The provincial election has come and gone and even though she didn’t win the position of MLA for Athabasca-Sturgeon-Redwater, NDP candidate Mandy Melnyk is still trying to listen to what the people want and help out if she can.
One of the big issues of contention that Melnyk focused on and wanted to fight for during the provincial election campaign was a dialysis bus for Athabasca and surrounding areas. During the election, the NDP circulated petitions seeking support in getting a new dialysis bus passed through legislation. The mobile unit would be able to offer dialysis treatment to locals who currently have to travel to bigger centres.
Since the election, the petition has been tabled at the legislature but that hasn’t stopped Melnyk.
Since the election came to a close on April 30, Melnyk has continued to talk to people in the constituency about the things that they want to see changed and hope will get done now that Progressive Conservative incumbent Jeff Johnson has been re-elected.
She noted that one point that keeps coming up over and over again is the dialysis unit. In the last week alone she said she received four calls and she intends to continue to press the issue for those who might not be able to do so on their own.
“It seems like they are getting the runaround and the health minister (Fred Horne) has not responded favourably.”
Melnyk added that the reports she has received suggest that no one has really followed up with trying to get a dialysis unit in Athabasca and that there is currently no support from the health minister. She noted that there is considerable desire and need within the community to see something like this come to fruition.
“My concerns are the typical concerns for a need like this and the bottom line is that individuals who require dialysis and their families are still struggling and this was a key issue during the election campaign and nothing has happened yet. It’s not appropriate or acceptable for an MLA to not be responsible to their constituents.”
Melnyk noted that in order to make the Athabasca region better for all it has to be accessible for all and this means accessing the proper medical services. For this to happen, Melnyk said people need to continue to put pressure on their local and provincial governments to get the services that are needed in the community.
“What we need to continue to do is press the issue and we need to demand action from this government of which Jeff Johnson is a part of,” Melnyk said. “So I will be working and supporting the efforts of all the people who are concerned about this issue until a resolution comes our way.”
