Justice Margaret Cameron’s report into hormone receptor testing is a damning overview of the problems that can occur when the appropriate leadership, oversight and accountability are not present in our health care system, but also provides an opportunity for change that can hopefully restore confidence in health care delivery in our province, says Opposition Leader Yvonne Jones.

“Today is a very important day for breast cancer patients and their families and I hope Justice Cameron’s report will provide some clarification into how our health care system failed them,” said Ms. Jones. “I want to thank Justice Cameron for her diligent work over the past year in listening to testimony and making recommendations that will hopefully improve the delivery of health care in our province.”

Jones says many problems were highlighted in the detailed report and 60 recommendations have been made on how to improve such things as accountability, technology and training, staffing and succession planning, and appropriate communications protocols with patients. Jones says it is now incumbent on government to outline an action plan and timelines as to when these recommendations will be enacted.

“There were obvious problems identified with the leadership in the health care system during this entire scandal. If we are to move forward and effectively address this report, I believe there needs to be new leadership in both the Department of Health and the Board of Directors of Eastern Health. The people of the province cannot have full confidence knowing that the same people discussed in the report are the same people expected to improve this system. There certainly needs to be a greater discussion on how these changes are made and maybe the time has come for an elected board of representatives to govern the health system versus politically appointed representatives.

“We now need to see how government will address these recommendations. There are many areas that require improvements and these concerns need to be addressed on a go-forward basis. This report has focused on one area of our health care system, but we know many of the same problems exist throughout the entire system. These recommendations should be used as a guide to make improvements wherever needed.