Joseph Brant Hospital Letter to the Editor, The Hamilton Spectator

Dear Editor,

RE: “Bedsores a hospital crisis” (July 3)

https://www.thespec.com/news-story/9484118-bedsores-a-hospital-crisis/

While it’s true that pressure ulcers are an issue for all hospitals, we take exception with the sensational comments that they are “at a crisis level in Ontario hospitals.” These provocative comments do not present an accurate picture, and will needlessly alarm your readers.

For there to be a suggestion that hospitals use “no protocol whatsoever,” or that they do not treat wound management as a “serious health issue” is simply false. Accreditation Canada provides third-party assessments of practice standards in hospitals, and requires hospitals to have specific pressure ulcer practice standards. Joseph Brant Hospital’s recent Accreditation Canada survey confirmed that JBH meets all best practice standards related to pressure ulcer prevention. Our JBH staff care for patients in accordance with these standards. To suggest otherwise is inaccurate and unfair.

It is inappropriate for a health care professional to provide an opinion on the care of patients where they have no direct involvement or knowledge.  Unfortunately, the comments attributed to the physician expert quoted in the article create a false impression for the public that is not consistent with the facts of these cases.

Furthermore, the article neglects to mention the three years’ incidence and prevalence data publicly posted on our website, which shows JBH’s rate of hospital-developed pressure ulcers to be 4.1 per cent, well below the national average.

Our dedicated team of caring professionals has devoted enormous time and effort to these matters. The community we serve deserves to get the full story.

Yours truly,

Eric Vandewall                                                                        Dr. Ian Preyra

President and CEO                                                                 Chief of Staff

Joseph Brant Hospital                                                             Joseph Brant Hospital

Attachments

Joseph Brant Hospital Letter to the Editor The Hamilton Spectator July 9