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Three top staffers at Brampton Civic Hospital resign
Friday, Januray 25, 2008
- Brampton Guardian
Any effort to restore public confidence in this city's new hospital will have to be done without CEO Bob Richards, who has stepped down from his post.
William Osler Health Centre announced Thursday that Richards and two other senior staff members have resigned.
The sudden resignations also included chief nursing officer Brenda Elsbury and Vicki Truman, executive vice-president finance, and come on the heels of street protests and media furor over long emergency room waits, poor communication and lagging patient care that some believe contributed to two untimely deaths.
The complaints have fed an ongoing controversy over the public-private partnership that built the hospital, with P3 opponents blaming the deal for alleged cost overruns, a shrinking bed count and shortage of staff.
Effective this week, the resignations are part of an overall shakeup at the top levels of the hospital's administration. More voluntary staff departures, as well as dismissals at all managerial levels, will be coming in the next couple of months, supervisor Ken White said.
His resignation follows the appointment of White as provincial supervisor, charged with finding solutions to a slew of problems including long emergency department wait times.
"Mr. Richards has made a significant and enduring contribution to the health and welfare of the greater Brampton community, having guided the William Osler Health Centre through the completion, staffing, and safe and successful opening of the Brampton Civic Hospital," read a statement forwarded to The Guardian Thursday afternoon.
Richards is not the only high ranking official to leave the organization in recent weeks.
WOHC has confirmed that two vice presidents have taken "early retirement."
Whether the resignations of senior staff are part of "sweeping changes" at the top levels of the organization has not been determined.
However, sources told The Guardian staff members at all levels of the organization are finding it difficult to cope with the stress caused by largely understaffing and "negative media coverage."
An unexpected influx of patients checking into BCH caused wait times to fly through the roof, as some people were reportedly waiting more than a day to see a doctor.
The situation reached a boiling point following two patient deaths at the hospital in December, and reports that doctors operated on the wrong leg of a 72-year-old patient.
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Heart Lake & Brampton
