Regina Health District and Interim CEO Jim Saunders

Regina Health District
and Interim CEO Jim Saunders

Nipawin - March 1, 2001 - by: Mario deSantis

trumpet
their studies
The Regina Health District has released its new three year plan⁽¹⁾ to save more money in

addition to all the other savings they already made in the past⁽²⁾. Jim Saunders⁽³⁾, interim

CEO for the Regina district, is a proud copy cat of Brian Rourke⁽⁴⁾, board member of the

Regina district and chairman of the Saskatchewan Association of Health Organizations

(SAHO), and together they continue to accurately predict the financial future of the

Regina's district as they trumpet their studies and news releases down the toilet.

management
dementia
Just listen to this; they go through the study "Evaluation of the System-Wide Admission

and Discharge Department (SWADD)⁽⁵⁾" and guess what? They evaluate a system which

has not been fully implemented yet. The news release reporting this evaluation study says

that the SWADD system helps their clients receive the right services at the right time in

the right place, and as I mentioned in previous articles, this is nothing else but management

dementia⁽⁶⁾.

nursing
staff
The new Regina's three year plan calls for the elimination of 67 nursing positions. The

government and all health districts have acknowledged a nursing shortage in

Saskatchewan and across Canada. At the Regina district, acute beds have been closed

because of shortage of nurses, surgeries have been postponed because of shortage of

nurses, expensive and debilitating overtime of nursing staff is occurring because of

shortage of nurses, New Zealand nurses have been imported as commodities because

of shortage of nurses, a $2,000 bonus is being provided to all graduating registered

nurses (RNs) who agree to work in this district for at least one year because of a

shortage of nurses, and now the Regina district wants to down size the nurses to save

money.

costs
more
Donna Brunskill, executive director of the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association,

is right on when she says

the evidence shows that when you reduce the number of registered nurses --

mortality rates increase, infection rates increase and re-admission rates

increase... When you remove the number of RN's or decrease the percentage

of RN's - you increase the dependence of clients, and it costs more in the long

run⁽⁷⁾.

verbosity
And we can appreciate the implausible rhetoric of interim CEO Jim Saunders by reading

the news release "Regina Health District Releases Financial Plan⁽⁸⁾." I let you, readers,

measure the size of this Big Brain by providing you with a sample of Saunders' trumpeting

verbosity. He says:

reasonable
access

Since the funding for deficits announced in January is one-time

only, we anticipate deficits in the future unless some changes are

made to both increase revenues and reduce operating costs... Our

challenge remains reaching agreement with the government on

predictable levels of adequate and continuing operating funding...

With a combination of reduced operating costs and increased

government funding, we are confident that we can eliminate the

District's operating deficit over a three-year period without

compromising either quality of care or reasonable access to health

services... Likewise, we want to continue to work with the government

to achieve agreement on a multi-year approach to paying down and

eliminating both our operating and capital debt... We have the support

of government to use a strategy of attrition and redeployment to

downsize the number of staff we employ. Any proposed staff changes

will be handled with care and sensitivity... We have critical needs in

many job categories, including nursing and technical staff, and will

continue to recruit vigorously into these positions.

problem
Now we know why we have a health care problem in Saskatchewan and across Canada, don't we?

------------References/endnotes:

List of relevant political and economics articles http://ensign.ftlcomm.com

1.
-
The Regina Health District's 3-Year Financial Plan, February 27, 2001 http://www.reginahealth.sk.ca/district_news/plan.pdf

2.
-
The closure of the Plains Health Centre: The $50 million overrun and the gimmick of saving money in health care, by Mario deSantis, December 19, 1999

3.
-
Regina Health District closes one surgical theatre: Shortage of Leadership, Shortage of Nurses and Shortage of Democracy, by Mario deSantis, March 22, 2000

4.
-
Brian Rourke wants more healthcare money: 40% of public expenditures are not enough, by Mario deSantis, November 14, 1999

5.
-
Evaluation of the System-Wide Admission and Discharge Department (SWADD), http://www.reginahealth.sk.ca/district_news/index.html

6.
The Reluctance to Change of Our Leadership, by Mario deSantis, November 28, 2000

7.
Nurse cuts under attack, CBC Saskatchewan, February 27, 2001

8.
Regina Health District Releases Financial Plan (February 27, 2001)

Regina Health District and Interim CEO Jim Saunders

Nipawin - March 1, 2001 - by: Mario deSantis

trumpet their studies	The Regina Health District has released its new three year plan⁽¹⁾ to save more money in
	addition to all the other savings they already made in the past⁽²⁾. Jim Saunders⁽³⁾, interim
	CEO for the Regina district, is a proud copy cat of Brian Rourke⁽⁴⁾, board member of the
	Regina district and chairman of the Saskatchewan Association of Health Organizations
	(SAHO), and together they continue to accurately predict the financial future of the
	Regina's district as they trumpet their studies and news releases down the toilet.

management dementia	Just listen to this; they go through the study "Evaluation of the System-Wide Admission
	and Discharge Department (SWADD)⁽⁵⁾" and guess what? They evaluate a system which
	has not been fully implemented yet. The news release reporting this evaluation study says
	that the SWADD system helps their clients receive the right services at the right time in
	the right place, and as I mentioned in previous articles, this is nothing else but management
	dementia⁽⁶⁾.

nursing staff	The new Regina's three year plan calls for the elimination of 67 nursing positions. The
	government and all health districts have acknowledged a nursing shortage in
	Saskatchewan and across Canada. At the Regina district, acute beds have been closed
	because of shortage of nurses, surgeries have been postponed because of shortage of
	nurses, expensive and debilitating overtime of nursing staff is occurring because of
	shortage of nurses, New Zealand nurses have been imported as commodities because
	of shortage of nurses, a $2,000 bonus is being provided to all graduating registered
	nurses (RNs) who agree to work in this district for at least one year because of a
	shortage of nurses, and now the Regina district wants to down size the nurses to save
	money.

costs more	Donna Brunskill, executive director of the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association,
	is right on when she says
	the evidence shows that when you reduce the number of registered nurses --
	mortality rates increase, infection rates increase and re-admission rates
	increase... When you remove the number of RN's or decrease the percentage
	of RN's - you increase the dependence of clients, and it costs more in the long
	run⁽⁷⁾.

verbosity	And we can appreciate the implausible rhetoric of interim CEO Jim Saunders by reading
	the news release "Regina Health District Releases Financial Plan⁽⁸⁾." I let you, readers,
	measure the size of this Big Brain by providing you with a sample of Saunders' trumpeting
	verbosity. He says:
reasonable access	Since the funding for deficits announced in January is one-time
	only, we anticipate deficits in the future unless some changes are
	made to both increase revenues and reduce operating costs... Our
	challenge remains reaching agreement with the government on
	predictable levels of adequate and continuing operating funding...
	With a combination of reduced operating costs and increased
	government funding, we are confident that we can eliminate the
	District's operating deficit over a three-year period without
	compromising either quality of care or reasonable access to health
	services... Likewise, we want to continue to work with the government
	to achieve agreement on a multi-year approach to paying down and
	eliminating both our operating and capital debt... We have the support
	of government to use a strategy of attrition and redeployment to
	downsize the number of staff we employ. Any proposed staff changes
	will be handled with care and sensitivity... We have critical needs in
	many job categories, including nursing and technical staff, and will
	continue to recruit vigorously into these positions.

problem	Now we know why we have a health care problem in Saskatchewan and across Canada, don't we?

------------References/endnotes:

	List of relevant political and economics articles http://ensign.ftlcomm.com

1. -	The Regina Health District's 3-Year Financial Plan, February 27, 2001 http://www.reginahealth.sk.ca/district_news/plan.pdf

2. -	The closure of the Plains Health Centre: The $50 million overrun and the gimmick of saving money in health care, by Mario deSantis, December 19, 1999

3. -	Regina Health District closes one surgical theatre: Shortage of Leadership, Shortage of Nurses and Shortage of Democracy, by Mario deSantis, March 22, 2000

4. -	Brian Rourke wants more healthcare money: 40% of public expenditures are not enough, by Mario deSantis, November 14, 1999

5. -	Evaluation of the System-Wide Admission and Discharge Department (SWADD), http://www.reginahealth.sk.ca/district_news/index.html

6.	The Reluctance to Change of Our Leadership, by Mario deSantis, November 28, 2000

7.	Nurse cuts under attack, CBC Saskatchewan, February 27, 2001

8.	Regina Health District Releases Financial Plan (February 27, 2001)