Brampton, Ontario (May 21, 2014): According to a press release sent to the Sikh Siyasat News (SSN) by a media representative of the New Democratic Party, the NDP leader Andrea Horwath has reminded Ontarians that patients with complex needs still spend far too long in the ER for the care they need. The Leader said it’s time to focus on the fundamentals, laying out her goal of cutting ER wait times by half, something both NDP candidate Gurpreet Dhillon, for Brampton-Springdale, and NDP incumbent Jagmeet Singh, for Bramalea-Gore-Malton, will fight for.
“People in Brampton are tired of waiting for hours in an ER while they see tax dollars going towards a CEO’s annual pay hike or towards another multi-million dollar scandal at ORNGE,” said Dhillon. “Our dollars need to be reinvested into the health care system to ensure patients are seen faster and beds are available.”
Brampton only has one hospital – the Brampton Civic Hospital, also known as the William Osler Health System, to serve an estimated population of 595,000, with a very high volume of patients. The Liberals have made promises to open a second hospital but after a decade in power, this is another unfulfilled promise to Brampton families.
In her announcement today, the Leader outlined how an NDP government will cut ER wait times in half by hiring 250 new nurse-practitioners, open 50 new 24-hour family health clinics, create 1,400 more long-term care beds, and implement a 5-day home care guarantee. These steps will keep ERs moving and make sure that Ontarians are getting the right care they need, when and where they need it.
“For 10 years, the Liberals have had the opportunity to fix our ERs, reduce wait times and deliver results for Brampton families,” said Singh. “Sadly, they’ve failed – especially when they put CEOs ahead of sick patients. The NDP’s plan makes sense because we will put patients first.”