Hospital suffers growing deficit

Results awash in red ink with $3.4 million loss in 2024-25

Campbellford Memorial Hospital had a deficit of $3.4 million in the year ended March 31, more than double its $1.6 million loss in the previous year, according to its annual financial report.

Technically, Ontario hospitals are supposed to balance their budgets, but in 2023-24 more than 60 per cent of smaller hospitals reported a deficit. Campbellford Memorial last reported a profit in 2020-21, when it made $715,663. Since then, the deficit has grown annually until the big jump last year.

Hospitals in Ontario faced a cumulative deficit of $800 million in the first half of 2024-25, says a report by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents many hospital workers.

I haven’t been able to find an answer for the total year. I’ve asked the health ministry and the Ontario Hospital Association but didn’t receive a response. You’ll notice this story has no comment from Campbellford Memorial either. It hasn’t responded to my queries.

In essence, the deteriorating financial condition is quite simple – expenses are rising faster than revenue. In 2024-25 expenses were $37.1 million, up $3.9 million or 11.6 per cent from a year earlier.

At the same time, revenue, mostly from the province, was $33.9 million, up $1.9 million or 6 per cent. That gap in funding led to the growing deficit.

Total provincial funding was $29.5 million, up $1.8 million or 6.5 per cent. Patient revenue dropped to $1.7 million, down $700,000, or 29 per cent.

Where does the money go?

Mostly to pay staff and those rates are set by province-wide bargaining, leaving little wiggle room for local managers.

The financial report shows salaries and wages ate up $22.7 million, an increase of $2.1 million, or 10.3 per cent. The report also shows that contracted services and other expenses were $2.9 million, up $1.1 million, or 64 per cent.

My guess is that those contracted services include the use of expensive agency nurses. But it’s only a guess since no one is responding to my queries and the report offers no details. The good news is that this issue is not going to die so I’ll add any explanations I can get in a follow up story when they turn up.

MPP David Piccini says he’s “aware of the situation and consistently have worked to assist.”

“I’ve spoken with both Ontario Health and the ministry and will continue to assist as and where it’s needed,” he said.

Piccini noted the government has increased health care spending in recent years, but the reality is that the province is one of the lowest spenders on a per capita basis. Premier Doug Ford has been quick to brag out how rapidly our population has been growing in recent years, but slow to respond to what the increases mean for health care and education.

During the year, the Campbellford Memorial Hospital Foundation transferred $2.6 million to the hospital to purchase equipment. That was about four times the $628,000 it provided the previous year.

The hospital does an excellent job with its Facebook and Instagram postings, and it has a snazzy new website where it highlights its new five-year strategic plan. But it hasn’t posted anything about its financial situation, and I only obtained the results because I asked after noticing they weren’t on the website.

I also noticed that while the new strategic plan has lots of buzz words and hope, it says nothing about how the organization plans to pay the bills.

A report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that in 2023-24, 66 of 134 hospitals—about half—had budget deficits.

“The hospital funding crisis disproportionately impacts smaller and northern Ontario hospitals with revenues under $100 million: 63 per cent had deficits,” the report says.

The Ontario Hospital Association says: “Hospitals in smaller, rural and northern communities continue to face unique and multifaceted staffing challenges due to their size and have a greater need for staffing agency solutions.”

---

You can read all Trent Hills News stories anytime on the website.