Council ties hospital funds to reinstitution of urgent care hours

It makes no sense to reduce urgent care centre (UCC) services in Fort Erie at precisely the same time as thousands start arriving in town to enjoy their summer vacations, argued one Fort Erie councillor.

Tom Lewis brought forward three healthcare related notices of motion at the June 23 Fort Erie council meeting, and council waived usual procedures to vote on two of them right away.

Both were supported by council.

Those two included calling for the reinstitution of full UCC hours and temporarily withholding the $3 million the town previously committed as part of the local share funding for the new South Niagara Hospital.

Lewis said Fort Erie sees an increase in population and traffic in the summer months, as people flock to the waterfronts and enjoy everything the town has to offer.

“This surge places demand on emergency and urgent care services,” he said.

It was under that rationale that he called for Niagara Health to reverse its earlier decision to close the Douglas Memorial UCC in Fort Erie on Fridays and long weekends throughout the summer. The organization has said it made the decision due to doctor shortages.

However, Lewis said reducing the hours at the Fort Erie UCC only adds to the problem, as it causes delays to critical care and clogs up emergency departments in the larger urban areas of Niagara.

A second Lewis motion called for the temporary withholding of money Fort Erie previously committed to the new hospital build as part of the local share funding.

When a new hospital is built, 10 per cent of construction costs and associated ancillary costs must be borne locally. Fort Erie committed $3 million to that.

Lewis’ motion called for the town to discuss options to redirect that money to other healthcare initiatives. A second clause in the motion said those funds may or may not be put towards the South Niagara Hospital.

The town received a letter from Niagara Health President and CEO Lynn Guerriero on Friday regarding the funding.

“While we appreciate there are differing views on the future of healthcare and the role of Niagara Health in the region, we believe using local share funding as a bargaining chip and putting the South Niagara Hospital project at risk is irresponsible and unfair to residents,” the letter said.

“This narrative and lack of support may also jeopardize future provincial investments and projects in Niagara,” the letter continued.

It also said the total request from Fort Erie for its local share portion will be $10.5 million.

“As with other municipalities, our intention is to make a formal request,” said the letter.

Lewis reiterated previous arguments that when Fort Erie committed the $3 million it was with the understanding that urgent care services would remain at the Douglas Memorial site.

He added that he understands the need for local municipalities to support the construction of a new hospital.

“This motion…is a brief pause to recognize the change that has been made without us and quite frankly, in my opinion, against us,” he said.

He also pushed back against the accusation that the move is irresponsible, saying instead that the motion allows the town to ask critical questions.

“It is my opinion that it is not unreasonable for council to revisit financial commitments made over a decade ago in light of today’s circumstances,” Lewis said.

Mayor Wayne Redekop pointed out the motion calls for a temporary withholding and not an outright funding cancellation.

The final motion, which will be voted on in a future meeting, calls for the resignation of Guerriero and the board of directors at Niagara Health, with the province appointing a supervisor to oversee operations at the organization.

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