Thank you.
I do have a short synopsis of our clinic and what we do there, and I've answered some of your questions in my brief.
I have been a family physician for 18 years. For 16 of those years I worked in a small town in New Brunswick, practising in family and emergency medicine. In 2005, I started offering medical services on a pro bono basis at the local shelter for homeless and street individuals and families.
In 2007, based on the need, we opened Salvus Clinic. It is a cooperative partnership between the regional health authority and the shelter. In addition, we partner with many other community agencies in the Moncton area to provide services to the homeless, the near homeless, drug addicts, prostitutes, and those suffering from mental illness who have found themselves with no place else to turn.
The thoughts I share with you today are a collaborative effort between our nurse practitioner and me.
At our clinic, the poverty we see is a lack of basic needs. In our initial assessment, we screen for issues around lack of housing--and frequently that is a lack of safe housing--lack of food, medication, and poor health that results from not having enough to meet basic needs. We evaluate services that are in place and where needs can be further met.
We believe that the key to reduction of long-term poverty is empowerment and providing people with opportunities to move out of their circumstances. This will not occur in the lifetime of one government, and policies that are put in place should not be political footballs to be changed at the whim of the government in power. This means that all federal and provincial parties need to be part of policy building and need to take ownership and responsibility for the plans when they are in power. Non-profits and municipal and provincial governments need stability in their funding so that good local programs can continue to function.
It is our sense that federal moneys are often best used by grassroots not-for-profit agencies. These agencies utilize a large volunteer basis and are able to provide a better bang for the buck. Federal support for non-profit agencies can be given on a variety of levels. Federal grants to projects need to address sustainability from the onset and provide leadership on how to make projects succeed in the long term. Federal tax policies should be modified to encourage local businesses and individuals to contribute to local solutions, thus empowering the community.
The federal government has a role in the partnership with the other two levels of government. It has already existing models of partnership, such as that used in the infrastructure program in highway construction. We have an overseas model such as CIDA, which matches donations of individuals. When implemented, strategies such as these could ensure that moneys given to other levels of government could be used for the deemed purpose.
For individuals facing poverty, is there a direct role that the federal government can play? One of the greatest struggles our clinic faces is the overwhelming cost of medication. Medication compassion programs for the working poor would provide incentives to improve their circumstances. Full deductions of medical expenses rather than tax credits would also help. The government should work with all employers to provide drug plans and coverage, even for low-wage jobs. Restorative justice programs in the federal institutions would help individuals reintegrate into the community and contribute back.
Finally, our clinic has been successful because of the partnerships it has developed with other agencies. We try not to duplicate services and we try to coordinate care. Such is the model for the various stakeholders in the fight against poverty.
In conclusion, we are successful because we allow those individuals with whom we work to contribute back to the clinic through employment opportunities and volunteer jobs. Our people see that Salvus is their clinic, and that gives them hope. Without hope, there is no capacity to dream of a better future.
Thank you.