Will There be Big Changes in the Alberta Health System?

The over-arching political and policy question facing the Stelmach government around hospital safety standards is how Alberta got into this situation in the first place. The facts are starting to come out and more will emerge over time no doubt. The resignation of the East Central Health Board is a start; media reports say more changes of people in positions of authority will be forthcoming. Hancock has ordered all other RHAs to review their situation on infection control and sterilization practices and to report to HIM in a month.

This is clearly a situation where we must fix the problem but I also think we need to fix the blame too. I have not yet read the Health Quality Council of Alberta report or the GOA response but I will. I may have more to say on the subject then too. In the meantime I think there is some blame to be fixed on the old policy around the political reasons behind the decision to decentralize health care into regional authorities in Alberta.

Personally I think the idea of regional health care authorities has merit. It can help inform and design policy that can better understand and respond to local differences and realities in the province. That said it has not always worked that way and until the recent leadership change and Hancock taking over Health and Wellness the unique health care needs of the people Wood Buffalo were blithely ignored. Hancock almost immediately upon his swearing in put a couple of hundred million into health care needs into Wood Buffalo…and acknowledged that was just a start.

The problem of the good idea of RHAs is that they had some serious political flaws from the get go. Those flaws were the unspoken political motives behind the policy decision. First they were supposed to save money in the system by getting the system out of the hands of bureaucrats and into local people who would be “right thinking” about serving the health care needs of their region. It did not save money, it tended to starve the local systems instead. Once the debt and deficit was done we ended up paying a lot more just to catch up to the infrastructure deficit and the need to respond to growth.

The second flaw was the governance issue of the relationship between the RHAs and the GOA politically. The stated reason for RHAs was to get the decision making power closer to the people and “out of the dome.” That did not really happen. Instead the RHAs became a buffer to protect the politicians from having to deal directly with citizen concerns. That was (and is?) true of may other regional boards in other areas from Children's Services to Persons with Developmental Disabilities just name a couple.,

So when we fix blame, it is not just the board members and the problem with professionals meeting standards…it is the governance and politics that motivated the RHAs in the original instances that must carry some of the blame load.

I’ll bet the accountability and governance concerns are what Hancock is looking at when he says he will work with the RHAs “…to work towards a more cohesive provincial system.” Or when he says “this is not about reorganizing the health authorities again, at this stage. That is not to say it wouldn’t be an outcome of the whole process.”

Good government is always good politics. Rarely is the reverse true and we are seeing the consequences of that in this major health safety issue in Alberta today.

The 15 Greenest Cities - Canada has one of them

Vancouver makes it into the Grist Magazine's list of the 15 Greenest Cities. Quebec City gets an Honourable Mention too but no other Canadian cities make the cut. Surprising list when you read it … #1 Reykjavik Iceland. I want to visit Iceland. It has to be one of the most interesting civilizations on the planet these days.

I wonder if Grist Magazine ever heard of Edmonton? Based on what I have read on what it takes to qualify for the list, Edmonton should be right up there.

Stemach Government Taking Over Hospital Standards

OMIGOD! Read this CTV link. It suggests that an Alberta government that is actually actively governing and taking responsibility for ensuring that citizen’s needs are met and rights are protected...and in health care too!

Look into the night sky. Is that a blue moon I see? No? This must be a sign of a renewal and revitalization of government. Can we hope that this is an indication of government once again taking on an appropriate role responsibility and looking at serving the needs its citizens?

If this news item is accurate then it is a sure sign that Stelmach and Hancock are putting the PROGRESSIVE back in the Alberta Progressive Conservative Party. About time if you ask me! Let the banners fly and the bells ring out!

Alberta Forest Industry Spanks the Feds Over Mountain Pine Beetle Funding

The Alberta Forest Products Association (who have been client’s of mine but not currently) are very engaged in responding to the Alberta infestation of Mountain Pine Beetle. They have sent a letter to the Editor of the National Post chastising the federal government for using designated funds for responding to mountain pine beetle infestation redirected for “improving rail service in BC." How does improved rail service in BC help stop the MPB? Is this move politically motivated instead of being science driven policy?

When will the feds focus on Alberta as the place the battle has to be engaged if we are to save the boreal forest? It is worth a read and the implications of the MPB killing our pine forest on our economy and our ecology and our society have to be considered. Good to see industry engaging in all aspects of this disaster in the making. Here is the AFPA letter to the National Post


July 20, 2007
Letter to Editor:
The National Post

RE: Rail gains from beetle funding by Nathan VanderKlippe July 19, 2007
The Alberta forest industry is deeply troubled by the report that Federal funding designated to combat the Mountain Pine Beetle outbreak will be utilized to improve rail service in British Columbia. We are especially concerned because north-west Alberta has now become the frontline in the battle to contain this epidemic.

With more than 2.5 million pines trees infested in northern Alberta last year alone by an overflight of beetles from British Columbia, our industry and provincial government have invested millions of dollars and significant other resources to deal with the situation. So far, no federal assistance has been provided in Alberta to support front line Mountain Pine Beetle control efforts. Alberta pine trees are dying and dead, and the next generation of beetles are now emerging and looking for new pine trees to infest and kill.

Just east of the current Alberta front line in the beetle infestation is a great forest buffet called the Boreal Forest. If the mountain pine beetle gets a foothold in the Boreal there is a good chance it will eat its way clear across our northern forests to the Atlantic Ocean.

Through a concentrated and dedicated effort by all parties, we stand a fighting chance of holding, or at least minimizing the damage to the ecosystem and local communities, as a result of the beetle outbreak. The use of funds earmarked to combat Mountain Pine Beetle for private rail interests instead is not acceptable. Don’t play politics with the health of Canada’s forests. Use the money allocated for mountain pine beetle control into actually fighting the beetle’s eastward advance.

Sincerely,
Neil Shelly, P.Eng
Executive Director
Alberta Forest Products Association, Edmonton

Michael Moore Goes Head to Head With Stephen Colbert

More Moore on mainstream media and the Colbert Report interviews Michael Moore. Colbert actually gets more talk time in the interiview than The Michael. Satire for sure but almost good journalism coming from the Colbert Report in this piece.