Health P.E.I. CEO says campaign caretaker practices 'worth looking into'

Dr. Michael Gardam says there should be more clarity about what Health P.E.I. can and cannot say while a provincial election campaign is taking place.

In an interview with CBC News: Compass, the CEO of Health P.E.I. said  the province's health-care system continues to be in the same dire shape it was in before the election was called on March 6.

He made the remarks Wednesday, a day after Health P.E.I.'s announcement of some major staff-related service curtailments that will affect hospitals this month — and two days after the Progressive Conservatives were returned to power in the April 3 election.

Islanders learned on Tuesday that the same-day clinic at the Evangeline Health Centre in Wellington will be closed for the entire month of April. 

Health P.E.I. also announced there won't be any anesthesia service available at Summerside's Prince County Hospital from April 5 to 11. As well, a separate news release said, the emergency room of the Kings County Memorial Hospital was going to close early on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

When asked about the timing of the three announcements, Gardam cited caretaker government practices that prevent government institutions — including Health P.E.I. — from making announcements during campaign periods except in the most urgent or routine cases.

Gardam did not say which, if any, of Tuesday's announcements had been delayed because the provincial campaign was underway. 

"Under the caretaker convention, we've been told very specifically that we have to refrain from making any big, significant announcements," he said. "Anything that we're announcing has to be very routine, and if we can — if possible — we're going to wait until after the election."

More clarity needed?

Ottawa-based constitutional lawyer Lyle Skinner told CBC News during the campaign that caretaker practices normally exempt announcements related to health and safety, but that public servants sometimes are reticent to communicate even routine matters out of fears of seeming partisan.

Health P.E.I. did regularly update the public about emergency department closures in Montague and at Alberton's Western Hospital as the campaign waged on.

Gardam said ahead of future elections, the provincial government should have a policy that spells out what a Crown corporation can actually tell the public.

"We were considered as government during the election. Is that appropriate or not? It's not for me to say, but I think it's worth looking into," he said.

When asked whether the caretaker policy is in place out of fear of influencing results, Gardam deferred the question to the provincial government. But from his perspective, he said, "anything to do with health care is going to become political very quickly."

Contract negotiations put on hold

Gardam did say that rules seemed clear that contract negotiations with the P.E.I. Nurses' Union had to be put on pause.

"You don't get involved in negotiations during that caretaker period. You can't do anything that the new government could be held to," he said. "And even if you didn't sign an agreement, if I agreed in principle, 'Yeah, I'll pay you more money,' that will be brought immediately to the next government."

Nurses' union officials said during the election campaign that they were frustrated talks were not allowed. They've been without a contract for the last two years.

Skinner said that while Health P.E.I. couldn't finalize any binding decisions during an election campaign, that didn't mean negotiations had to stop. 

"Finalizing a collective agreement? That would certainly not be allowed under the rules of the caretaker practice because that's a final situation, which makes it very difficult for a future government to undo. But if there's still discussions underway, I don't see why there would be any impediment from a constitutional basis," he said.

Recruitment stays no. 1 priority

Meanwhile, Gardam said some of the issues that were brought up during the campaign as to why P.E.I. can't attract more doctors — including talk of a toxic work environment — were "overblown."

"It really frustrated me during the election when people said we don't know why people are leaving. We know exactly why they're leaving," he said.

"The no. 1 reason people leave is because they are burned out. They're having to do extra shifts. There aren't enough staff around. So once again, retention. The biggest impact on that is recruitment."

Gardam said the main priority for Dennis King's re-elected government will be recruitment "in all of its forms," adding that the province needs to completely rethink its recruitment process for all health-care professionals.

"That is the answer to 98 per cent of my problems and Islanders' problems, right?" he said. 

"Why don't you have a family doctor? Because we have not been able to hire them. We need to fix that issue."