By Mario deSantis, November 1, 1998

In the last two papers(1) (2) we have shown that for the last two decades the Sasskatchewan Association of Health organizations (SAHO) has provided a corrupted leadership and has prevented the realization of the Saskatchewan Vision for Health as health reform were implemented. We showed that SAHO is an authoritarian organization(3), uses intimidation practices to curtail the freedom of people, uses monopolistic business practices against the interests of the districts(4), follows a management philosophy to grow bigger rather than better(5), and in the process becomes more incompetent and wastes taxpayer money(6). I reiterate that the problems in healthcare are of a systemic nature(7), they began in the late 70s when Mr. Hewitt Helmsing became CEO of the Saskatchewan Health-Care Association, continued in the 80s with the overbuilding of healthcare facilities, and are continuing today with the secretive failure of the Stargarden payroll project and closed door decision making policies of district health boards. In the Spring of 1997 I provided some healthcare informational material to Ms. Stevie Cameron(8) and she replied that the picture I painted in what is occurring in Saskatchewan health care system is a harrowing one; she also added that she regretted not having the time to investigate this health care system herself.

In the last article, I mentioned that SAHO is not presently audited by the Provincial Auditor and I raised the prospect that SAHO/SHA(9) is above the law. Yes, as I am concerned, SAHO/SHA has been above the law for many years. In the late 70s and early 80s, as Administrator of Employee Benefits Plans for this organization, I was instrumental in allowing SAHO/SHA to self-administer the Retirement plan, and later in the Fall of 1981 I designed and implemented in a span of three months the first pension microcomputer system to comply with the new provincial pension legislation. At this same time, Mr. Hewitt Helmsing along with other healthcare leaders were busy in building their personal empires and not happy with their salaries, mismanaged the SHA Retirement plan by not paying their compulsory share of their pension contributions and in so doing they caused the misappropriation of public funds(10). What is worse is not the corruption of the SHA Retirement plan and the consequential misappropriation of public funds, but the fact that these same healthcare leaders went unpunished and continued to wield their political and business power for years to come(11).

The Provincial Auditor has provided in the last few years an outstanding example of a learning organization(12) to the service of the Saskatchewan people. His employees are motivated to be creative and make a difference(13). I believe that it is time that all public agencies strive to become learning organizations, and that if we want to realize the Saskatchewan Vision for Health then public remedies must be taken to redimension the role of SAHO and change their autocratic leadership.

ENDNOTES

1. NEED OF TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGES IN SASKATCHEWAN: Healthcare Reform and New Economic Policies, Part 1 By Mario deSantis, October 14, 1998 http://ftlcomm.com/ensign October 1998

2. NEED OF TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGES IN SASKATCHEWAN: Healthcare Reform and New Economic Policies, Part 2 What happened to the Saskatchewan Vision for Health? By Mario deSantis, October 22, 1998 http://ftlcomm.com/ensign October 1998

3. NEED OF TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGES IN SASKATCHEWAN: Healthcare reform and Authoritarian Management. By Mario deSantis, September 30, 1998 http://ftlcomm.com/ensign October 1998

4. Presentation of the healthcare system architecture to vendors and software developers. Presentation sponsored by SAHO, Sask Health, and Economic Development. Regina, January 12, 1995. A brief report by Mario deSantis. http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-presentArch-Jan12-95.htm

5. Conversation Paper: Economic policies for the computerization of accounting and payroll functions of Saskatchewan District Health Boards. Meeting of July 15, 1996 between Brian Rourke, Chairperson of SAHO, Arliss Wright, President and CEO of SAHO, and Mario deSantis of DigiCare. Prepared by Mario deSantis, July 12, 1996. http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/Paper-ConversationSAHO-Jl12-96.htm

6. Letter dated April 28, 1998 from Mario deSantis directed to all Chairpersons and CEOs of Saskatchewan District Health Boards. http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-letterToChairsCEOs-Apr28-97.htm http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-letters-McKercher-deSantis-May97.htm

7. NEED OF TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGES IN SASKATCHEWAN: Healthcare Reform and New Economic Policies, Part 1 By Mario deSantis, October 14, 1998 http://ftlcomm.com/ensign October 1998

8. Stevie Cameron is a veteran, award winning, Canadian, investigative journalist. And, her instant best seller "On the Take: Crime Corruption and Greed in the Mulroney Years" released in October, 1994 has made her famous to all and infamous to many for this meticulous 548 page expose of the past prime minister and his government. http://www.interlog.com/~lavin/Bios/cameron.html http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-letter-Stevie-Apr01-97.htm

9. The Saskatchewan Association of Health Organization (SAHO) was created in 1993 and it absorbed the Saskatchewan Health-Care Association (SHA).

10. Mario deSantis letter dated April 14, 1997 directed to Hon. John Nilson, Hon. Allan Rock, Hon. Eric Cline, and Mr. Wayne Strelioff. http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-letter-MLAsMPsPA-Apr14-97.htm

11. Quotation from The Leader Post, Regina, April 24, 1992: ...The (Atkinson) report confirms that Regina has too many hospital beds. The recent release of the report prompted the following responses "...It's hard to comment on what happened in the past...", by John Grossman, Chairman of the Regina Health Board, and "...it shows that something has been wrong in health planning for years...", by Joan Fockler, President of the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses... http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-Atkinson-may08-92.htm

12. "THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE: The Arts & Practice of The Learning Organization", by Peter M. Senge, Doubleday, Paperback Edition 1994. http://www.brint.com/OrgLrng.htm

13. Refer to the Vision, Mission, and Values of the office of the Provincial Auditor and to the Foreword dated October 31, 1997 of the 1997 Fall Report Volume 2 of the Provincial Auditor of Saskatchewan. Also, refer to the integrity of the outstanding work of the Office of the Provincial Auditor as it transpires from his annual and semiannual reports to the Legislature.