The Alberta NDP says it is committed to improving healthcare in Lethbridge by investing in post-secondary training, planning to build a new clinic and working to hire more healthcare professionals. Lethbridge-West incumbent candidate for the party Shannon Phillips says the party is committed to establishing 40 new clinics across the province and hiring 4,000 allied health professionals.
“Through our investment in post-secondary and our commitment to stabilizing the healthcare system, Alberta’s NDP, Rachel Notley’s team of candidates here in Lethbridge will deliver on that promise,” she says.
The party has a plan for primary care it refers to as Family Health Teams and it is a commitment to ensure Albertans have access to a doctor who work closely with other health professionals. According to the party, the plan will include expanding current clinics as well as establishing new ones.
“A Family Health Team ensures that all Albertans have access to a family doctor or other health professional not two weeks or two months from when they need one, but in a matter of days with hours that make sense for families and their work schedules,” Phillips says.
NDP candidate for Lethbridge-East, Rob Miyashiro, says this election is about fixing the healthcare crisis.
“One in three people living in Lethbridge do not have access to a family doctor right now and worsening effects of this shortage wreak havoc on our community as a direct result of the UCP’s actions,” he says. “The UCP has spent the last four years making healthcare in Lethbridge worse. It failed to invest in students, seniors and young families. They have ignored our doctors’ and nurses’ pleas for help and chose to fight with them instead—now our community is stretched thin.”
Both candidates pointed to UCP policy they say contributed to the problem but did not have specifics on what would be done differently if they are elected. Phillips says reinvesting in post-secondary is important and adds NDP leader Rachel Notley will have more details on this and physician recruitment and retention later this week.