Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Rick Byers.
The MPP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound says healthcare was the top concern among constituents in the region in 2024.
Progressive Conservative MPP Rick Byers identified issues associated with hospital hours in Durham and Chesley as “the biggest challenge” in our community over the past year, and says he is focused on “continuing to work on supporting the healthcare system” in the new year.
South Bruce Grey Health Centre closed the inpatient unit at the Durham Hospital in June and moved its 10 inpatient beds to other hospitals in Kincardine and Walkerton due to a nursing staff shortage. The hours of operation for emergency care at the Durham Hospital were also cut — it’s now only open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The Chesley Hospital — aside from a brief period in 2022 — hasn’t had a 24/7 emergency department since 2019.
“The No. 1 challenge is healthcare,” Byers says. “And that’s been the biggest challenge this year, certainly in our community … as well as access to family doctors. Those issues are those that I hear most about.”
Byers says he’s encouraged by recent nursing staff trends “notwithstanding the very difficult decisions that happened this year in moving the 10 inpatient beds out of Durham.” In November, the hospital corporation released a statement saying the average vacancy rate across its four sites — Durham, Chesley, Kincardine and Walkerton — was down to 12 per cent after service reductions in Durham and Chesley. But, it also said that number needed to get down to zero in order to restore full operation at its sites.
“They’ve actually hired more staff this year,” Byers says of South Bruce Grey Health Centre. “Seven nurses into South Bruce Grey Health Centre. And in fact … there have been more since that announcement.”
“It’s an encouraging trend to stabilize staffing and stabilize operations there,” Byers continues. “These hospitals aren’t closing. They’re going through a period of staffing shortages.”
Byers says the Ontario healthcare system “fundamentally needs more staffing” going forward and there are some steps the provincial government are taking to achieve that.
He mentions new medical schools opening in Ontario — at Toronto Metropolitan University and York University — and expanding the role that pharmacies can play in the system. In July, the Ford government announced it is “consulting with its partners on further expanding the ability of pharmacists to provide care by treating additional common ailments, administering more vaccines and performing more point-of-care testing.”
The MPP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound also announced this past year he will not be seeking re-election, whenever Ontarians head to the polls next. Ontario’s fixed election date isn’t until 2026, but there has been persistent speculation coming from Queen’s Park that Premier Doug Ford could call an early election sometime in 2025.
Byers says while he’s looking forward to retirement, until then “I’m working flat out.”
“Because that’s what I want to do and need to do to serve our community,” Byers adds. “So we’ll see, whenever that vote is called.”