SAINT JOHN, N.B. – A dispute erupted in Saint John after hospitals in New Brunswick were informed they would be getting new M.R.I. machines. Doctors in Saint John say it's the wrong machine for the regional hospital.
Some believe that the health care system is contaminated with politics over policy.
"Unfortunately in New Brunswick we seem to practice a type of parochial politics," said Keith Dow, former hospital board chairman.
The Regional Hospital Foundation has offered one million dollars, if the government approved the purchase of a more sophisticated machine.
There are different opinions over how much it will cost to operate the advanced MRI. Doctors at the hospital say the extra costs will be minimal but the New Brunswick government says it could cost taxpayers an extra half a million dollars a year.
One stance is that advice from physicians should not be ignored about the need for a more advanced machine.
"We can't have bureaucracy or politics turning a blind eye to that kind of advice. And right now we have our own specialists saying we have an opportunity here and we need to seize it," said Murray Littlejohn, a long-time observer of New Brunswick politics.
The government hasn't shown any interest in changing its policy. Premier David Alward said the advanced MRI could still be installed in the regional hospital in the future.
