To the Editors,
Because doctors swear the Hippocratic oath, we make assumptions about them: they are altruistic and trustworthy, they have integrity, they are smarter than the rest of us, and they tell the truth. Unlike many slippery politicians we know, you can count on them to put patients first. We pay them to assume positions like Chief Medical Officer of Health and Medical Officers of Health (MOH). Their powers are extraordinary, according to legislation overseeing our drinking water, communicable diseases, and other hazards to the health of citizens in our province.
After 32 years with Haldimand Norfolk Health Unit, I have firsthand knowledge of the administration of these duties. I recall when our health unit had difficulty recruiting an MOH. In 2017, after 21 years of functioning with part-time or shared MOHs, our two regions were forced by the Ministry of Health to recruit a full-time MOH following an audit.
Our counties needed to offer a hefty salary to find someone willing to come to our rural area and assume this responsibility. In 2018, Dr. Shanker Nesathurai agreed to his salary of $250,232, which secured him the top spot on Norfolk County’s Sunshine List. The second highest salary of $161,000 went to our General Manager of Public Works.
Only a third of Dr. Nesathurai’s regular salary comes from the Province. Our local levy pays the rest. I acknowledge that his position requires good compensation. If you’re the MOH during a pandemic, you are going to earn every one of those 250,000-plus-dollars. You should expect sleepless nights, long hours, and stressful situations. You will hear both praise and condemnation, as you advocate for closing businesses and crippling farming operations, but you can rest assured that your hefty salary, benefits, and pension are guaranteed.
Due to COVID, I had the good fortune to be redeployed to a local long-term care (LTC) facility for the remaining seven months of my career. Here, I witnessed the strain being felt by our workforce in LTC. Like Dr. Nesathurai, they have been working overtime and their workload has increased. Unlike the health unit, the LTC workforce has decreased due to many factors. I observed the struggle and persistence needed to cover shifts or, when that wasn’t possible, to remain at work and divvy up staff between home areas. Many areas have residents with intense needs. All residents’ needs have been exacerbated due to the isolation they have been experiencing.
I watched staff stay for 16 hours, then return the next day for their regular shift. I watched their faces fall as they perused the duty poster and realized they were “short”. Again. I heard staff wonder how they could continue to manage this way. “Something’s gotta give”, they would sigh. And they were right, something did: their health. Many staff developed aching backs and unusually high rates of sciatic and inflammation and other injuries. They coped with sleep deprivation. They had no time for self-care, for exercise, or rest. Still: they KEPT COMING TO WORK. Why? “The residents need us.”
Unlike Dr. Nesathurai, these workers spend their time on the frontlines providing the most intimate care and comfort for residents and family members alike. They cope with fear as new directives allow more/less visitors into the home. Many are still considered part-time even though their hours add up. They are not guaranteed overtime pay, personal days, or professional development. Theirs is not a Monday-Friday, 9-to-5 commitment. They aren’t home for holidays or Family Day. It’s 24-7. It comes complete with bodily secretions, including air-droplets (with or without a pandemic). I pray these workers can find the strength they need to avoid medical leaves or early retirement.
Back to our top doc, and my assumptions: he has studied the determinants of health and would know his extra $160,000 will have to come from the taxpayers of the province and drive costs up, hurting the health of the disabled and the poor. This will hurt their children’s health and their children’s children.
I had hoped to appeal to Dr. Nesathurai, convince him to reverse his decision to seek extra compensation and to make it public, and appeal to other MOHs to do the same. Do no more harm to the most vulnerable in our province. Lobby the Province to use those funds to recruit, recognize, and compensate frontline workers. However, more recent news reported he plans to leave our counties in May, and I assume he will take his compensation with him.
So, I appeal to our Member of Provincial Parliament Toby Barrett and our Premier Doug Ford.
Do what it takes to eliminate any clauses in the contracts of MOHs in our province that allow for overtime requests. Redirect funds to be paid to MOHs to LTC staff.
Lori Holstein-Heeg,
Boston, ON
