Ontario's public health units aren't
inspecting the province's food preparers enough and they're
also limited in their ability to share information on
outbreaks across the province, the provincial auditor said
today.
One-third of the province's public health units inspected
less than half of the establishments in their area where the
risk of getting sick from food is higher - banquet halls,
nursing homes, hospitals and big restaurants with varied
menus.
And a significant number of health units which did
inspections found that fewer than half the food handlers at
high-risk locations had the required training to help them
recognize and prevent food-borne illnesses.
"We don't have any evidence that our health is at risk,"
assistant provincial auditor Jim McCarter said at a news
conference.
"What we're saying is that because the government isn't
monitoring this, there's certainly an increased risk to the
public."
"It's certainly a riskier situation than if these
inspections were being done annually as required."
The report also cites weakness in the province's public
health units to share information quickly and effectively
about disease outbreaks and other health issues.
While the SARS outbreak in Ontario occurred near the end of
the audit and isn't included, the report notes that the need
for the Ministry of Health to know that public health units
are working effectively "is heightened in light of the
emergence of new diseases such as West Nile virus and SARS."
Local public health units can't always share information
with other units or the ministry, the report states, often
because different computer systems are used by each unit.
"This may limit a health unit's ability to manage
fast-spreading outbreaks that may have occurred in other
jurisdictions in Ontario," the report said.
"When you get things like communicable diseases, it's very
important to be able to share that information," McCarter
said.
"We are recommending that they have to do a better job."
During the SARS outbreak, although health units knew they
didn't have the necessary information systems in place, they
"made a real effort" to ensure the information was getting out
to those who needed it, McCarter said.
Health Minister George Smitherman said the auditor's report
indicates there's a lot of work to do to improve the
province's public health system.
The report "highlights that in Ontario, not only do we have
a fiscal deficit, but we have a public health deficit - a
deficit in terms of our capacity to properly protect
Ontarians," Smitherman said.
"I think we've done a lot of work in terms of preparing
better for any outbreaks, but the report also helps to
highlight that as a government we have work to do and we're
going to get on with it."
The audit of the Health Ministry's public health division
found that while the 2002 per capita funding for mandatory
health programs and services averaged $37, it ranged from
about $23 to $64 per person depending on geographical
location. Levels fall off in the northern areas of Ontario.
Even with West Nile virus being a top concern, the Health
Ministry had not yet developed a process to make sure local
health units were assessing the risk and taking action to
decrease the incidence of the disease, the auditor said.
The auditor also noted that health units are having a hard
time finding properly trained candidates to be medical
officers of health - a requirement for heath units.
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