Kealy collecting data on healthcare in Peace River North for mini audit
Sick and tired of waiting for an external audit of Northern Health that may never come, Peace River North MLA Jordan Kealy is taking matters into his own hands, gathering data from residents of the riding on their experiences within the healthcare system.
In post on Facebook on Wednesday, Kealy asked Peace River North residents – including those who work in healthcare – to email his office with their experiences in the system, personal experiences, not hearsay.
It’s not about complaining about the healthcare workers, Kealy said, but gathering information.
“It’s primarily to gather information, who needs help, what avenues they might be able to go through to get help, and whether or not I can help them directly; steer them in the right direction or work with the Minister of Health to be able to help them.”
The information Kealy is looking for includes experience good and bad within the healthcare system; if you have been turned away when seeking healthcare; if you’re fighting your way through the system; have given up and don’t know where to go; and are looking outside the country for healthcare options.
“This is my avenue to try to figure out how I can help people – and right now, the region has been kicking and screaming asking for an external audit, and we never get it,” Kealy said.
“There are people who have concerns and we just see them disappear and fall by the wayside.”
He’s learned that as an MLA, even though he’s not on the government side of the Legislature, Kealy can help constituents who need it.
The need for an audit of Northern Health, and the need for changes in the province’s healthcare system has been talked about in the Legislature many times over the years, but there’s been no discernable change in either policy or structure in the healthcare system.
The problems with service delivery continue.
While as an MLA, Kealy can tackle a few individual issues, he feels the problem is bigger than just a few people who are having trouble accessing care and services.
As a mechanic, he says when he sees a problem, he wants to fix it.
“When I fix things that’s where I feel like I’m doing my job. So, the more people I can help – if there’s two people that I help get to the minister’s office, if they need help that way and I can get them the care that they need, then I’m doing my job,” he said.
“If it’s an avenue where I find that there’s 50 people that need help in that direction, then it really screams that there’s something wrong with our system going forward.”
“It’s the only system we have; we need to make it work.”
Kealy asks that constituents email his office at Jordan.Kealy.MLA@leg.bc.ca with their concerns and experiences. He wants to keep everyone’s information confidential and feels the best way to do that, and keep track of the data coming in, is through email, rather than responses to posts on social media.