Welland strikes committe to respond to hospital restructuring

Tired of being ignored, Welland city council has formed a committee to respond to changes at the Niagara Health System. “It’s almost like we’ve been phoning the NHS, the LHIN and the province, leaving a message and saying what we think and not getting a response,” Councillor Frank Campion told Niagara This Week. Campion said that while the hospital restructuring decisions were not theirs to make, the issue is a concern for city hall. Councillor David Alexander told the newspaper that a reduction in hospital services makes it more difficult to market the community to potential investors. Despite its highly controversial restructuring plan, the NHS has an operating deficit of more than $18 million and wait times far above provincial benchmarks.