April 2024
In February and March of this year, I, along with Green Party Deputy Leaders Megan Mitton and Kevin Arseneau, visited various parts of the province as part of the Green’s ‘Healing Our Healthcare Tour.’ We visited community health centers and nursing homes, touring facilities and listening to healthcare professionals share their success stories, as well as their challenges. We hosted several community Town Hall events, where local residents and health experts listened to our proposals for change, and shared their concerns and ideas with us.
What we observed in visiting various health centers and nursing homes was the urgent need for more local authority and greater investment in the healthcare system to effectively address the diverse needs of communities. The current highly centralized management structure is failing both patients and residents of long-term care homes. There’s a critical necessity for the provincial government to create a better balance between top-down decision-making in the Departments of Health, Social Development, and Regional Health Authorities and the need for more local autonomy.
My visits to Saint John and Rogersville vividly exemplify this imperative. In Saint John, the local primary care manager for Horizon demonstrated proactive leadership by establishing satellite health centers linked to the community health center hub and the allied health professionals based in St. Joseph’s Hospital. This initiative resulted in a collaborative network of multidisciplinary healthcare teams, significantly enhancing primary healthcare access for thousands in Saint John who would otherwise lack a family doctor.
In Rogersville, the local health clinic collaborated with a diverse team of health professionals operating from a nearby heritage home rented by Horizon Health to provide community-based health services. However, there was concern about the possible relocation of essential members of the local healthcare team to other communities if the arrangements for the use of the heritage home don’t become permanent.
In both instances, these interconnected and interdependent healthcare teams were established through the proactive efforts of dynamic local healthcare managers. It’s baffling that the Department of Health doesn’t recognize these initiatives as potential models for improving primary healthcare access elsewhere.
Granting greater autonomy to local managers and engaging local citizens on community health boards would ensure primary healthcare is community-driven and responsive to local needs. The same applies to hospitals, where staff are forced to operate in silos, responding to remote managers rather than working collaboratively with local hospital administrators.
During a town hall meeting in Richibucto, a local doctor emphasized the necessity for a generational investment and the political will to reform the healthcare system. She referenced recommendations developed by New Brunswick healthcare professionals under the leadership of the New Brunswick Nurses Union and the New Brunswick Medical Society, estimated to require a $600 million investment in the first year. Many of these recommendations align with suggestions made during the Healing Our Healthcare Tour, such as removing politics from decision-making, prioritizing multidisciplinary healthcare teams, and ensuring competitive compensation for healthcare professionals.
Both seniors and their care providers continue to be challenged with inadequate support. Nursing homes face challenges in attracting and retaining qualified registered nurses and personal support workers, exacerbated by inadequate budgets and the rising costs of living. Effective efforts to recruit and retain staff at all levels are vital for the long-term sustainability of senior care.
We learned about the Nursing Home Without Walls based out of Port Elgin’s Westford Nursing Home. The work of the staff is increasing the quality of life for seniors, ending loneliness and isolation, addressing care needs, and helping seniors to stay in their homes longer. This community-based effort holds significant promise to support seniors at home through New Brunswick, but requires adequate funding to match the success of the impressive initiative in Port Elgin.
Overall, collaborative efforts and increased investment in community-based healthcare models are essential for addressing systemic issues and improving patient outcomes in New Brunswick’s healthcare system. The goal for the Green Caucus is to ensure all New Brunswickers have access to proper healthcare, where they need it and when they need it. As Greens, we believe the solutions exist to heal our healthcare system. We just need the political will to implement them.
- David Coon,
Leader of the Third Party in the New Brunswick Legislature, and
MLA for Fredericton South