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Letter to the editor 9 · Friday, February 26, 2010 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Hospital doesn't warrant blank cheque Re: Hospital price tag too high for some, Oakville Beaver, Feb. 17. I was unable to attend the public meeting held by the Town on Feb. 11 to gauge local reaction to Halton Healthcare Services' $200-million funding request for the new Oakville hospital. The story would seem to suggest there are only two groups of folks: those who support a new facility (and sported shiny yellow buttons on their lapels indicating this) and those angry and vocal opponents to the funding request. I would like to suggest there is a third group of individuals (like myself), who support a new hospital for Oakville, but are not prepared to provide a municipal blank cheque to achieve this result. Had I been able to attend the public meeting, I would have said I agree with and fully support the principle of local participation in hospital capital funding. However, I totally disagree with this financial burden being borne by the residents of the Town of Oakville alone. The hospital is to be located at the corner of Dundas Street and Third Line in northwest Oakville. This location will serve a much wider healthcare client audience than just the community of Oakville. Residents from most of southern Halton region (including northwest Burlington and southern Milton) will benefit from the addition of this facility. Not to mention patients from all over the western Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Halton region who will benefit from access to two new MRI machines and three new CT scanners (OTMH currently only has one of each). Further, an investment of this size will necessitate a significant 30 year borrowing on the part of the Town of Oakville. This has the potential to significantly limit Oakville's options when it comes to funding other (equally important) infrastructure projects in the future. Looking at the numbers: · The total "local share" contribution has been identified as $530 million: made up of $270 million from Halton Healthcare; $60 million from the Hospital Foundation and; the $200 million requested from the Town of Oakville. In terms of overall costs, this local share represents 30 per cent of the complete cost of the proposed facility with the province (Ontario) picking up the balance (70 per cent). This suggests the projected total cost of this 457 bed hospital is $1.766 billion (or $530 million divided by 30 per cent). These figures mean collectively we're being asked to pay upwards of $3.86 million per bed. This result is over three times the typical planning capital budget number for new hospitals of around $1 million per bed. A projected overall cost of $1.766 billion. That's almost 2 billion dollars. And it probably will hit this multi-billion dollar level by the time it opens with the usual construction cost overruns a project of this size engenders. How did this come about? We all want better local healthcare, but not at any and all cost. We really need to strike the right balance between an appropriate healthcare service level and what's affordable for the community. I'm not convinced this facility has been designed with this critical balance in mind. For example, allowing for 80 per cent of the beds in single-patient rooms (the highest percentage of any hospital in Ontario) stands out. Further, providing a range of services (including overnight accommodation, lounges and bathroom amenities) for patient families in a local hospital serving a GTA dense urban environment where patients will primarily come from local communities seems like a "nice to have", not a clinical necessity. So let's make sure we get this right -- a new hospital providing Halton region with 21st century healthcare, but not bankrupting us in the process. R. SCOTT MARSH, OAKVILLE Winter Sale $ 1998 $ 949 New hospital worth the expense Two hundred million dollars is indeed a significant amount for the residents of Oakville to pay for a new hospital. But we cannot think of anything that Oakville needs more than a new hospital. The current hospital is presently operating at capacity and doesn't have all the equipment and facilities that we currently need, let alone need in the future. Without increased capacity, the quality of our hospital care will deteriorate in spite of the best efforts of our hospital care providers. Yes, it would be desirable if the taxpayers of Ontario funded more of the costs of the new hospital, but under the current hospital funding model they won't. So we, the residents can complain about Oakville having to pay up to $200 million through our property taxes, and perhaps lose our new hospital -- or we can let our councillors know that we want the new hospital and we are prepared to pay the province mandated share. A new hospital is needed. Now. And we want the hospital facility as proposed in order to receive the best treatment possible. We cannot be a Livable Community without a high level of hospital care, which requires upto-date facilities. The proposed hospital has been planned in accordance with the wishes of the citizens of Oakville. And though the cost of the project is high, it will become even higher if delayed. The proposed hospital most definitely will be an improvement over our current hospital. Should we require inpatient treatment, we want to be treated in the new Oakville hospital as proposed -- and we don't want construction delayed while the citizens of Oakville try to get the funding model changed or try to eliminate some of the features of the proposed facility. Let's not delay the process any further. We support the new Oakville hospital and we are prepared to pay our share. GERRY AND CINDY POPP, OAKVILLE Ed. Note: Cindy Popp works in Health Promotion Programs for Halton Healthcare Services. $ 599 $ $ 99 Solid Birch Bedroom Suite 2898 Includes: Queen bed, 2 night tables + Dresser) 1029 Speers Rd.,Oakville 905.842.3739 (showroom at Speers and 4th line) Speers Rd. & 4th Line (Main Location) W W W. J O S H U A C R E E K F U R N I T U R E . C O M