HEALTH-CARE PROGNOSIS
Reiter weighs in on changes
Q When marijuana is legalized in July, are you concerned about increased addiction or drugged driving in the province?
A There’s been some work done in Justice, work done with the Crowns on the best way we can deal with it, but I’m very concerned about the safety aspect. … We’re concerned about mental health and addictions right across the piece. It’s a priority for us and it will continue to be a priority for us.
Q The Canadian Cancer Society and the Lung Association are among health groups recommending 21 be the legal age to buy pot. What will be the legal age in Saskatchewan?
A That’s still to be determined. Health won’t be the lead on that, but we’ve had some significant discussions about that already and I’m sure there will be more ... I’ve had discussions with the Saskatchewan Medical Association where they’re very concerned, and I share those concerns, about an appropriate age because of the impact it can have on brain development.
Q In the past, you’ve said the move to a single health authority is more about improving patient care than cutting costs. How much will be saved by going to a single entity?
A Even with some senior management positions eliminated, severance packages need to be paid as well, so there are some offsets. In the first fiscal year, the sort of savings you’ll see between some governance costs with the elimination of the boards, some senior management positions eliminated and with the IT consolidation, we’re expecting in the range of $10 million and $20 million dollars of savings in those areas alone . ... There will be efficiencies found. That was the Alberta experience. The primary driver is that we need consistency of health care across the province.
Q How many Saskatchewan health-care workers will lose their jobs and in what areas?
A It’s going to be senior management. This is not going to affect frontline care. Although in the long term, we expect it to improve frontline care because we’ll be acting more as one system . ... We’re going to be going from 12 CEOs down to one, we’re going to be going to far fewer vice-presidents . ... It will be happening incrementally.
Q Will we see more health-care services, such as MRIs, done by private providers? A I don’t think the move to the single health region will specifically increase or decrease that. Those were more strategic decisions. We’ll continue to consider those sorts of things. As much as the MRI program was a bit of a bone of contention with the federal government, we just think that makes a lot of sense. It’s been showing results.
Q Alberta decentralized control and created five geographic areas, each area with a clinical and operational leader. Will Saskatchewan follow suit?
A We want to act like a single unit, but we’re also very sensitive to the fact that the head office is in Saskatoon. But that doesn’t mean everything needs to be in Saskatoon. With the technology we have today, people can communicate easily without everyone being in the same location. We’re using a decentralization management structure, so you’re still going to see management people in Regina, Moose Jaw, Prince Albert and other communities.
Q Have you heard concerns from residents in rural Saskatchewan who have problems getting to Regina or Saskatoon for medical appointments because of the loss of STC?
A While it tends to be a bone of contention politically, the reality is a huge number of communities in the province didn’t have STC service. To use my own area as an example, Rosetown did, but prior to the re-distribution both Outlook and Eston, two of the larger centres in my constituency, haven’t had bus service for years. People there still arrange to get to medical appointments.
... The fact that we’d be subsidizing a bus company to the tune of $10 million to $20 million that not many people were using for medical appointments, I think that money can be far better used for medical care. (The province later said Reiter’s office received fewer than 20 calls related to the end of STC).
Q You said mental health would be top of mind when dealing with Ottawa. Where is the province going with the extra mental-health funding from the federal government?
A Mental health is a concern right across the country. I think what hits me is the suicides.
... What I think you’ll see in upcoming budgets is incremental increases in mental-health spending. We’re going to make the best use of every dollar from the extra money we get from the federal government. It’s troubling and we need to continue increasing resources there.