Nova Scotia’s emergency departments are facing a “complete unravelling”
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That’s worrisome to Claudia Chender, leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party. She’s calling for an inquiry into ER deaths across the province after both 37-year-old Allison Holthoff and 67-year-old Charlene Snow died in recent weeks following seven-hour waits for care in Amherst and Cape Breton, respectively.
“Now more than ever,” Chender tells The Coast, “it’s crucial that we understand what’s happening to turn this tide—and that we see progress. And right now we don’t have a window into what’s happening, other than assurances that things are improving when we know they’re not.”
Chender points to premier Tim Houston’s earlier firing of the Nova Scotia Health Authority’s leadership—“which is designed to be an arm’s length body”—and the appointment of former PC chief of staff Karen Oldfield, who’d never served in a health administration role, as interim Nova Scotia Health CEO as creating a “predictable” outcome.
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Meanwhile, Chender says that in the week following her call for an inquiry into ER deaths, she’s “heard nothing” from the premier’s office.
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