Dear Alberta Hospital Edmonton supporters:
I hope you will accept this invitation to attend our next town hall meeting to share your concerns about the government's decision to close 246 beds at Alberta Hospital Edmonton and learn about how important this facility is to our city from Alberta Hospital Psychiatrist Dr. Krista Leicht and U of A Faculty of Nursing Professor Dr. Donna Wilson.
The meeting will take place at 7 p.m., Jan. 27 at the Southminster-Steinhauer United Church (10740 - 19 Avenue, Edmonton). Please arrive early as we are expecting a full house.
The public outcry against this plan has been enormous. Hundreds of concerned people from North Edmonton communities attended our first town hall meeting on Sept. 2, more than 30,000 people have petitioned government to reverse this decision, and approximately 2,200 have written letters to their MLAs.
Unfortunately, despite the immense concerns expressed by people like you, the government has only "paused" the bed closures. We need your help to stop this plan altogether. If beds are closed at Alberta Hospital, the needs of those with acute mental illnesses will not go away - they will simply have to be served elsewhere, and will likely end up occupying beds in the Grey Nuns, Royal Alex and University of Alberta hospitals. In fact, with our aging population, demand for acute mental health care beds for geriatric patients suffering from Alzheimer's, dementia and other mental illnesses is only expected to grow.
We hope that this town hall meeting will help you learn more about the consequences of closing Alberta Hospital and offer you the opportunity to influence South Edmonton politicians like Edmonton-Rutherfod MLA Fred Horne, who is a key decision-maker in this debate, to make the right decision and keep the beds at Alberta Hospital open.
If you can't make it to our meeting on Jan. 27, please visit www.savealbertahospital.com and click on the link to send a letter to your MLA if you haven't already done so.
Sincerely,
The Save Alberta Hospital Edmonton Campaign team
