LETTER

Liberals: rural west Quebec means nothing

 

The people of the Pontiac need to be aware that the Quebec Minister of Health is proposing more changes to the Shawville Hospital, and theses changes will be detrimental to its future as a hospital serving the people of the Pontiac and surrounding areas – including Aylmer/Gatineau.

I have been told that seven more positions will be eliminated.

I was also told that the hospital is on its way to becoming a glorified CLSC, which will put the final nail in the coffin for this area.  We are no longer fighting for our survival but for our lives.

This will leave Shawville without any major employers except for local stores.

The elderly would have to find ways of going to Hull or Gatineau, and people from Rapides des Joachims, of whom 50% are seniors, would have a six-hour round trip plus their waiting time to get health service.

Pontiac-MRC’s Warden, Raymond Durocher, has confirmed he was never informed about these changes, either in planning them or announcing them.  This is typical of our government being unconcerned with the Pontiac -- and the fact that they will be off on Christmas holidays till some time in February gives people time to forget about it.

It is time that people took a stand and say NO MORE!

Call your MNA, your Mayor, your Warden and take ACTION.

If we let this go (and it affects people in Aylmer too), this hospital will be slowly taken away from us and we will never get it back.

I am asking everyone to take action now, voice your concerns, say NO to these and any future destructive changes that would lessen the high quality of service that we have had from Shawville Hospital in the past.

Jim Gibson, Mayor
Rapides des Joachims (Pontiac)