Musquodoboit Valley Regional Hospital

Good morning ladies and gentlemen, Minister MacDonald, MLA Gary Burrill, Cabinet and MLA colleagues, Dr. John Ross, CEO Chris Power, community residents, and staff at the Musquodoboit Valley Memorial Hospital.

Thank you all for being here today as Minister MacDonald and I launch the province’s plan to provide better healthcare sooner to the people of Nova Scotia.

When I was in opposition, I was the Health critic for a number of years.

I stood in the House of Assembly as Health critic and then leader of the Opposition to argue for a better healthcare system in this province.

It seems that issues that I spoke about in 1999…issues like emergency room closures and long wait times are issues that we are still talking about today.

That has to change.

Nova Scotians deserve better.

Better Care Sooner is our commitment to Nova Scotians to ensure the care they need is there for them when they need it the most.

Nova Scotia’s emergency room advisor, Dr. John Ross said the emergency department is a canary in the coal mine, alerting people to the troubles that are putting the entire health care system at risk.

That needs to change.

And this plan (hold up copy of plan) will do just that.

Better Care Sooner is plan that will re-shape the emergency health care system in Nova Scotia.

Some rural emergency rooms are being routinely closed now.

This plan allows communities to keep their Collaborative Emergency Centres open day and night.

Communities that once had closed doors will now have services matched to their needs.

This plan will reduce the wait times for patients.

It will provide better healthcare to you and your family.

The Better Care Sooner Plan is based on the recommendations of Dr. John Ross. The plan includes the following themes to improve the province’s emergency care system:

-improve access to primary care, especially in smaller communities. This will lessen the burden on emergency rooms and provide better care to patients.

-make emergency care more patient-centred and streamlined. This will shorten wait times and provide good quality care across the province.

-provide care that is better tailored to those whose needs are more complex, like seniors

-increase public awareness of 911 and healthlink nurse line 811. This will ensure people can access the care and support they need sooner.

-and make changes to the way health care is funded. This will reward better, patient-centred care.

We agree with Dr. Ross.

And that is what Better Care Sooner is all about.

It is our promise and our plan to patients.

The plan will:
-improve emergency care in Nova Scotia
-reduce wait times for patients and provide better healthcare for families.

If you look to the left of me, you will see the sign… Better Healthcare for you and your family.
That sign was made a few months after I took office.

And, I am pleased to report to all of you that we are making progress on that goal.

The province implemented and improved a caregiver’s allowance program.

We established an Emergency Department Protection Fund to hire needed doctors and keep ERs running.

We are providing more support to seniors so that they can remain in their own homes and communities longer.

We introduced an accountability report for emergency care. Minister MacDonald tabled her first report in May. It provides accurate, reliable data to better understand the challenges facing the province’s emergency care system.

By early this fall, we had acted on some of the concerns in the report. Government funded eight hospital beds needed to admit patients stuck in overcrowded ERs and a new Rapid Assessment Unit at the Halifax Infirmary — to improve patient flow.

Nova Scotians who are approved to travel out of province for necessary medical care that is not available here are now eligible for financial assistance thanks to the province’s new travel and accommodations assistance policy.

We committed to setting up Pre-Hab Teams to reduce waits for surgery. We are doing that.

Just last week, Dr. John Ross proposed emergency room standards that will raise the quality and consistency of emergency care in every region of the province.

And today, I am announcing that the province is accepting those standards as part of Better Care Sooner.

Nova Scotia is the first in the country to have province wide emergency room standards.

All the initiatives I just mentioned along with the Better Care Sooner plan will help create a modern, sustainable emergency health care system that serves the people of Nova Scotia.

I am proud of the work that has been done on this plan.

This government is keeping the commitments that we made to Nova Scotians.

Finally, after many years and dozens of studies and reports, Nova Scotians in every community will have the emergency care they need and deserve.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the administration and staff at the Musquodoboit Valley Memorial Hospital for hosting us today.

This hospital is a shining example of what we can do to improve healthcare in our communities.

And we look forward to working with the district and this community to build further on the progress here.

Better Care sooner is a plan to do things differently and to get different results…just as they are doing here at Musquodoboit Valley Memorial Hospital.

I want to thank the Minister of Health, Maureen MacDonald and her team at the department for their work on the plan.

But, the hard work is not over…in fact…it is just beginning. Nova Scotians can rest assured that work to implement this plan will begin immediately.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to thank Dr. John Ross. He was hired to give Nova Scotians a true picture of what the emergency care system in Nova Scotia really looked like and provide advice on how to fix it. He has done that and much more. His research, advice and recommendations have helped shape one of the most comprehensive plans for emergency care anywhere in Canada.

Minister MacDonald is now going to go over the details of the Better Care Sooner plan with you.

Thank you all for being here today.