Some truth to hospital rumours

Amalgamation and layoffs could be on the way

File photo. Natalie Bubela, MAHC CEO.

MUSKOKA – Rumours floating around the Huntsville and Bracebridge hospitals about possible cutbacks, amalgamation and layoffs hold some truth as Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare is faced with a new funding model and meeting a balanced budget.
There are a number of changes MAHC is considering, but CEO Natalie Bubela emphasized at a recent meet and greet for media that none of the considerations are final.
Some of the options currently being discussed include reducing the number of inpatient beds at both sites, reducing staff, consolidating services such as chemotherapy, ophthalmology and obstetrics to one site and adding a 10-bed integrated acute stroke unit.
“The proposed solutions are not about reducing or cutting services, as our plan is to continue to provide the same services to our entire Muskoka and East Parry Sound communities,” said Bubela. “We believe the same volumes will be handled by MAHC regardless of the final plan. This exercise is intended to find a smarter, more efficient and innovative way of providing some services and may also create capacity to provide other, different services that we haven’t provided before.”
Some frontline employees are not happy with the communication efforts of upper management as they move forward with the 2013-14 proposed budget initiatives.
“It’s pretty scary right now because I think our hospital is going down,” said an employee who didn’t want to be identified. “The whole hospital is buzzing … it’s a huge issue.”
In 2012, the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care made changes to the way Ontarians are to receive health care with the Health System Funding Reform, which changes how hospitals are funded using a patient-centred funding formula that will be phased in over two years.
Hospitals need to re-orient how they organize and provide services.
“While MAHC has been successfully balancing our operating budget and has even achieved small surpluses for the past few years, we expect that our funding will be reduced even more than it was in 2012-13 (-$423,000),” said Bubela. “We know we will need to make some changes going forward in order to ensure our communities will continue to receive the same services. Given our cost increases and projected reduction in funding, we anticipate a funding gap of $2.4 million for the fiscal year beginning April 1. As custodians of public money we have a fiduciary responsibility to explore all options for saving tax dollars. Health System Funding Reform is just one driver for change and hospitals need to examine their operations and look for opportunities to improve.”
MAHC board chair Larry Saunders said the current costs of health care are unsustainable.
“Today, health care consumes 42 cents of every tax dollar and without change it is estimated that health care spending will increase to 70 per cent of the provincial budget within 12 years,” he said. “We know this is not sustainable and as the province tries to slow the growth of health funding to 2.1 per cent over the next three years, we acknowledge that it will be virtually impossible to achieve a balanced budget without considering different solutions. The consultation process is key to refining the solutions, making the final decisions and implementing the solutions.”
As of March 6, MAHC has been holding consultation meetings with staff and volunteers to discuss the potential changes and receive feedback. These meetings will continue in to April. Bubela acknowledged budget discussions will be a lengthy process, about two months, and that it will raise concerns amongst hospital stakeholders such as staff and volunteers. To limit some concerns she said upper management wanted to discuss the budget with its stakeholders before bringing in the public for consultations.
Bubela said the province is pushing for hospitals to improve quality through specialization and will be rewarded for providing efficient services through more funding.
“We have infrastructure costs for two hospitals that we don’t believe is taken into consideration when these funding formulas come forward,” said Bubela, who added MAHC is lobbying the Ontario Hospital Association and ministry on that front. “We have to adjust and respond to the revenue that comes through our doors. Our plan is not to reduce services, this is not a conversation about cuts, it’s about being smarter in the way we provide the services we’re doing and keeping both of our emergency departments open.”
A final plan will be presented to the board of directors for approval by May 9.

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