With Newfoundland and Labrador’s public health system plagued by staff shortages, long wait times and emergency room closures, private health clinics face the same challenges as patients seek alternatives.
Sarah Kennedy, a nurse who works at Physio North in Labrador City, told CBC News the clinic is closed until the new year and is closing its doors to new appointments for now. “The need is astronomical, I would say,” Kennedy said. “The need is definitely out there. It’s extremely busy.” Even for procedures like cervical screening and Pap smears, Kennedy said, he feels the clinic is in the middle of a “blitz.” The clinic recently opened 64 Pap smear appointments, she said, and all were booked in less than an hour. June Tavenor, who runs Catalyst Health Solutions in Paradise, said she opened her clinic out of necessity and a desire to fix some of the gaps she’s seen between acute care and primary care. “The system, even 10 years ago, was really struggling to keep up with the demand and what that gap is,” he said. Owners and operators of private health clinics in Newfoundland and Labrador say demand has increased. (Shutterstock) Tavenor, a registered nurse for two decades, said her client list has doubled in size year over year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. As the province works to merge NL’s four regional health authorities, she said, she hopes to see the government work more with private organizations like hers to address health care gaps. “As the system is repaired and reconfigured, let’s make sure we don’t drop the ball on services that need to continue right now,” Tavenor said.

There is no room for profit, says the union president

But the president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour, which represents about 70,000 workers in the province, says there is no room in public health for profit. “Our position has been very consistent for as long as we’ve been studying this, that public health care is not a business and that private clinics and private health care does not exist primarily to take care of patients,” Mary Shortall said Wednesday. “They exist primarily for profit. When profit becomes part of the public health care system, then the people who need it most are generally the ones who suffer, and then the whole public system is eroded.” Mary Shortall, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labor, says moving services to private health care is not a solution to the province’s problems. (CBC) Tavenor said she would love for her doctor and registered nurses to be able to bill the provincial medicare plan for their services, but that’s not part of the current model. He said discussions are underway with the government and health authorities on how to address the pricing model and salaries in private clinics so that fees are not borne by the patient. “It’s a bit of a waiting game, unfortunately,” he said. “Anyone in the know will know that historically I have strongly opposed the privatization of healthcare, but it has never been a new idea. Many home care services, for example, are run by private operators through partnerships with health authorities.” Shortall said the health care system is in crisis, leaving people feeling hopeless and waiting too long to see a health professional. Health care staff are overworked and unable to take time off, he added. He said he wants to see the system fixed, instead of more private clinics offering some services at a faster rate than the public health system. “You’re talking about a nominal fee, even $30 for a blood collection. That $30 for too many people in this province is prohibitive,” he said. “Over time, the wealthiest of us in our society will be able to access care if they pay for it, but there’s a whole other group of people now who will fall through the cracks.” Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador