Ontario hospitals are on the brink of a disaster. Yet, they experience incredible pressures that force them to choose between shutting down and reinventing how they operate. In one recent pre-budget consultation, Anthony Dale, president and CEO of the Ontario Hospital Association, provided a stark prognosis. He called attention to the deplorable conditions of hospitals and other health services across the province. Ontario, despite its booming population growth, now finds itself with one of the lowest rates of per capita hospital funding in Canada. This operation is increasingly anachronistic and untenable.
This overwhelming burden on these small hospitals is reflected in many ways, most importantly through the issue of overcrowding. Many facilities are compelled to treat growing numbers of patients in hallways and other unconventional spaces due to a lack of available beds. This deeply concerning trend highlights the critical importance of rethinking funding and investment strategies, as well as healthcare policies.
Staffing Cuts and Service Reductions
In anticipation of these financial restrictions, some Ontario hospitals have already made the difficult decision to lay off frontline healthcare workers. This loss in personnel is a direct result of the lack of funding, keeping hospitals from being able to run at full capacity. As Dale pointed out, “These measures alone will not address system pressures.”
The effects of these staffing cuts go far beyond their impact on jobs. They threaten to undermine the quality and safety of patient care and services. Hospitals are preparing for additional cuts now, paying in advance for possible future decisions that will worsen the fiscal squeeze over the next five years. These shifts can have dire consequences, forcing patients to forgo important services. These solutions range from consolidating duplicate programs to closing unnecessary inpatient programs and cutting back on spending for neonatal and other critical care.
Efficiency Amidst Challenges
Even with the aforementioned fire alarm of challenges, Dale was quick to point out that Ontario hospitals are already the most efficient in Canada. Given this new efficiency, it should be alarming that… If we simply do more with less, we’ll continue to erode patient care while falling short of meaningful improvement.
“The HSSP (Hospital Sector Stabilization Plan) exercise proves that further significant cost-saving measures would likely include program consolidation with service impacts, closure of non-core inpatient services, and spending reductions in core inpatient services,” he stated. This new, harsh reality leaves administrators and healthcare providers to consider these difficult decisions.
The Path Forward
Ontario’s healthcare system, in crisis and operating beyond collapse, should take warning. Now is the time to act to address the funding gap. Without an influx of resources, hospitals may be left with no choice but to implement drastic measures that could jeopardize patient care.
