The firing of Alberta’s health board and appointment of a sole administrator by Premier Danielle Smith is seen by some as a welcome sign of a much-needed overhaul to the province’s health system, while others say putting such a weighty task on the shoulders of just one person could be a recipe for failure.
Dr. John Cowell, who had a previous stint as Alberta Health Services administrator, has been charged with improving emergency medical service response times, decreasing emergency room wait times, reducing wait times for surgeries, and developing long-term reforms through consultation with front-line workers.
Susan Martinuk, a researcher and author of “Patients at Risk: Exposing Canada’s Health-Care Crisis,” believes Smith is on the right track….