'It's disastrous': Communities uneasy about losing overnight ERs

Hundreds of protesters stood outside the hospital emergency room in Sussex, ringing bells, waving bright orange signs and chanting "rural lives matter."

People in six New Brunswick communities expressed their anger Tuesday after learning the emergency room hours at their local hospitals, including the Sussex Health Centre, will be cut and local hospital beds will be converted to long-term care beds.

"As far as the government is concerned, rural lives don't matter," said Jill Beaulieu, who lives in the Sussex area.

People heldup signs that read: "Health cuts kill," "Save Sussex," and "Seniors and everyone else in Sussex need our hospital open 24/7."

Progressive Conservative MLA Bruce Northrup, who sits on the government side of the house,was surrounded by protesters, although he wasn't happy about the cuts either.

As he spoke, residents kept interrupting him with comments like: "You just keep cutting and cutting until there's nothing left" and "We are your people. That's your hospital. Save it."

One manasked: "What are you going to do if you have a heart attack here at midnight and this hospital closed?"

Northrup said he will be getting more information from Horizon Health Network, stakeholders,doctors and people who run the hospital. Then he will make a decision on Thursday about whether he supports the government's decision.

Northrup said he heard rumours in December aabout the cutsand believes there should have been more communication among communities, members of the legislature, and people working in health care.

"Communication in this has been deplorable."

A similar angry crowd gathered in Caraquet as the changes were announced.

Saying the steps are necessary because of staff shortages, the province announced thesix emergency rooms will stop accepting patients after 10 p.m. and close from midnight to 8 a.m.

The reduced hours start March 11.

Marilyn Stockdale was also protesting outside the hospital in Sussex.

"I could crawl here in the middle of the night if I got sick," she said.

"Whether I get to Saint John on my own or not in the middle of the night, I don't know. They don't have any room for us anyway. They're already full up."

This is what people think about loss of overnight ERs in six New Brunswick communities

5 years ago

Duration 3:38

Province drops overnight ER hours in 6 hospitals and some people took to the streets in protest.

'I think it sucks'

The other hospitals losing some ER service areHotel-Dieu of St. Joseph in Perth-Andover, Stella-Maris-de-Kent Hospital in Sainte-Anne-de-Kent, Enfant-Jsus Hospital in Caraquet and Grand Falls General Hospital.

In Sackville, Ron Corbettsaid if he hadn't gone to his local emergency room, he would've died.

Corbett had low blood pressure and was losing a lot of blood when he was sent to the emergency department at Sackville Memorial Hospital. There, he received the treatments he needed and was later sent to the hospital in Moncton.

"One of the reasons why I was able to do OK once I got to Moncton, was that they treated me here," he said after the province announced the Sackville ER would not be open overnight and would also lose its surgical services.

• Province drops overnight ER hours in major repurposing of 6 hospitals

Corbett said residents in the area are getting older and emergency services are "crucial."

"I think it sucks I think it's disastrous," he said ofthe plan announced by the Progressive Conservative government and the two health networks.

'It doesn't make sense'

Sarah Poirier saidshe and her husband fell off a roof late in the evening and had to get to the ER in Sackville. Poirier said her husband's memory was seriously affected.

"Emergencies happen 24 hours a day," she said.

Poirier wasn't impressed by Monday's announcement.

"It penalizes people for living in rural areas," she said.

With the changes, Sackville residents will need to drive almost 50 kilometres to an emergency room in Moncton or make a 16 minute tripto Amherst, NS.

"It doesn't make any sense," Poirier said. "Is the premier trying to drive New Brunswickers across the border to Nova Scotia and make it somebody else's problem?"

No consultation with town

Sackville Mayor John Higham participated in strategic planning sessions put on by Horizon Health Network last week and said the planned cuts to the ER and surgical services were not mentioned.

"If there's a strategic element, we didn't see it," Highamsaid. "We haven't heard it."

Perth-AndoverMayor Marianne Bell also took part in the strategic planning sessions, but only found out about the cuts Tuesday morning.

"I was horrified," she said. "We're baffled and outraged that the Department of Health would drop devastating news like this on our community."

She said it's even more devastating for people living in smaller communities like Plaster Rock and Riley Brook, at least 40 kilometres northeast of Perth-Andover.

"People are so afraid of what will happen if they have a fall, if they get sick in the late evening or overnight."

'We don't see how it helps'

After hearing talk of possible cuts, Sackville council held a meetingMonday night, and drew a crowd of concerned residents.

He's lined up a meeting with Horizon Health Network CEO Karen McGrath this week to ask questions.

"We don't see how it helps the health system and how it's better for everybody in the province versus just us in Sackville," he said.

Dr. Chris Goodyear, president of the New Brunswick Medical Society, said in a statement that the province's health-care system has to evolve in order to "reflect today's and tomorrow's populations."

He said changes to the health-care system are always concerning for New Brunswick physicians.

"We will be monitoring the situation closely and listening to our emergency department physicians to ensure that these changes reflect the future needs of our health system and that patient safety is not negatively impacted," Goodyearsaid.

'It's just not fair'

Rick Chassonlives in Grand Falls. He said the government made a mistake and should keep the ER open 24 hours, especially for seniors.

"It's just not fair, not to the senior citizens," he said. "It isn't right."

Pauline Gagnon has three children at her home in Grand Falls. With government cutting hours to emergency services, she'll be forced to travel to the hospital in Waterville, which is about 40 minutes away andEdmundston, which is one hour away.

"I think it's very sad and I don't agree," she said.

Online petitions were already circulating in communities such as Sussex and Sackvilleaimed at preserving local hospital services.

And in Caraquet, about 40 people spoke outside the L'Hpital de l'Enfant-Jsus RHSJ, including local Liberal MLA Isabelle Thriault, Acadie-Bathurst Liberal MP Serge Cormier and most members of the town council.