There are those who may not know that the South Bruce Grey Hospital Corporation held their AGM last night at the Best Western Hotel in Walkerton. It was advertised, somewhat half heartedly, but the word was out there. 74 members of the public registered to hear updates and excuses for the poor performance of this board. Many brought questions they hoped to ask.
So, let’s set the stage for this meeting. Over recent years the government has gradually and surreptitiously changed the nature of hospital boards, making them not-for-profit corporations and creating a distance between the decision makers and the communities that depend on these hospital services. At one time the community members elected the board and could, should the need arise, remove board members who were not performing satisfactorily and elect new ones. No longer. Now, that same board selects new members themselves, advertising when board positions become vacant and winnowing out anyone who may not cooperate fully with their “board speak”.
For the purpose of conducting business last night and of electing new board members, the only ones who could vote were the directors themselves. They are considered to be the only true members according to the Corporations act. Members of the community who troubled themselves to come sat mutely while the board members patted themselves on the back and elected new sycophants who will presumably move lock step with the powers that be and continue the same pattern of mismanagement for this amalgamation that has become the norm.
To set the stage, the arrangement of the room itself was a telltale. Chairs were arranged at the front of the room in a most unusual manner. Board and staff sat with their backs to the members of the public; metaphorically demonstrating their true level of interest in anything the public had to say. This “meeting” was over before it began.
And, now for the “piece de resistance”. Two armed police officers were present in the room throughout the meeting at the request of the CEO who had claimed there were threats against her. Two Armed Police Officers! In an Annual General Meeting! In Canada! This was nothing more, and nothing less, than an attempt to intimidate the members of the public. And that was the way it was interpreted. A Sun Times photographer was not allowed to take pictures. What are you hiding folks?
Reports were read to a silent audience…many times though, that audience actually burst into laughter at the outrageous statements of the board who can, presumably, say anything they want…considering that no one from any local community is a recognized member of the organization.
There were so many examples of exaggeration and outright untruths that it is hard to list them all. Shaw claimed that the corporation is particularly pleased to be able to offer excellent repatriation for patients returning to their home area after surgery and/or medical procedures in other urban settings. People from Durham who were in the room recognized the irony of this claim…How do you “repatriate” patients when you have removed all of the inpatient beds and placed big locks on most of the hospital premises?
Question period was a sad joke. 15 minutes in total for 75 people to ask all of their questions. Pat answers did not address the actual questions. People had prepared their questions ahead of time only to find the time was so limited there was no meaningful answer. And Dean Dunn, currently the chair, having been “elected” by the board , was alternately smarmy and outright rude. His treatment of Peter Fallis who was asking a question about the membership issue was inexcusable. Some people in the room audibly gasped on hearing it. In a better world, Dunn would not hold this position that he so little deserves.
Healthcare in this amalgamated corporation is disastrously out of alignment, yet the information in the meeting made it sound like everything was fine…And if only those pesky people from Chesley and Durham would stop expecting equal treatment with the other “important” hospitals, everything would be fine. In every meeting of this board, Shaw asserts that she is working hard to preserve excellent healthcare in all 4 hospital sites, but the facts do not bear her out. When can we expect fair treatment and equal recognition? When can we expect an end to excuses and equitable access to healthcare for all members of this community?
Oh, and by the way, who will pay the bill for the armed police officers hired to intimidate the people who attended the meeting? There is only one source of funding for this not-for-profit corporation…the taxpayer.
Brenda Scott
Co-chair, Grey Bruce Health Coalition
I attended the AGM via zoom. The sound was frequently too poor to hear what was being said especially when the public were given a brief time to speak. The view of the directors was so distant I could not make out who was talking when or who was who. The whole meeting was incredibly contrived and controlled so as to be mostly meaningless to those who were interested in getting factual information in answer to a question. I could not see any police on zoom and am shocked that they were present and armed! This meeting and Board are acting like the Conservative government – no decision making transparency, no answering questions from constituents, use of bullying tactics, hurtful disdain and disrespect for the community they supposedly serve.