Flooding Adds to Emergency for Pugwash Hospital
Flooding in the basement of the North Cumberland Hospital in Pugwash is yet another example of the need for a new facility, long-promised by the provincial government.
About a foot of water covered the entire basement following last Friday’s heavy rain event.
The MLA for Cumberland North says, "It is proof the Premier must honour his commitment to the people of Pugwash and immediately break ground at the hospital."
Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin says, “Two years ago, the Premier said his government would upgrade the aging hospital in Pugwash. Since then, there have been no plans, timelines or funds allocated for the project.”
Smith-McCrossin was a candidate at that time when she joined a small crowd that was crammed into the basement boardroom to hear the Premier make a pre-election promise.
Stephen McNeil said, “I don’t make promises,” and he went on to say, “Shovels will be in the ground in 2018.” Of course, no such activity took place and the people of the hospital coverage area, a large chunk of Six Rivers to the Sea, are still waiting.
Meanwhile, the under-staffed facility faces regular closure of its emergency department. The Pugwash hospital has the worst record in all of Nova Scotia when it comes to ER closures.
The department has regularly been closed for days at a time for more than a year, usually six out of seven days each week. In a press release today, the Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) announced the facility would not be open at all in the coming week. It marks twelve consecutive days with no emergency service between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm, a fact that all agree is “unacceptable”.
By comparison, Springhill Hospital will be closed this week for three days, while the facility in Parrsboro will close for two.
It underscores the dramatic need for physician recruitment in Pugwash, yet the NSHA has not shown any empathy for the community as recruiting efforts continue with new physicians taking up positions throughout the province without regard for the disproportionate disparity along the shore.
Some say it is the proverbial chick and egg situation where you cannot recruit doctors without a proper hospital, while others fear the province will not build a new facility because of the doctor shortage.
Residents are encouraged to write to the Premier. Perhaps a flood of letters might heighten the sense of emergency.
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