Don’t change hospital location

Re: Building a hospital on the city fringe will hurt the core, letter by Garfield Mahood, May 11, 2019

The letter of May 11 from Garfield Mahood of Toronto criticizing the location of our planned mega hospital demands response. It’s difficult enough to have a local minority trying to derail the project, now we have someone from Toronto weighing in. Mr. Mahood’s linking his views to his title as an Officer of the Order of Canada may be mistakenly seen by readers that it affords him some preferred status to comment, which is not evident in his letter. His views are more based on nostalgia rather than current reality, and one is left to wonder who or what has motivated him to suddenly comment, with his own admission that he only recently learned of the issue.

We all need to understand and accept that hospitals do not exist to stimulate local economies or neighbourhoods. They exist to provide accessible health care for the population. Residents of Essex County have contributed substantial dollars toward the new hospital through a levy and have just as much right to equitable access as citizens of Windsor. Someone suffering a heart attack in Leamington has just as much need to timely treatment as someone in downtown Windsor.

Rather than putting effort toward delaying the project, which would doom us well into the future, businesses, residents and even university students who are assisting in the change-of-location efforts could better serve the needs of downtown residents by proactively advocating toward the plans for the proposed new downtown medical facility.

There is much wisdom and compassion among all of you, and putting your efforts toward more constructive results will ensure that the health care needs of all can be met.

Drop the swords. Pick up the shovels.

Brian C. Stocks, Windsor