Ontario New Democrat leader Marit Stiles is familiarizing herself with the north.
This after a tour of Kapuskasing over the weekend.
Stiles met with hospital officials, mayors and councillors during the three days. She says it was an opportunity to not only to understand what their problems are but also to see what the solutions might be.
“I would say people are struggling to in every part of the province right now no question but the issues here are really different and specific and particularly in this part of the north,” she said. “I really want to understand them better and work with people to understand solutions.”
Stiles says healthcare issues and doctor shortages are issue is similar to the 1990s but the major difference is that the north is joining 2.2 million other Ontarians who are without a primary physician.
“What I keep hearing is the importance of training people up here, the importance of getting people into schools here so they actually stay here,” she said. “Sure we have to offer incentives, but if you have nowhere for people to live you have a really big problem.”
