Brian Pallister admits not everyone likes the changes he has made in healthcare, but the Manitoba Progressive Conservative leader says it is necessary and to expect more shifts in care if he is re-elected Premier next week.
“I think Manitobans want to have leadership that’s willing to do the difficult and necessary things that has the courage to look people in the eyes and say ‘No, not right now,’” Pallister said in a sit-down, one-on-one interview with CJOB’s Richard Cloutier Tuesday.
“You don’t mind being the “tough love Premier?” Cloutier asked.
“No, I don’t mind … you know my sports background, you get used to being booed.”
In the wide-ranging interview, Pallister said there will be changes to rural healthcare. They have already promised to add 80 paramedics and to retain and recruit more doctors, but Pallister has not commented on the transformation underway by Shared Health, the entity overseeing healthcare in Manitoba.
The group has undertaken a massive restructuring of healthcare across the province that will result in a shift of services in the years ahead. Pallister said he knows he has alienated some voters over the moves.
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“I know that sometimes, because I’m ambitious and enthusiastic about making Manitoba better, I go faster than people would like. I do and I know that can hurt people and I’m sorry about that.”
Pallister also promised to invest in “front-line” healthcare ideas.
The past-president of the Canadian Medical Association, Dr. Gigi Osler, said governments must make fundamental investments into healthcare technology to bridge the gaps between rural and urban care.
“We need to look at virtual rounds. Doctors who are connected by technology to patients and nurses in remote parts of the province.”
Osler said there are too many regulatory obstacles between the provinces and within health authorities to make that happen now.
Pallister said he is open to using technologies to make health care more efficient and get better care for rural Manitoba patients.
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