Information picket planned for U of A today to oppose plans to replace Outpatient Residence with privately operated hotel
EDMONTON – Members of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees will hold a lunch-hour information picket today, Tuesday, Nov. 29, at Edmonton‘s U of A Hospital, to protest the replacement of an essential Outpatient Residence with a privately operated, for-profit hotel.
Closing this important Outpatient Residence, which provides basic accommodation to patients and their families at a minimal cost of $25 per day, is part of the provincial government’s alternative plan for health-care reform.
The U of A Outpatient Residence is for families and patients seeking medical treatment from the U of A and Stollery Children’s hospitals, as well as the Cross Cancer Institute.
The facility has offered a necessary and affordable service to families for more than 20 years.
Once the new special purpose hotel is built, fees for residents are expected to increase substantially.
Capital Health will maintain ownership of the special purpose hotel, which will be operated by a third party. It’s expected to be completed prior to 2008.
For more information, contact:
Dan MacLennan, President, AUPE, 780-930-3301 or 780-232-8392 (cellular phone)
David Climenhaga, Communications Director, AUPE, 780-930-3311 or 780-717-2943 (cellular phone)