Mason calls for public inquiry probing health care

March 11, 2011

Alberta’s NDP Opposition leader Brian Mason is joining all opposition members in the Alberta legislature in calling for a full public inquiry into allegations of physician intimidation and other interference in the delivery of excellent health care.

“Evidence raising serious concerns and being stifled is so serious that Albertans deserve nothing less than a full public inquiry. Albertans deserve full disclosure about these allegations,” says Mason.

Mason is concerned the latest allegations of doctor intimidation point to a worrisome pattern of using mental health accusations to silence critics within the healthcare system.

“Both Dr. Ciaran McNamee and Dr. Raj Sherman faced whisper campaigns calling their mental fitness into question. Any public inquiry needs to identify the source of these rumours that threaten careers and reputations,” Mason says.

An investigation governed by the Public Inquiries Act with additional guarantees of full immunity and public access is needed to investigate concerns about intimidation and interference that has affected the quality of healthcare.

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