The provincial health ministry says it will have "no role" in preventing the planned closure of the Cardiac Fitness Institute (CFI) at London Health Sciences Centre.
London West MPP Peggy Sattler and London-Fanshawe MPP Teresa Armstrong released a joint letter to Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care on Monday, urging Minister Eric Hoskins to intervene and stop the closure of the CFI.
"Since the announcement of the CFI’s proposed closure, our offices have been flooded with phone calls and emails from families and patients who rely on the CFI to stay healthy," the letter stated. "Given the long-term savings associated with this valuable program, failing to fund it is a gross example of being penny-smart but dollar-foolish. We ask that you consider both the long-term cost and life-saving benefits that this program offers and immediately fund the CFI’s continued operation. The last thing that heart patients and their families need is the stress and worry caused by the loss of the services they require to stay healthy."
The two MPPs are concerned for current and future patients due to the long waitlists for short-term rehab services and the lack of long-term support for those with chronic issues.
"Thousands of patients currently accessing the CFI could see their recovery jeopardized and their health status compromised," the MPPs said.
However, a spokesperson for the ministry said the ministry will not be playing a part in preventing the institute's closure.
"This is a decision the hospital has made about how to run and manage its own operations, and that the ministry and minister have no role in," the spokesperson told Blackburn News in an email, adding that hospitals are independent corporations run by their own boards of directors. "We expect all hospitals to make decisions that are focused on providing high-quality care to all of the various patients they serve.
There are around 1,400 patients who currently benefit from the services provided by the CFI. The London Health Sciences Centre has said patient referrals to the institute will end as of March 2018.
"LHSC is committed to ensuring that all CFI patients referred until this date will receive six months of cardiac rehabilitation care," the hospital said in a statement.
The hospital has said new patients will be referred to the ministry-funded Cardiac Rehabilitation and Secondary Prevention (CRSP) program at St. Joseph’s Health Care.
