January 31, 2024

RAUCOUS CROWD GREETS MAHC BOARD ON SECOND NIGHT SELLING NEW HOSPITAL MODEL THEY WEREN’T BUYING

GRAVENHURST — A tough crowd on the verge of out of hand greeted the MAHC board tonight over the “lesser” of two new hospitals.

It’s a good thing next week’s meeting in Bracebridge has been rescheduled to the Sportsplex community room.

Because if this crowd is indicative of what awaits the board Tuesday, February 6 (and it does) Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare board and staff members are in for another rough ride as the start of their cross-Muskoka tour proved Tuesday night with a volatile response to their proposal for “big and little” healthcare sites that were vociferously portrayed by an edgy crowd itching for answers.

Calm and professional in front of the overflowing, standing-room only audience of more than 500, MAHC officials presented their 30-minute case for two “equal” hospitals in Bracebridge and Huntsville.

But this crowd wasn’t buying what they were selling with a lot of shouting and interjecting comments.

**An angry overflow crowd of more than 500 greeted the MAHC board and staff tonight with dozens of questions and gut-wrenching stories about the love for their south Muskoa hospital.**

If there was one person — there was —who sided with the Made-in-Muskoka model, there were dozens of others who spilled their hearts out with gut-wrenching personal stories in praise of their South Muskoka Memorial Hospital and how it has to be saved from MAHC and an expanding Huntsville District Memorial Hospital.

It was raw human power at an emotional peak.

MAHC may have called the meeting and presented its case the first 40 minutes, but for the next 100 minutes the show belonged to the people of south Muskoka.

And while board chair Moreen Miller did her best to contain the crowd, she was overmatched and smartly gave ground to growing anger that saw more than one telling her no so politely to give them space to talk.

And what they had to say resonated within the room, ricocheting off the walls, echoing and landing like a punch in the stomach.

Nerves were on edge.

MAHC CEO and president Cheryl Harrison looked like she’d been run over by a truck afterwards. Miller was equally ramped.

But both stood their ground in defending their decisions.

It was much more raucous meeting than last night in Dwight, where a tenth of the number turned out with more restrained questions.

The Gravenhurst crowd — which included many from Bracebridge and Muskoka Lakes — was less restrained.

The night started with a Q&A that saw this man ask the board and staff where they lived and worked, as board chair Moreen Miller trying to control the audience responses while sharing the microphone around the Terry Fox auditorium.

What they got, though, was more detail than most knew about what is planned.

In addition to ERs and acute care at both sites, Huntsville and South Muskoka will each have diagnostic imaging services.

Emergency room beds will increase to 27 at each site — an increase from 11 and 16 respectively at Bracebridge and Huntsville.

Harrison said they hope to cut alternative level of care (ALC) beds to 20 per cent, a drop of 10 per cent.

A reminder that birthing services will still be available at SMMH in an emergency.

There will be 80,000 more visits with a projected 146,000 through the Bracebridge hospital annually.

More mental health care and First Nations treatment will be available in north and south Muskoka.

And that 34 more beds overall will be added in total — as part of 139 in Huntsville and 18 in south Muskoka.

**Former MPP Dan Waters and his wife Cindy were collecting names for a petition at the arena entrance calling for the dissolution of the MAHC board and the end of the new model.**

Dr. Khaled Abdel-Razek, Muskoka Algonquin’s chief of staff, said of the 24,000 patients seen in the ER at each hospital, only about eight per cent are actually admitted to hospital beds. The rest often can stay in the emergency for a few days.

MAHC is also partnering with Muskoka Hills retirement home in Bracebridge (10-12 ALC beds there) and Andy’s Place Hospice in Port Carling (five beds), which is in desperate need of funding to stave bed five closures in March.

About 40 people wore masks.

The Q&A started with a person asking the board and staff members present where they lived and worked. Most of the eight lived and worked in Muskoka.

Beth Houston, chair of Gravenhurst Against Poverty, noted 20 per cent of residents in her town live below the poverty line and wondered how transportation would work for staff, patients and the public to get to Huntsville to visit patients. That’s still a work in progress a MAHC official replied to audible groans.

**Raw, emotional reactions were the story of the night as Sandy Labelle and person after person stood up to talk about moving healhcare experiences.**

The biggest round of applause was reserved for Dr. Bill Hemens who spoke on behalf of doctors who penned a letter denouncing the changes.

Those 41 physicians were the elephant in the room, represented by more than a half dozen on hand, three of whom spoke.

Hemens said “we’re making it work.”

And that doctors felt disrespected and under utilized in their contributions to the redevelopment plan.

He said a loss of services, like labour suites, at his hospital would harm recruitment and would eventually lead to fewer people using the ER leaving SMMH to become more of urgent care facility.

Tom Irvine, a retired doctor, said he wasn’t a signatory to the doctors’ letter because he got the email invite too late, but he too would have put his name to it because he doesn’t agree with the proposed model.

He said it doesn’t make sense “to have a large one in Huntsville and a tiny one in Bracebridge.”

Dr. Danny Daniels and Dr. David Hillyard, who did sign, were also on hand supporting hands.

**Dr. Bill Hemens said MAHC could harm its recruitment if its ER deteriorates if services are cut.**

Abdel-Razek replied saying the new medical model is the way forward today and that not all physicians like change.

“Shame,” shouted Hemens.

Abdel-Razek said a third of Muskoka’s approximately 200 doctors had been invited to take part in redevelopment talks. And that about 25 per cent accepted — half from each hospital.

Nick Caughey, whose dad Bill is a retired doctor, suggested MAHC should revisit the one hospital model, which Miller said those in the room had rejected years ago.

More applause came for his suggestion to flip the bed allotment, because geographically to this crowd Bracebridge is the better choice as the centre of Muskoka.

As for Huntsville needing more beds with its stroke recovery centre, Hemens — a local doctor for 38 years — voiced the opinion that sometimes treating stroke victims can be the same heart attack patients who can be cared for in any hospital in any location.

Harrison said the province mandated Huntsville as it also services area north, west and east of Huntsville as well as south Muskoka.

**The large crowd was ready and waiting at 7 p.m. and looking for answers, some of which they got.**

Other questions included whether the results of this meeting would be shared with the province.

Miller said no final decision has been made and won’t be until a report goes to the province by spring.

Audience members also wanted to know if the final plan will be shared beforehand.

Miller said she would ask the board if that’s the way they want to go.

And said “If you have a better solution we’re all ears.”

Dr. Peter Maier said he didn’t think MAHC was going to ever “solve the problem now and in the future.”

**Nick Caughey got a round of applause when he said the board should reconsider the one hospital model. Miller told the crowd they had rejected that years ago.**

Among many heart-rending stories shared was one by Lorraine Etler, whose sister Linda Matthews recently died of cancer.

Etler said the cost of running to Huntsville and Toronto for care was expensive, but she didn’t mind because it was her sister who she loved.

And that they loved the care they got at MAHC and to show it they raised $92,000 for the SMMH Foundation before Linda’s death and that after ballooned to $260,000.

Etler said getting to Huntsville for care could be cost-prohibitive for many and that she’s heard of people opting out of cancer care due to the cost.

Harrison and Miller said they will now go back to their team and go over what they’ve heard and add it to what else they hear in the next week with final meetings and take it all into consideration before making their final decision they will share with the public.

More meetings are planning this week: tomorrow night in Burk’s Fall at the arena; in Huntsville Thursday at the Active Living Centre; Friday 10:30 a.m and Monday 7 p.m. online; and next Tuesday in Port Carling at the community centre.

NOTE: The Bracebridge meeting Tuesday February 6 has been moved from the Rotary Youth Centre to the Sportsplex community room. All in person meetings are at 7 p.m.

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