Closure of Hamilton cancer treatment hostel inhumane and misguided

HAMILTON, ON, Nov. 10, 2014 /CNW/ - The decision by Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) to close down the assisted residence that it provides for patients who receive chemotherapy is wrong and should be reconsidered, the union representing staff there said today. Patients come from Kenora and out of province to receive specialized chemotherapy and are housed in comfortable accommodation staffed by nurses who monitor their wellbeing and provide care.

"The Hospital's plan to put cancer patients up at downtown Hamilton hotels will be much more expensive, but more importantly, will not provide these patients with a loving and caring environment in which to recover," said Dave Murphy, president of CUPE Local 7800, which represents nurses and other staff at HHS. "Cancer patients, sickened by the chemotherapy, need nursing care. How can anyone believe that lodging alone and unsupported at a hotel and eating at a food court is receiving care?" CUPE has begun a campaign to have HHS reconsider the decision.

"This is another example of the ideological preference for private sector solutions in the hospital sector trumping patient needs and cost," said Michael Hurley, president of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions/CUPE. "We hope to put cancer patients and their families and their needs into the spotlight and turn this decision around."

SOURCE: Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (CUPE)

Dave Murphy, President, CUPE Local 7800, 905-518-5218; Michael Hurley, President, Ontario Council of Hospital Unions/CUPE (OCHU), 416-884-0770