Haldimand "Kudo's to Dr. Madill, Shame on You Council"
Kudo's To Dr. Madill! Council "Shame on You!"
Well Council has change their stand on this issue! I don't even know what to say, so for the time being I am just going to post Karen's story!
Council rejects funding for Dunnville health care centre
Posted By KAREN BEST, CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
Posted 1 day ago
Once again, Doug Madill stood before Haldimand County council asking for municipal investment in the primary healthcare centre in Dunnville. He was turned down.
With five council members in attendance at the March 2 committee meeting, only Mayor Marie Trainer and Coun. Lorne Boyko supported his request for $450,000. Voting no were councillors Don Ricker, Craig Grice and Buck Sloat.
Later county clerk Janis Lankester said the motion was a reconsideration of a 2006 council decision and the funding request was defeated.
"I can't believe we're the only county in all of Ontario that doesn't support health care," Madill told The Chronicle. "We are being penalized for being first."
A 2003 consultant report recommended the county invest $500,000 in health care centres in Dunnville, Caledonia and Hagersville to attract new doctors.
Two years later Dunnville was ready, plans were drawn for a $3.5 million centre and the Dunnville Hospital and Healthcare Foundation pledged $750,000 toward the project.
The foundation continues to fundraise but donations are expected to fall off due to the economy. This means it could take six years, twice as long as first predicted, to pay for construction. So far $1.4 million has been collected.
In 2005, Madill made his first request for a $500,000 county grant. It was approved with conditions in 2006 through a motion from Sloat. In the meantime, he Haldimand War Memorial Hospital financed construction of the primary healthcare centre which it owns.
Although set out in the 2006 council motion, three annual instalments for a total of $450,000 were put on hold while legal issues including leases and other agreements with the hospital were sorted out. An agreement with the Ontario ministry of health was only reached last year.
At the March 2 meeting, Madill, who is the DHHF treasurer, asked for a lump sum payment of $450,000. He pointed out that three of five doctors working in the centre are new recruits proving it attracts doctors to an under serviced area.
"Fifty years ago our hospital was one of the main economic backbones of our community," said Madill. "Today our expanded healthcare campus is the economic backbone of our community."
During discussions, Madill pointed out that. Norfolk County invests $62,000 a year in the Norfolk General Hospital.
"We don't support other businesses," Ricker.
"Health care is not a business," replied Madill.
Corporate services general manager Karen General said Madill was aware that the county needed all agreements entered into with the hospital including staff sharing and phone systems. All the county received was the lease, she added.
The county's lawyer had not confirmed that the centre was operating at arm's length from the hospital, she noted.
Boyko then suggested council reaffirm the 2006 funding approval and spilt the amount over two years. In response, General said the request was equal to one per cent of the county's tax levy.
She also pointed out that the 2006 motion did not in specify that the funding was a grant.
Boyko's frustration was evident after these comments. He said staff ask the same questions over and over again in open and closed sessions and the county's solicitor has tabled the same position over and over again.
And Caledonia and Hagersville were not being ignored because a committee was struck in 2006 to look at doctor recruitment for those two towns but has yet to file a report with council. He suggested using surpluses or other funding sources to fund a key facility proven to attract doctors to an under serviced area.
Do the same for Caledonia and Hagersville when they come forward, said Boyko who questioned why no money was set aside in a reserve for the clinic.
A lot has happened in the last three years with native issues bringing the county to its knees and a global recession, pointed out Sloat. "This is no longer achievable by this community," he added.
Later Boyko said staff did not want to put money aside for the healthcare centre, something he described as critical. In small town Ontario, the county cannot afford to refuse funding for doctor recruitment, he added.
Article ID# 1465185
http://www.dunnvillechronicle.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1465185
There must be some kind of legal action that can be taken in this case. In 2006 a motion was passed was it not? So how can this council three years later when asked for the money change their motion. This council is not doing their job in a legal way there must be something that can be done. This is a slap in the face to many in the community that counted on the word and motion of it's council!
ReplyDelete"A lot has happened in the last three years with native issues bringing the county to its knees and a global recession, pointed out Sloat. "This is no longer achievable by this community," he added."
ReplyDeleteStart cutting the fat Slaot, hand in those blackberries, cut staf intsead of hiring new staff. Cut the salaries of Management! Do not harp on the fact that the Native issue and the recession are to blame. How many people does this county of around 44,000 staff? About 900 according to the Mayor. Norfolk has around 60,000 people and according to their website they staff around 780. Start cutting the fat boys!
Madill was asked for certain criteria back in 2006 by the County and did not provide it then/has not provided it now. Madill was asked back in 2006 if the project would go ahead either way without help from the County and he said yes.
ReplyDeleteDo some research on the FHT funding and how the money is being spent and who gets paid big big bucks.
Anybody else getting tired of hearing that all of council's inactions are a result of native issues? What a crock! First Dunnville's flood victims don't deserve any aid because the poor people of Caledonia didn't get enough help to rescue them from the natives and now, even though Dunnville's own people have made great progress in raising money to build a new health care facility we don't get the help promised by council because "native issues have brought the county to it's knees". This council's M.O. is to make promises, defer actions and then when the time comes to follow through blame someone else for not doing as they promised. Next election it's time for everyone to wake up and start with a clean slate.
ReplyDeleteHow about paying Trainer for four days a week.
ReplyDeleteInstead of 5
What ever way you look at it council changed their stand. If in fact the county was waiting for more information does staff not have the time to ask for it? Where is the co-operation? Or is it a case that staff is not making enough money. What ever staff member that was responsible in this case should be fired!
ReplyDeleteStaff did ask for the information and Madill for some reason has not provided it. It isn't the job of Staff to chase anyone for information for funding, IMO. Besides, why isn't the FHT funding looking after this? I believe this was under the FHT umbrella. FHT said that they would not pay for bricks and mortar and that was the understanding of what the County money was needed for at that time. The FHT money and exactly who gets what has always been a mystery. There should be transparency and total accountability with those funds. Those millions of $$$$'s are our tax paying dollars.
ReplyDeleteCome on people! You don't actually expect this so called Haldimand council to actually agree on anything that we are seeing more & more of that would actually help Dunnville. Besides wasn't there a quote in the Dunnville Chronicle that Boyko shouldn't expect council to make a instint decision. WHAT ON EARTH WAS BOYKO THINKING!!!!!!Besides don't they have to get a counsultant in first to make their decisions for them??? Whether it's over the flood, hospital, arena, or to even fix the dam CRATERS in the roads!!Dunnville seems to always get the short end of the stick. So again Dunnville, we will look after ourselves!!! Just like we did when they tried to close our hospital. But I just want to stress to everyone out there! Please remember all these boots we recieve at the election poles in 2010!!!
ReplyDeleteI would like to direct some comments to the nitpicker who has twice in this blog taken a stand to support council and staff decisions. Sounds to me like you have some inside information regarding council and staff's decision making. Some of your comments "FHT said that they would not pay for bricks and mortar" sound like councillor Grice's comments regarding sorting through the garbage to make sure it all came from flood damage before the county would waive tipping fees. What difference does it make what dollar is used for what part of the project? If I donate $100.00 I don't care if it buys bricks and mortar, 2x4s or bandages and polysporin as long as it gets used to further the project. Well at least it's no longer just the natives blocking council from achieving it's goals, we now have Dr. Madill in cahoots with them.
ReplyDeleteI know what we need to arrive at decisions on both flood relief and the Dunnville Health Care Centre, we need to hire some more consultants. A consultant's consultant could tell us whether the consultants who recommended a half million dollar investment six years ago were right or wrong. Then a garbage consultant could surely come up with a process to investigate garbage for flood damage, thereby ensuring that people who in some cases have little left but garbage aren't cheating the rest of us out of much needed garbage profits with which the county could hire another consultant to advise them on how to rescue Dr. Madill from the native insurgents who have coerced him into helping them sabotage all of the good will which we would otherwise be witnessing from our council and staff. Feel free to pass these ideas along to your consulants for consultation.
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone for your comments, some are quite interesting!
ReplyDeleteWhen I posted this article by Karen I didn't have a lot to say, but I do have some questions.
My first concern was is this a motion or a resolution by council? My understanding is that when a decision is made by council there is a time frame for reconsideration, and in my opinion that time is up. The following is some information from the Municipal Act in regards to quashing a resolution. Now these rules are if we want to quash, but I am sure the same would be if council changes it's stand;
Quashing By-laws
Restriction on quashing by-law
272. A by-law passed in good faith under any Act shall not be quashed or open to review in whole or in part by any court because of the unreasonableness or supposed unreasonableness of the by-law. 2001, c. 25, s. 272.
Application to quash by-law
273. (1) Upon the application of any person, the Superior Court of Justice may quash a by-law of a municipality in whole or in part for illegality. 2001, c. 25, s. 273 (1).
Definition
(2) In this section,“by-law” includes an order or resolution. 2001, c. 25, s. 273 (2).
Inquiry
(3) If an application to quash alleges a contravention of subsection 90 (3) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, the Superior Court of Justice may direct an inquiry into the alleged contravention to be held before an official examiner or a judge of the court, and the evidence of the witnesses in the inquiry shall be given under oath and shall form part of the evidence in the application to quash. 2001, c. 25, s. 273 (3).
Other cases
(4) The court may direct that nothing shall be done under the by-law until the application is disposed of. 2001, c. 25, s. 273 (4).
Timing
(5) An application to quash a by-law in whole or in part, subject to section 415, shall be made within one year after the passing of the by-law. 2001, c. 25, s. 273 (5).
http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_01m25_e.htm#BK321
In response to this poster: Staff did ask for the information and Madill for some reason has not provided it. It isn't the job of Staff to chase anyone for information for funding, IMO. Besides, why isn't the FHT funding looking after this? I believe this was under the FHT umbrella. FHT said that they would not pay for bricks and mortar and that was the understanding of what the County money was needed for at that time. The FHT money and exactly who gets what has always been a mystery. There should be transparency and total accountability with those funds. Those millions of $$$$'s are our tax paying dollars.
I agree with one poster that states this poster has alot of information.
As far as "Transparency and Accountability" that is quite the comment! This council does not take this seriously, they are not accountable or transparent to the residents of Haldimand County. I too have inside information of what goes on behind closed doors, and that is where all the action takes place. Remember Haldimand County Hydro? What we see in council is a watered down version!
I will hopefully have time this week to go to the library and look up this information from 2003. I am on slo mo dialup and I can never download agendas or minutes.
I am interested in how much the "consultant" was paid as well. Those of you who know me know that I have a "pet peeve" with that one!
Boyko made this comment to the press; Later Boyko said staff did not want to put money aside for the healthcare centre, something he described as critical.
Boyko also made this comment to the press; Boyko's frustration was evident after these comments. He said staff ask the same questions over and over again in open and closed sessions and the county's solicitor has tabled the same position over and over again.
I am curious as to what this is really all about. It seems that "Staff" were involved in the "decision making". Staff's job is to provide Council with enough "information" to make a good decision. Council "Directs" staff, "Council" makes the decisions!
The poster has a lot of information because it was public information not "inside" information. Donna, you are corrrect, Staff does not make the decisions, council does. The information was supposed to be brought to Staff and was not. Staff cannot present to Council what does not come forth from the applicant.
ReplyDelete