refused to give Mills Memorial
Hospital regional funding even
though the hospital: offers and
_ delivers a. tegional service. On
. staff ‘at Mills Memorial are 12
medical specialists, more than the
combined total of specialists on
staff at all other hospitals in the
region. Prince Rupert, for example,
has only three medical specialists
on staff and Kitimat has only one.
The result is that patients requiring
special care are automatically
transferred from other hospitals in
the area to Mills Memorial.

Three years ago, non-resident
patients accounted for 28.4 percent
of all Mills Memorial. patients.
That number rose to 31.4 two
years ago, and to 35.3 percent
during the last fiscal year.

_ Now, due to the ministry’s un-
willingness to acknowledge the
fact that Mills Memorial is in fact
a regional centre, and the fact the.
ministry insists that no hospital in
the province can operate on deficit
financing, Mills Memorial Hospital
has been forced to close 24 beds
‘and give layoff notices to six
Licensed Practical Nurses. Under
ministry policy, says Lane, the
board of any hospital that dares
run a deficit can be fired by the
ministry and replaced by ministry
staff.

The cost to maintain service at
levels that existed prior to the bed
closures has been estimated at
$500,000. In dollars and cents, this
represents a 4.3 percent increase in
the 1991/92 budget of $11.65
million. But the lack of these
funds could mean the collapse of
Mills Memorial as a regional ser-
vice.

Lane explains that the bed clo-
sures and the six layoffs may be
only the beginning. With fewer
beds and fewer nurses, medical
specialists will be treating fewer
patients and some of these will
begin looking for greener pastures.
But specialists often work a5 a
team; several different specialties
could be involved in a particular
medical procedure or emergency.
So as one member of the team
leaves, others will likely follow.

For Terrace residents, that could
mean. the collapse of one of the
best health care facilities in the
province. For the Ministry of
Health, though, it will show on
paper as fiscal restraint, holding
the line on health care expenses. In
reality, it will leave the region with
a fragmented service and probably
cost the government much more
than they would pay for a regional
facility in Terrace.

Leisinger is collecting data now
that will make it possible to calcu-
late how many patients would have
been transferred to the lower main-
land by air ambulance if the 24
beds had been closed last year.
According to Lane, a medevac on
a small twin-engine turboprop
aircraft costs $2,000. Of that, $246
is paid by the evacuce. Normally
this cost is doubled because hospi-
tals like Vancouver General have

funding problems of their own, and
like to medevac people back to the
hospital in their home community
as soon as possible.

Otie medevac every two-and-a-
half days could cost the govern-
ment the same $500,000 it would

Al16 Terrace Review — Wednesday, July 10, “1991 eae ae

Hos pital == continued from page At

have cost them to keep Mills

‘Memorial intact. Not only that, but

about 143 residents would be $492
out of pocket; a total of $70,356.

But that’s a best case scenario.
Most medevacs are by jet, and
according to Leisinger a trip to
Vancouver in a Cessna Citation air
ambulance costs something like
$5,000, and in Emergency Health
Services’ larger Challenger more
like $10,000. So with a worst case
scenario, with the same two-and-a-
half patients a day, the cost would
mount up to $500,000 in just two
months.

The lack of regional funding will
likely snowball, so Leisinger may
take his calculations one step fur-

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of specialists who may be forced
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might also calculate the inconven- —

jence and cost of the number of
elective surgeries that are delayed

or moved to the lower-mainland.. .

Last Wednesday, a delegation of
four Mills‘ Memorial representa-
tives visited the Minister of Health
in Victoria. They didn’t return with
the much-needed $500,000 to keep
the beds open, but they did return
with a good measure of optimism.
On July 15 Lane will be re-visiting
Victoria with Leisinger’s numbers
in hand for ministry officials to
consider.

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