Won't accept more mistakes from Eastern Health: Wiseman
Last Updated: Tuesday, April 7, 2009 | 7:18 PM NT
CBC News
Newfoundland and Labrador's Health Minister says he won't accept any more communications mistakes from Eastern Health — the health authority at the centre of the province's breast cancer testing scandal.
Ross Wiseman told the house of assembly Tuesday that starting next week he is hiring outside help to deal with Eastern Health's communications problems.
"We're bringing in some outside resources to provide the necessary education to those individuals who'll be dealing with the disclosure thing," he said.
On Monday, Premier Danny Williams called Eastern Health's handling of news that it had missed dozens of breast cancer patients in a massive retesting exercise disgraceful — adding, "They should be shot over there."
The authority issued a news release late Friday afternoon with a vague headline, announcing that it had missed 38 patients. The information was midway down the release, and no one from Eastern Health was available to talk to reporters. Eastern Health raised the number of missed patients on Monday to 43 from 38.
Opposition and Liberal Leader Yvonne Jones lectured Wiseman in the legislature Tuesday about the latest turn of events, telling him he has to stop accepting the word of senior health managers.
"Again, you're telling me today you thought they were putting a process in place, but you failed to check to see if that process was there or if it was working. Minister, do you consider that you are doing your job appropriately?" she said.
While Wiseman didn't offer thoughts on his own performance, he did acknowledge changes are coming.
"What we witnessed on Friday was an event that I'm not prepared to accept ever again," he said.
The minister's plan also involves Department of Health officials telling Eastern Health officials how to disclose information.
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