Grassroots effort underway to spearhead new Cochrane Health Foundation

The Cochrane EMS Crisis Community Action Group (CAG) is spearheading a new initiative to improve health care in the town: a Cochrane Health Foundation.

The main goal of the foundation would be to establish 24-hour emergency care for residents of Cochrane and surrounding areas at the Cochrane Community Health Centre.

Brian Winter, chair of CAG, says Cochrane residents who need care at night currently have to travel to Calgary or Cochrane.

Cochrane Urgent Care Centre is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.

"I think it's important that we have a facility that's open 24/7 for our residents. So I think this is a good kickstart," said Winter.

The initiative was inspired by the Airdrie Health Foundation, which advocated — and succeeded — to establish 24-hour emergency care in Airdrie.

Winter says the idea for Cochrane Health Foundation came to life after another CAG member attended a gala held by the Airdrie Health Foundation.

"[He] came back and said, 'Wouldn't it be great if our urgent care was open 24/7?"

At an inaugural meeting on Oct. 18, Airdrie Health Foundation founders Michelle and Jeff Bates presented their foundation to residents.

The Bates formed the foundation after their five-year-old fell ill at night and didn't have access to 24-hour emergency care. He tragically died before they could take him to their family doctor in the morning.

"Before something tragic happens, work on it," Michelle said to over two dozen Cochrane residents at the meeting.

Winter says the Cochrane Health Foundation must work in conjunction with Alberta Health Services to succeed.

"Anything that we can do to improve health care in Cochrane, I think that's what we want to do."

Hard road ahead with staff shortages, says Friends of Medicare

Chris Gallaway, executive director of Friends of Medicare, says he commends CAG for taking on this initiative.

"It really shows how deeply and passionately Albertans and Canadians care about our public health care system, where we see local groups like this so committed to wanting to improve the public healthcare in their community," said Gallaway.

"But it also, I think, highlights to me the failures we're seeing with the provincial government right now."

With burnout and health care staff shortages, Gallaway says it will be a hard road ahead to get 24-hour emergency care in Cochrane.

Over the summer, Airdrie's urgent care centre closed overnight on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays for eight weeks due to a shortage of doctors.

"I'm concerned for those facilities that already exist, let alone communities who are looking to expand the services they have."

Gallaway says the provincial government must step up so Albertans across all communities can access health care when they need it.