Dear Editor,
In your Sept. 25 edition, Mr. Lorne Doerkson stated that the NDP did not care about Health Care in rural BC.
As a retired Health Care Worker of 50 plus years and a previous member of our Union executive, I know that the previous governments of 15 plus years did nothing to care for rural BC. I was present on many occasions when we begged them to plan for the future loss of Doctors, nurses hospital professionals, and paramedics.
All in vain. The repose we got was "it is not our problem".
Since the the NDP became the government they have done everything possible to try to deal with this problem left by the previous government.
An example is that 100 Mile and District General Hospital had two full-time paramedics up to 2017 and now has 21.
In our community how many doctors have retired, without anyone preplanning for that event, how many nurses, how many lab techs, how many x-ray techs etc
The health minister for some of that period was Kevin Falcon and take from one with personal knowledge, he almost destroyed the paramedic service of BC. He showed that there was no plan for the future.
I have no knowledge of the land use plans, mentioned by Mr. Doerkson, but I have to mention, that since the loss of BC Rail and the increase in heavy traffic, that damaged Highway 97, and the flooding of the Coquihalla, I believe that the government has done well considering the moneys needed to combat COVID-19 and the fire storm we have had over the past seven years.
Mr. Doerkson you abandoned your party to join the Conservatives, my opinion is you did this to divorce yourself from their failures, to get reelected.
Shame on you.
Sincerely,
David Wolczuk
100 Mile House