Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley speaks in front of Red Deer Regional Hospital at another press conference on May 2, 2023. (rdnewsNOW/Alessia Proietti)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

Extreme Wait times at local emergency room

Alberta NDP leader pledges better health care and leadership during campaign stop in Red Deer

May 23, 2023 | 3:27 PM

Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley greeted supporters in Red Deer this Sunday afternoon, pledging to accelerate the construction of a new hospital, new schools and to make life more affordable for families.

“With only eight days left in this election, we’re coming to the home stretch of our campaign to build a better future,” said Notley to a crowd of 200 supporters, NDP officials say. “Better health care, better education, better support for those struggling with the cost of living – that’s what matters to you. That’s why people are lining up behind our campaigns here in Red Deer and across the province.”

Notley stated that every vote would count to elect Michelle Baer in Red Deer-South and Jaelene Tweedle in Red Deer-North.

“We can win right here in these battleground ridings,” she said. “We can send Michelle and Jaelene to the legislature to build a better future for Red Deer and for our province.”

Notley promised to deliver better health care, including the Alberta NDP’s commitment to accelerate the Red Deer Hospital construction and improve access to doctors and health professionals by introducing Family Health Teams across the province.

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The NDP say just this week, central Albertans have faced extreme wait times to see a doctor at the Red Deer Regional Hospital, including over nine hours late Monday night and more than 11 hours Sunday night.

“Danielle Smith and the UCP’s war on health care has left Red Deer families at risk,” said Tweedle. “They’ve failed to advance work on a new hospital and they’ve chased health care workers out of the current hospital.”

The NDP claimed the Hospital has been plagued with severe staffing shortages under the UCP government. In April of 2022, they say there were 14 ambulances lined up in the parking lot unable to unload patients into an overwhelmed emergency room and Albertans expecting to have their surgery in Red Deer have been delayed or re-routed to hospitals in other cities.

In October, Red Deer doctors wrote an open letter warning that the local surgical program could be “on the brink of collapse.”

Apart from health care, Notley added that the Alberta NDP would create good-paying jobs by cutting small business taxes and investing in emerging sectors.