Dear Editor:
When the Renal Dialysis Rimbey Support Group saw a notice in the paper that the Ombudsman would be in Lacombe, we made an appointment to appear before an investigator. Their brochure reads:" The Alberta Ombudsman responds to complaints of unfair treatment by provincial government authorities and designated professional organizations."
Our position, for years, has been that rural Alberta and Rimbey in particular has been overlooked when resources for Renal Dialysis have been allocated by NARP (Northern Alberta Renal Program).
Much to our dismay, when appearing before the investigator, we were told that they could not investigate because it was not in their mandate. The investigator was sympathetic to our cause and told us that a Health Advocate Office was in the process of being developed and would be operating in April.
The RDRSG has been working on this issue for some years now. Looking through some old minutes, we were reminded that at one of our original meetings, the guests were our former MLA, a doctor from Edmonton, a rep from NARP and the senior administrator from the University of Alberta.
The question now is what does the U of A have to do with Renal Dialysis in Rimbey? Does anyone have the answer?
The Ombudsman does not investigate any matters dealing with elected persons or "Decisions made by universities ...". The Ombudsman’s phone number in Edmonton is 780-427-2756.
The Manitoba government has just announced a three million dollar eight-unit state of the art renal dialysis unit. What would a basic three-chair unit in Rimbey cost? Would it be three MLA salaries, plus benefits?
Do we need an NDP government to get critical services in rural Alberta?
Irene Lovell for DDRSG