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Chris Eagle, AHS CEO, Says Alberta Health Needs To Repair Trust

Can AHS Win Back The Public's Trust?
In this Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 photo, Dr. Russell Dohner wears a stethoscope around his neck as he tends to patients in his office in Rushville, Ill. When Dohner started practicing medicine in Rushville in 1955, he charged $2, the going rate around town for an office visit, but has since raised the fee to $5. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
AP
In this Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 photo, Dr. Russell Dohner wears a stethoscope around his neck as he tends to patients in his office in Rushville, Ill. When Dohner started practicing medicine in Rushville in 1955, he charged $2, the going rate around town for an office visit, but has since raised the fee to $5. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Alberta Health Services knows that to regain the public's trust after last month's queue-jumping inquiry, there will have to be some work done, AHS president and CEO Dr. Chris Eagle said Thursday.

For the first time since January's oft-shocking testimony from doctors and nurses during the Health Services Preferential Access Inquiry, AHS president and CEO Dr. Chris Eagle addressed the media.

According to the Calgary Herald, Eagles said in the weeks since the testimony, officials have visited the Forzani and MacPhail Colon Cancer Screening Centre to ensure quality of care has not been affected.

That visit determined the centre's scheduling system is "working the way it's supposed to," said Eagles.

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Duckett Memo

Healthcare Queue Jumping in Alberta and B.C.

The queue-jumping inquiry heard that patients of the private colonoscopy clinic jumped the line to get preferential treatment.

According to CBC Calgary, Eagle said he believes everyone should have equal access to health care and that AHS is now determining the best way to ensure that happens in the future.

“We will look at the evidence from the public inquiry and basically whatever seems to be the best option when all evidence is out — that's what we'll take,” Eagle told the CBC.

Eagles did not go into specifics on what those procedures might be, but did address the need to mend relationships with the public.

“The health-care system works a lot on trust. What I see is some of that trust relationship has been eroded. If I’m on a list for a colonoscopy, I want to know that I’ve got the same chance as everyone else.”

“We’re going to use the public inquiry process to really get to the bottom of what happened there, and obviously we’ll be paying a lot of attention to not only what happens at the colon cancer screening centre, but what kind of policies do we need to have in place for all clinics in Alberta Health Services,” Eagle said.

“This is one instance. You’ve got to make sure that one instance can’t be taking place anywhere else in the system.”

The inquiry has been extended, and further testimony is scheduled to take place this month.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated incorrectly that the Forzani and MacPhail Colon Cancer Screening Centre is a University of Calgary facility. The Forzani and MacPhail Colon Cancer Screening Centre is run by Alberta Health Services. .

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