Bluewater Health expects to cut 12 net positions this year, as it continues to deal with funding reductions from the province and a corresponding budget deficit.
President and CEO Mike Lapaine told board members Wednesday the hospital faces financial challenges for the next fiscal year beginning April 1, the fourth in a row with funding reductions.
Over the past three years, the hospital has lost a net of about 80 employees as well as $7-million in provincial funding.
Lapaine says these recent cuts will take place across the organization and will affect all areas of service.
"We do have over 1,600 employees. 70 per cent of what we spend is on wages, so it's very difficult to absorb those kinds of reductions without affecting the employees and your front-line staff," he says.
Over 200 staff were notified of the cuts ahead of the board meeting Wednesday.
A meeting with the three involved unions is set for Thursday and letters will be mailed out following the union process.
"These are heart wrenching decisions that are made. The impact this year has been less than we've seen in several years," says Lapaine. "But I can't state enough how impactful the cumulative effect of what we've seen over the last three or four years has been on the staff overall and their families."
The current projected deficit for this year is $1.7-million, due largely to funding reductions of $2.5-million.
Funding for the 2016-2017 fiscal year is not yet known, however if it remains at the same level of this year, next year's budget will be balanced.
The Ontario Hospital Association and Ministry of Health is in preliminary discussions about recalibrating or resetting the funding formula, which could affect Bluewater Health's budget for 2016-2017.
