Decades after losing acute care, Oxbow calls for services back

A town representative urged the Saskatchewan legislature to reverse a decades-old decision converting Oxbow Hospital to a health centre. Wayne Mantyka reports.

It has been more than three decades since the town of Oxbow lost its acute care beds. Now, the community of about 1,300 is asking the province to restore them.

Pamela Bartlett, chief administrative officer for the RM of Enniskillen, visited the legislative building Thursday to raise concerns about how the loss of acute care affects local families.

“I have taken care of many different family members and when they get displaced to other facilities, it creates a lot of havoc,” Bartlett said. “We want to see our residents able to stay in Oxbow.”

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The provincial government recently placed the Oxbow and Gainsborough health centres under a single administrator. The Opposition NDP says the move is part of a troubling trend.

“This Sask. Party government is standing by their decision to have one manager split between two facilities 50 kilometres apart. And right now neither facility has an administrator at all,” NDP MLA Keith Jorgenson told the legislature.

Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill defended the province’s approach, saying reducing management positions is part of a broader strategy.

“We’re going to continue looking for more administrative savings so we can have more people on the front line putting patients first,” Cockrill said.

In a letter to the community, the government said it currently has no plans to restore acute care services in Oxbow.