Cape Bretoners frustrated with the Nova Scotia government’s plan to close two hospitals are planning a rally to protest the decision.
Organizers of a Wednesday afternoon rally outside the provincial building in Sydney, N.S. told CTV Atlantic the protest was supposed to be about Nova Scotia’s use of federal equalization payments, but it has partially shifted to a protest about hospital closures.
“We expect more than 1,000 people to be there,” said Albert Maroun, one of the rally organizers. “The last one we had, we had 800 people and there wasn't the hospital crowd (that’s) going to be there.”
On Monday, Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil was booed while announcing that Northside General Hospital in North Sydney, N.S., and New Waterford Consolidated Hospital will close and be replaced with two community health centres and long-term care facilities.
McNeil said the two hospitals have exceeded their lifespan and a renovation isn’t feasible. He also said the Cape Breton Regional Hospital and Glace Bay Hospital will be expanded.
“This isn’t about building, it’s about enhancing,” McNeil told reporters on Monday. “I’ve had health care providers across the province telling me this is the right thing.”
McNeil and the Nova Scotia Nurses Union have said the plan should attract and retain more health care professionals-- a problem that has plagued the region for years.
Meanwhile, Cape Bretoners are fuming over the decision, including Dr. Stephanie Langley, the former site lead at the Northside General, who quit her job because of the province’s plan.
“I don't think there's much trust now between myself and the health authority,” she said. “I was placed in that position to represent the doctors at that facility and feel like we weren't consulted, or even involved in the decision.”
“We provide a good level of service to the patients in this community, so I think people are just feeling the loss.”
Even some of the doctors at the hospitals slated for expansion are questioning the move.
“What are we going to do with these buildings?” said Dr. Craig Stone, an anesthesiologist at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital. “What are we going to do with the nursing staff that’s working there now? Where are they going to go? What are they going to do with the services?”
With a report from CTV Atlantic’s Ryan MacDonald and with files from The Canadian Press
