‘Ottawa’ Ottawa Hospital Gets $19M Boost From Ontario
Ottawa’s hospitals will share $19 million in new operating money, Premier Kathleen Wynne announced at the Montfort Hospital Friday, slightly compensating for years of funding that didn’t keep up with inflation.
The provincial government has been struggling to close a deficit for more than five years and has squeezed spending to the point where hospitals have cut nurses and numerous other health workers, following years of trimming administration and other spending not directly related to caring for patients.
The Ottawa Hospital, which has an operating budget over $1 billion, cut 80 jobs in 2014 to deal with a $20-million budget shortfall, then cut more than 100 jobs last year to close a $26-million budget gap. The laid-off included physiotherapists, nutritionists and social workers.
The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario cut 40 to 50 jobs last year, including nurses, with a $6.7-million shortfall on a $250-million budget. And so on.
Read More..