May 5, 2016
Letter to the Editor,
I read your May 4th article, which appeared in Cités Nouvelles, regarding the rise in complaints to the Lakeshore General Hospital (LGH), and as Managing Director of the Hospital Foundation, I would like to respond.
In a world where everything happens at lightning speed, people may not necessarily take the time to read the entire article to realize that it contains good news: The increase in the number of complaints since 2010 has absolutely nothing to do with the quality of care and services provided at the hospital. In fact, the number of complaints in that category dropped by 38% over the past five years, although the population served by the LGH has increased 600% since its opening in 1965!
If we compare the increase in the number of complaints received in 2014-2015 (71) to the number of annual hospital users, estimated at some 70 000 patients, it represents a mere 0.1%. Now that’s a noteworthy statistic!
These figures alone demonstrate eloquently how our community hospital has been able to meet the growing needs of the West Island community! Moreover, the Foundation has nearly 8,000 active donors, including 2,000 that specifically give in recognition of exceptional care and compassion provided to their relatives.
Here are a few examples of testimonials that we receive on a regular basis:
“I was treated at the LGH for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease coupled with a heart attack and ulcerated colitis. I was in rough shape. I would not be here today had I not been properly cared for. The human warmth, the care and the expertise that I received at the LGH was by far above and beyond the call of duty. It was life-saving!”
“If my father’s life was not hanging in the balance, he’d walk away from the Hemodialysis Unit and never look back. Three days a week he gets up and goes to the LGH for his treatments. The technicians, nurses and dietitians are terrific and we also owe much to the nephrologists. Our family can’t thank them enough. “
Did you know that each year the Lakeshore General Hospital:
- Receives some 50,000 visits to the outpatient center
- Receives more than 41,000 emergency room visits
- Provides more than 19,000 hemodialysis treatments
- Performs more than 11,000 surgeries
- Accepts more than 8,000 admissions
- Handles more than 4,000 cancer patients
- Delivers more than 1,700 babies
- Accepts more than 500 geriatric patients
Let us be proud of our community hospital. Let’s take a pause to realize and rejoice to the fact that we have one! Let’s celebrate its achievements together!
Heather Holmes, MBA.
Managing Director
