SOS  representatives Conrad Noel and Herb John attended the LHIN and CKHA monthly meetings.

CKHA Chairs Kurtina Hammerlein and Jennifer Wilson made a presentation to the Erie St. Clair Board of Directors. The title of their presentation was Planning for a Sustainable Model of Health Care. Their master planning /programming process is underway for hospital/site roles and related infrastructure titled Imagine.
On a short term basis the CKHA Chairs requested from the LHIN a 5 year planning window and asked that the Sydenham Campus ED remain open 24/7 during the planning process.
Wilson stated that the SOS was not a bad thing but she did not see the logic in some of them (not sure what some of them meant.)
Hammerlein:  We want their creative input and there is a lack of education. (on whose part..SOS or CKHA?)
Editorial comment: Not a lack of education from SOS but  a lack of trust and transparency towards the CKHA.
Hammerlein emotionally  stated that she wasn't sure what an urgent care facility was yet she used that terminology in describing their next steps in the planning horizon for sustainable care at SDH.
Editorial:  Does the CKHA really know what sustainable care really is?

The final decision totally  rests with the Erie St. Clair LHIN. Switzer keeps harping on the new model of health care. Whether or not the LHIN Board will accept the CKHA recommendation to keep Sydenham open for the the next five years, is yet to be seen.
Switzer needs to finish his work. Now that his boss, Caplan has announced the establishment of a Rural and Northern Health Care Panel to provide recommendations to the government on how to coordinate delivery of health care services to northern and rural areas, Switzer may not make the recommendation to keep or to close Sydenham ER until the Health Care Panel makes their recommendation. 
Editorial question?  Does that mean that the Sydenham ER is in LIMBO until the Fall of 2009 or later?

Conrad's personal comments:
This is the first positive move that the CKHA has made to further the SOS cause to keep Sydenham  ER open. Unfortunately, the CKHA missed the golden opportunity to make this into a formal request vs a recommendation.  Yet, it is their first positive step and we applaud them.