For the record, I'd like to respond to the issue of unbalanced reporting as raised by Ellen Pekeles of VCH in last week's letter to the editor titled "Concerned by coverage." I have been accused of unbalanced reporting in my writing about the Gibsons Garden Inn issue. To this I have one question: How do you give an equally balanced report when only one side is talking?
Staff at the Gibsons Garden Inn are fed up with secrecy and bad feelings between care staff of Vancouver Coastal Health and hospitality staff at the inn.
Years of trying to have their voice heard and concerns addressed with the health authority have ended without any action. Now they are seeking another avenue, the newspaper, to have their concerns heard and addressed.
But Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) remains tight-lipped, saying patient confidentiality conflicts prevent them from speaking to the paper.
OK, they can't talk about specific patients, but why can't they talk about the overall issues and concerns raised by owners of the inn? For example, I've asked media representatives from VCH on many occasions what the long-term plan is at the inn and no answer has ever been given. I don't see how this conflicts with patient confidentiality.
Don't the seniors who still live at the Inn deserve to know what is happening in their home?
And I am personally disappointed in the health authority for not giving their workers a voice. Care-aides throughout the Coast are bound by the authority that says they are not permitted to speak to media. I want to know how the care-aides at the inn feel about this. They are getting slammed weekly and have no way to stand up for themselves and say, "We are doing the best we can, and here are some of the reasons things are not running smoothly."
I personally know five care-aides on the Coast who secretly tell me they are overworked, understaffed and working with people who often treat them with little respect. They are committed to providing care to people who often don't appreciate the physical and mental challenges they are faced with daily.
If the health authority won't say it for them, I will. I think our care staff is doing the best job they can with what they have and they truly care about the patients they serve. Thank you for your commitment.
I think VCH has an obligation to tell the public the truth about what is going on at the Gibsons Garden Inn and I would like to speak with someone locally who really knows about the issues at the inn and the work the staff is doing daily.
I have learned from many failed attempts not to bother contacting local health representatives when writing about a local health story because they refer me to a media spokesperson in Vancouver to respond to any questions on their behalf.
The problem is media spokespeople in Vancouver rarely know what is happening on the Coast. It is common to wait a day or two for an answer to questions asked to VCH because the media spokesperson has to phone all the people I would have talked to locally to figure out what is going on.
As a reporter, I find this aggravating. I want to do my job and get answers to the questions raised by the people using the services overseen by VCH. They have a right to honest and open communication with the people in charge of their health and welfare.
As far as unbalanced reporting goes, it's up to VCH to throw a few more pounds on the scale.
