PrintUNA concerned by inappropriate spending on expenses, buyouts at AHS
United Nurses of Alberta is gravely concerned both by excessive executive spending in the senior ranks of Alberta Health Services and the contradictory positions on this issue taken by the province in the wake of media revelations about one executive's expense accounts.
"As front-line health care workers, Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses see the negative impacts of tight budgets on patient care in our health care system every day," said UNA First Vice-President Bev Dick.
"One example is the plan by AHS to close the Little Bow Continuing Care Centre in the Village of Carmangay, which will have negative impacts on the lives and families of the 18 dementia patients who will be displaced," Dick said. "This will be confusing and have negative health impacts for the patients."
"It is very hard to justify to our members harmful cost cutting like this in the face of seemingly extravagant entertainment spending by senior executives," she said.
Moreover, she said, it should concern every Albertan that the government insists the executive followed the rules when the controversial expenses were submitted and approved and yet proposes to terminate his employment and give him a generous payout, his second from Alberta taxpayers in less than five years.
"If he followed the rules, he should still be working. If he didn't follow the rules he should be fired. Either way, taxpayers should not have to pay him severance," she said.
The CBC reported yesterday that AHS's executive vice-president and chief financial officer, Allaudin Merali, had agreed to leave his job just hours before the broadcaster was to air a news report about how he spent tens of thousands of dollars on lavish meals at high-end restaurants, bottles of wine and other extravagant expenses.
In a news release yesterday, AHS confirmed that the departure of Merali was related to a freedom of information request from CBC News about his expense claims from January 2005 to August 2008.
