Friends of Medicare says Central Alberta’s cardiac care shortcomings are “completely unacceptable.”
Executive director Sandra Azocar said doctors have highlighted the need for cardiac catheterization treatment for local heart attack patients for years without success
“This is not news to Alberta Health Services. This has been an ongoing concern,” said Azocar on Tuesday.
“It has been identified by Alberta Health Services in the past and yet there has been a failure to act on the need.
“When you’re talking about saving 30 to 32 lives in Central Alberta that needs (to prompt) a little more political will in terms of changing that situation.”
Wildrose Health Critic Drew Barnes said centralized health decision making is largely to blame for the failure to provide an advanced heart attack treatment in Central Alberta.
“I’m not surprised that Albert Health Services is a centralized, top-heavy bureaucracy that is unable to meet local priorities and needs,” said Barnes on Tuesday.
Barnes said his party wants to see more decision making at the local level. The NDP government is more focused on increasing the size of the bureaucracy, he added, pointing to plans to bring medical laboratories and linen and laundry services under the government umbrella.
The Cypress-Medicine Hat MLA said he was “shocked” by revelations that the mortality rate for Central Alberta heart attack victims is much higher than in Calgary and Edmonton, where cardiac catheterization is available.
“So many Albertans, individuals and families aren’t getting the level of service that the richest province in Canada should be able to provide,” he said.
“I have tremendous empathy for all those involved.”
Wildrose is committed to keeping up the pressure on the province to make changes to ensure Central Albertans have the same access to health care as the major cities.
“If the NDP government is going to tax us the same they need to treat us the same,” he said.
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com