our leadership teams and at the board level to ensure we remain grounded in all that we do. As stated, the mechanisms for feedback are broad, we take every opportunity to learn from experiences and improve. SBGHC believes that incorporating the voice of the patient in decision making, quality initiatives, and design will lead to the best possible outcomes for the communities that we serve. We are excited to continue to develop our patient engagement framework in partnership with our patients and their families.