MEDIA ADVISORY: It's Time to "Start the Healing" and to "Stop the Cuts": The Waterloo Region Health Coalition is organizing a Massive Rally and asks local citizens to join.
WATERLOO, Ontario, Sept. 19, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
| When: | Saturday, September 22 at 11: 00 a.m. ? 12:00 p.m. | ||
| What: | Press Conference and Public Leafleting | ||
| Where: | Speakers' Corner of King St. and Frederick St., Kitchener. | ||
| Who: | Natalie Mehra, Executive Director Ontario Health Coalition, Jim Stewart and Riani De Wit, Waterloo Region Health Coalition. | ||
Information:
Kitchener Waterloo has experienced first-hand the impact of decades of hospital downsizing and rationing of long-term health care. Recent data shows that our hospital has been running at more than 120 percent capacity, meaning all beds have been full, and patients left waiting on stretchers in hallways. Ontario has seen the most severe hospital bed cuts of anywhere in Canada and has dropped to dead last in the country in the number of funded hospital beds that we have left. The consequences for patients are long waits, severe hospital overcrowding, higher rates of violence, patients forced by coercive measures out of hospital before they are stable, the highest hospital readmission rates in Canada.
The Health Coalition is warning that we cannot take any more cuts. Doug Ford promised to "end hallway medicine" but is planning massive budget cuts. In Kitchener-Waterloo those cuts will mean as many as 60 bed closures in our hospitals and a drastic reduction the hospital workers resulting in as many as 340 staff eliminated. The Coalition is asking local citizens to join in major actions to protect public health care and to insist that our government improve and rebuild public health care services, including our hospitals, long-term and home care.
For more information: Jim Stewart, 519-588-5841 and Riani De Wit.
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