Privatization not magical solution

A recent report by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation about losses in the cafeterias at the Saskatoon Health Region hospitals leaves much to be desired in terms of actual background or fact.

I also question the purpose behind the federation’s hysterical demand for privatization.

I am a Red Seal chef and have worked in health care for more than 15 years. I was also the head chef and worked in various restaurants in Regina and Saskatoon for 10 years prior to that. While hospital food has continued to be the brunt of sad and tired jokes, the claims of the CTF do not reveal the full story of the quality food served to hundreds of thousands of patients, clients and families who move through the health-care system each year.

The food that is served meets the highest standards for nutritional content. It is prepared by experienced and trained chefs who have achieved a journey-cook status or have had years of experience to prepare quality food. There is a dedicated focus upon the dietary requirements of each patient.

The fact that pizza, burgers and fries are not regularly on the menu is reflective of a desire to model nutritional eating toward a healthier lifestyle.

Food costs and labour costs are always a factor, whether it be the private sector or the public sector. Any restaurant owner will tell you that. What the CTF does not tell you is that the health regions gain savings in bulk purchasing costs for ingredients.

The report tells you nothing about the quality and cost control that is exercised in each and every food outlet operated by the health region. It also doesn’t illustrate the long-service qualified staff who are committed to the provision of food services in this sector.

So what of the losses? The prices charged at the cafeterias are kept lower than in the private sector because the health region does not design the service to be a money-making proposition. It’s there to provide quality food to assist in the healing process.

In a privatized cafeteria, the costs would be a factor, as well as additional costs that would be charged back to the regional health authorities. Everyone would pay more. If we were to privatize the cafeterias under the guise of “saving money,” we would in fact see those very costs passed onto the customer and to the health region administration.

In reviewing the impact of private services, one need only take a look at the number of construction contractors who are working within the health regions when staff is able and ready to do that work. Frequently they have to re-do the work of private construction contractors.

Instead, the health region is paying out millions to private contractors when it could be redirecting that money to surgeries and doing the quality work in-house cheaper. This is the actual reality of privatized services, and how these impact on patient care and the budgets of our health regions.

It does not matter whether employees are unionized or not. What matters is the outrageous claims of privatization that continue to creep into our understanding of the provision of health care. At the heart of the matter is the health and recovery of the people the health system serves.

While the CTF might think that privatization is the magic bullet for everything, the real-time facts do not support that theory.