11/24/2025
Fort Erie Healthcare SOS - A year in review!!
Our Board members and friends met November 23 to discuss the last year of operation for Healthcare SOS. We were glad to have guests attend the meeting and to offer their insights into the ongoing work promoting Douglas Memorial as a viable public healthcare facility for Fort Erie and its surrounding area.
Its rather interesting that this weekend there was a series run by Marketplace and CTV on the long wait times in ER's and in both instances they talked about the blockages at the hospitals due to the shortage of beds and staff. Beds being used by current patients waiting for release but not able to go home because of the shortage in LTC and PSW's in homecare. Everywhere we turn there is a shortage of people needed to care for our sick and disabled.
The answer in Niagara appears to be to close two Urgent Care Centers, but just note these are not just Urgent Care Centres; they are previous hospitals that had been downsized to fit the needs of the larger urban centres in Niagara. This means that we could open rooms that could provide alternate level of care beds and free up the emergency beds needed for people waiting surgery or having just received surgery or for those waiting to be diagnosed with an unknown condition. These were also 24/7 Urgent Care Centres that have now been reduced to 10 hours a day and have periodically been shortened even further during long weekends or when staff was not readily available.
Everywhere across this Country people are complaining about long wait times and yet the answer received from Government officials quite often is to simply tell us how much money is being spent in our area on healthcare and that it is up to the individual boards and health teams to determine how that money is spent.
Hello, its not working!! Hundreds if not thousands of people are falling through the cracks. You can't just throw a bunch of money around and not do an assessment of how it is helping to alleviate the long wait times or the lack of healthcare that is being distributed across the country for everyone. People without access to transportation must rely on ambulances that are also overcome with shortages.
Our AGM was a small look at the local activity taking place in town after town trying to raise the alarm for people no longer receiving care. Even the large city centres like Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal are complaining about the lack of resources; now try to find resources in the small communities and it is even less available.
Let's stop trying to convince each other that this is just how it has to be. We need people with the will to make the necessary changes.
Small town woes, small town responses all of us up against all odds and why we continue to fight to SAVE OUR HOSPITAL
When the town and Niagara Health accepted or conceded (this depends on who you talk to); that Douglas Memorial was to become part of the LHIN (Local Health Integrated Network (2009)); many people in town were angry that “Giving away” a hospital that was bequeathed to the town was not the right way to go. A hospital that was a gift of Dr. Douglas to take care of the locals. This was in 1931 at a time when Doctors were each vying for their own patient base because we were a small town but even they saw the benefit of having a local hospital where they could monitor and assist their patients and improve “efficiency and service” to their community.
Fast forward to 2009 and Niagara Health determines that St. Catharines needs one new hospital to replace the two that they had, and they promote it as being able to take care of all the needs for people within the Region. Niagara Health reported a deficit of $16M in 2008, and the government appointed a Supervisor (Dr. Jack Kitts). The Town of Fort Erie and the Yellow Shirt Brigade signed petitions to Save the Hospital and held a public forum where over 5,000 people attended, and Dr. Kitts provides the town with 24/7 Urgent Care facilities at Douglas Memorial.
Dr. Kevin Smith arrives in 2012 when Niagara Health’s deficit was over $25M and in his final report he recommends the closure of Fort Erie and Port Colborne and that a new South Niagara Hospital be built; all inpatient as well as obstetrics and pediatrics would be located at a single site. These recommendations were to improve “efficiency and services.”
At the time, the UCC’s would remain open. Many people were still not happy with this decision to close our hospital; but the town entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Health to establish a committee to evaluate the service provisions of Douglas Memorial.
Moving forward again and in 2020 we have a Pandemic that causes many in healthcare to leave their field, either by force or by desperation and most hospitals are left short staffed. The government says they will fast track training and approval for International healthcare professionals to be brought into our teams. Niagara Health reports a surplus of $5.1M. Lynn Guerriero transitioned into the role of President and CEO.
In 2023 as CEO, she puts an opinion piece into the local newspaper that the hospital system is moving towards their plan of a three-hospital system for the Region and that FE and PC will close completely.
This is where the local people and the Niagara Health hospital board differ in opinions and how Fort Erie Healthcare SOS came to be. Niagara Health is currently in a $26M deficit. SOS and the Yellow Shirt Brigade quickly came together to rally against the closure of Douglas Memorial. It was needed in 1931, it was needed in 2009, and it is needed in 2025. We had the assistance of the Ontario Health Coalition and the Niagara Health Coalition to raise awareness against the privatization of healthcare. We participated in a referendum vote, and residents cast ballots to SAVE OUR HOSPITAL. We’ve made three presentations at Queens Park, and we have had an advocate from our MPP but it seemed to no avail because shortly afterwards Niagara Health decided to reduce the hours in our UCC.
There are those in town that are willing to just accept this loss and will say that they are looking forward to having a brand-new hospital to go to. No-one has said that you will not always have that choice. Many in town know that to receive specialized care we may have to leave. Many have fallen into complacency and are tired of the fight to save our hospital. People often will say they attended the large public forum and what good did it do. Just to note here that they managed to keep urgent care in town. Douglas Memorial currently has Urgent Care available, and patients being taken care of either in chronic and complex care or palliative care. We have diagnostic imaging and physiotherapy.
Others in our town state that they already have out of town Doctors and services and just accept the travel time. They were afraid to end their relationship in the towns they came from because they could not find a local physician. There are others that comment no big deal. They just hop in their car and go to wherever the shortest wait time is but there is that one little snag in this whole idea to improve “efficiency and service” – IT ISN’T WORKIING!
Doctors, nurses, technicians, and support staff are doing their best, but we cannot increase volume of people being seen and not increase the number of beds and the number of people caring for the people in those beds.
Doctors select who will be their patients, and now we sign up to be with one group of doctors: but for those not “lucky” enough to be rostered there’s walk-in clinics or the” ER” or the “UCC’s.”
One of the problems is that UCC’s are closing and increasingly people are using ER’s which do not refer patients to UCC’s. And why is that? It’s because we believe they want to ensure that they do not lose any more patients because their hospital is in a deficit even though ERs are overflowing.
Anyone working in health services will say it is the patient that they are focused on, but often at our UCC we must “force” our way into their care and demand service. Doctors are pushing patients away, ERs are pushing patients away, UCC’s are pushing patients away, hospitals are pushing patients out into Long Term Care, Residential homes or into homecare. The problem is not enough beds, not enough staff, not enough CARE.
We cannot close hometown care sights and just expect people to make their own way. It appears we are looking at replacing hands on care with tele-health or virtual health. This may work for some provided they have a computer and the ability to connect virtually. Others just fall through the cracks, but at least they can have a friendly conversation on the phone with a nurse. Others can go to their local pharmacy provided they have self diagnosed themselves with one of the nineteen ailments that they can treat without a Doctor. This is handy for the pharmacy because they also get the benefit of a sale.
We know that Long term care has a shortage of beds and staff, we know that there is a shortage in home care workers and we know that resident care does not provide medical-are we simply spreading out the problem to make the hospitals appear like they have everything under control. Hospitals have decided that homecare is best and they are quick to move us out and people are good with being at home; it’s the follow up that is not so easy or even the amount of re-work to our homes that is necessary so that we can move about. Think about the costs associated with transforming our own homes into a care center.
Have we become so numb in our handling of complex problems of people that we just stop caring and just let the powers that be decide what best for us. I mean isn’t this how it has always been for an eternity. Those that have deciding for those that don’t have.
A big brand-new hospital in Niagara Falls will replace Fort Erie and Port Colborne. We are told that Doctors and support staff will be waiting to sign up to work in this grand new building. Are they? Really?
What about the people that can no longer drive, or don’t have a car, or don’t have the means to call a cab or take a bus, that don’t have family close by. They must rely on ambulances and yet we are told not to overburden the ER and the ambulance system if it is not a REAL emergency. Just what gives me the qualifications to self diagnose? We know that to counter this; Paramedics will come out to determine if you really need to go to the ER. We also now have Mobile Integrated Teams which includes primary care and mental health teams that will assess and determine your needs. We hire more people outside of the hospital to take care of our medical needs.
There are way too many people falling through the cracks. How do we attract new family physicians? New physicians that no longer want to be on call 24/7. How do we attract new support staff that no longer wish to be on call 24/7.
Patients are angry, they are afraid and yes they are dying in pain and suffering. Is this what has become normal, is this just how it must be? Those that can afford it go to the best clinics and hospitals, those that can’t afford it just suffer in silence.
I say we all give this another big push, we stand up if not for ourselves, for the people around us, for our families both now and into the future.
Here is how we can show we are serious about taking care of our people, young and old:
1/ We show up at events to “Save our Hospital”. We attend Town Council meetings when they are addressing local healthcare. We attend Niagara Health’s Board meetings, and we make delegations (we speak) to them about our needs.
2/ We write letters to our elected officials (just because they were elected does not mean they have all the answers). Tell them what your needs are and what your expectations are for your healthcare.
3/We sign petitions that encourages our elected officials to meet the needs of the public. The Provincial and Federal Representatives in our own Riding need to take our message to their leadership and to our governments.
4/We attend rallies and days of action to build the groundswell that is needed to encourage others to show how serious we are about saving our hospital.
5/ We build a foundation that will help build a financial base to support our local hospitals needs, both in resources and equipment.
6/ We encourage support from our medical and business community to develop a plan to maintain our hospital here in Fort Erie. Often these two groups have a great deal of influence in dealing with Government representatives. They need to speak up as part of our community.
7/ We must demand open public forums to promote insights into the needs of the community. People need open action and to believe they are part of the solution not the problem.
8/ We need to encourage the local legal community to review avenues to save our hospital. The building and the land may have been sold at one time for a dollar, but it is all needed for the betterment of our community. Expropriation is a term often used, perhaps something we need to investigate to SAVE OUR HOSPITAL and to provide for the members of our community.
No one group can do this but all of us together rich and poor, young and old, educated and lived experiences each having a voice putting the needs of the “patient” first.
You may have noticed SOS out standing on a corner waving placards. These are our banner days, and it is just one more step that recognizes and speaks up for all those that do not believe they can contribute or are too fearful.
Timing is critical. We know that we cannot wait until Niagara Health closes our doors forever. We do not care what political background you come from. We do not care!
We the people of Fort Erie want to preserve Douglas Memorial as a hospital to take care of our needs, to provide the care we need close to home and family. We need your help, please contact us with your opinions and ideas. Contact us at forterie@healthcaresos.ca or come visit our website at www.healthcaresos.ca . Message us, volunteer, put up a lawn sign, sign a petition, write a letter, donate and help build the support we all need to SAVE OUR HOSPITAL!
