Local MPP Vic Fedeli is firing back, after the Minister of Health's office accused him of "wild allegations" regarding a rumoured closure of the city's cancer clinic.
"It’s now been confirmed that discussions indeed have taken place regarding cuts to cancer care in North Bay," Fedeli told BayToday in an email this morning.
"Thankfully we brought these discussions to the floor of the Legislature and stopped this from happening. I’ll continue to bring forward concerns expressed in our community regarding this government’s health care cuts and loudly voice opposition to any further erosion of care and service in Nipissing."
Meanwhile,the president of the North Bay Regional Health Centre is rejecting a rumour circulated yesterday by Fedeli that the cancer care clinic would be closed by year end.
See original story: Local cancer clinic to close?
In a news release, Paul Heinrich, the president of the hospital and Mike Hartman, the Regional vice-President of the Northeast Regional Cancer Program, both deny the service will be stopped.
"We would like to assure you that the NBRHC Cancer Clinic is not closing.
"Currently, the NBRHC has a visiting Radiation Oncologist Clinic once a month for follow up visits with cancer patients who have completed radiation treatment. There have been discussions related to phasing out the radiation oncologists visiting NBRHC to provide follow up care. Our plan is to allow for the oncologists to discuss any proposed changes directly with patients and this will transpire over the course of the next year.
"It is important to note that this in no way impacts the NBRHC Chemotherapy Clinic which provides over 1,900 chemotherapy treatments annually, the highest activity of any satellite chemotherapy facility in the province.
"This change to radiation oncology visiting clinics is intended to improve access to care. With more cancer patients being provided follow up care by family doctors and nurse practitioners in their home community and through the use of the Ontario Telemedicine Network (OTN) this change will provide more capacity for radiation oncologists to see new patients and provide treatment. This is how this type of care is provided in other hospitals across northeastern Ontario."
The release says this change will take place over the next 12 months with patients being either transferred to primary care, followed by OTN or in rare circumstances, travel to Sudbury.
A spokesman for Health Minister Dr. Eric Hoskins, Shae A Greenfield told Baytoday, " We have spoken with the hospital and they have confirmed that MPP Fedeli’s wild allegations are erroneous."
