A Sherwood Park doctor made his anger clear in Tuesday’s edition of the Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News. In a full-page ad, Dr. Stan Kobler told the county council "shame on you."
For nearly a decade, Kobler has been pushing for a hospital, and he is "furious" with what is happening in his area.
"It’s not a hospital and the promises they’ve made over the years have been sort of broken," Kobler told Global News. "You can’t call a structure a hospital if it has no surgical suites and it has no beds. it’s nothing more than the urgent care clinic they have in North-East Edmonton."
Kobler’s ad says the county council’s leadership is "deplorable", and accuses them of not standing up for their patients. The ad references Jason Gariepy’s Blackberry being shut down – a result of an email Gariepy sent out earlier this month that was critical of the county after the current mayor praised the hard work of MLA’s.
Gariepy knows the hospital will be a major issue in the upcoming elections.
"People are looking for leadership on this and people are looking for candidates to speak out. There’s a real appetite to see some progress on this hospital. People are tired of waiting," Gariepy said.
Current Mayor Cathy Olesen says Kobler didn’t have all the facts. She says those facts will be released September 30. In the mean time, she will be campaigning with the message the beds are coming in "phase 2."
"Meeting with the ministers directly was a huge first step and they assured us phase 2 is in the planning stage right now," said Mayor Olesen.
As for Kobler, he’s not believing the council’s word anymore.
"I don’t believe that. They’ve broken our promises before."
Comments