The second of seven community meetings on health care changes was well attended in Alberton, says Minister of Health and Wellness Doug Currie.
"We are extremely pleased with the level of participation we received tonight in Alberton," said Minister Currie. "Many of the changes that concern Alberton are new initiatives so it is understandable that there would be questions and concerns."
About 250 community members were in attendance. Minister Currie spoke on the changing need of health care in Prince Edward Island and across our country. "We have many excellent health care assets and we must continue to evolve our system to meet Islander's changing needs."
Dr. Richard Wedge, Interim CEO of Health PEI outlined the implementation and rationale of the Better Access, Better Care. "We have to look at the appropriate use of our resources to better reflect the needs of our patients."
Comments from the public included concerns about rural physician recruitment and the timeline for implementation of services such as 8-1-1 Telehealth, rapid response units and the Collaborative Care Centre.
Some questions asked were concerning the need for long term care beds in our province due to an aging population and the role and responsibilities of health care professionals working in Collaborative Emergency Centres and in community hospitals.
In response to questions around long term care needs, the Minister highlighted that the province has more than doubled its investments in Home Care services in the past several years along with adding new long term care beds to the private sector.
The minister also reiterated his confidence in the province's health care professionals and ensuring all our health care personnel are able to work to their fullest potential.
"We had some great questions this evening and wonderful dialogue," said Minister Currie. "We will continue over the weeks to engage our health care providers and Island communities."
Community information sessions will be taking place in Souris, Tyne Valley, O'Leary, Summerside and Montague. Details on times and locations for these meetings and information on Better Access,Better Care can be found online at www.betteraccessbettercare.ca or by calling 1-800-236-5196.