Winnipeg Free Press http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/confidential-report-finds-high-profile-manitobans--- including-politicians-and-star-athletes----may-have-jumped-the-queue-for-mris-419663233.html

Confidential report finds politicians and star athletes may have jumped the queue for MRIs

By: Kevin Rollason and Jane Gerster

Provincial health ministers, senior Winnipeg Regional Health Authority officials, high-profile donors and sports stars received "potential preferential treatment" to get speedier access to MRI scans, a confidential report obtained by the Free Press finds.

In the document, provincial auditor general Norm Ricard flagged 92 cases between 2008 and March 2016 as "instances of potential preferential treatment."

Fifty-nine of those cases involved professional athletes, including 44 and 15 Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In the remaining cases highlighted in the seven-page report prepared by the office of the auditor general, 14 were donors, eight were radiologists, six were politicians, four were senior WRHA managers and one was a board member for the health authority.

Theresa Oswald and Sharon Blady were NDP health ministers, while Dave Chomiak was a former health minister at the time of their MRIs. The list also includes then-mayor Sam Katz, WRHA CEO Milton Sussman, who was deputy of minister of health at the time, WRHA chief operating officer Real Cloutier and vice-presidents Catherine Cook and Dave Leschasin.

Ricard first sounded the alarm on preferential access in a scathing report released two weeks ago. He said some patients — professional athletes with private insurance and patients "with influence" — were being prioritized. The report on MRI management criticized everything from preferential access to lengthy delays to unnecessary and inappropriate scans. The report also included two dozen recommendations aimed mostly at standardizing protocols and requests for MRIs.

At the time the auditor general’s report was released, Dr. Brock Wright, the WRHA’s chief medical officer, said access to diagnostic services "should be based on medical need," but admitted many athletes get MRIs done faster because their injuries tend to be acute and not chronic, warranting more urgent care.

However, he doesn’t believe politicians, senior WRHA management or prominent Winnipeggers are receiving preferential access.

"Do I have a lot of concerns that there’s a lot of abuse of the system in that regard? To be honest, I really don’t," Wright told the Free Press Monday. "If we ever had evidence that somebody is getting preferred access, we would take very definitive action."

The WRHA conducted an internal audit into the cases involving the four senior managers listed in the auditor general’s report. The results indicated no preferred access, said Diane Jensen, the internal auditor.

Two were assigned priority codes based on medical needs, Jensen said, and "no other patients were cancelled or moved or delayed to accommodate (them)." The auditor general’s report specifically addresses the need for a provincewide priority code system.

In another case, Jensen said a senior manager was able to get an MRI fairly quickly because the person was in the building when an appointment finished up earlier. But, she cautioned, regular Manitobans are also able to take advantage of last-minute openings.

The results of the internal audit coupled with the fact the auditor general sounded the potential alarm without speaking to the medical professionals associated with each person’s care are enough for Wright to consider it case closed on the other prominent people on the list.

"If we had found evidence of any kind of misuse of the system, I strongly suspect we would have broadened our review," Wright said, but "we feel that we can move forward with the recommendations."

Near the end of her seven-year tenure as Manitoba’s health minister, Oswald said she went for an MRI at the Pan Am Clinic to look at a neck and shoulder injury.

She said her scan was scheduled for Jan. 18, 2013, but Oswald, now the executive director of the Women’s Health Clinic, said she got claustrophobic and it had to be rescheduled. She went back Jan. 30.

Oswald said she was dismayed to learn Monday that both her scans had been flagged by the auditor general for "potential preferential treatment."

"I just followed what it was the physician told me to do," she said. "There was certainly never intervention on my part, to be sure, about getting into any sort of line in an expedited way."

Oswald said the auditor general never contacted her to find out anything about her MRI, saying the call from the Free Press was the first she had heard of it.

Another politician on the list, Conservative MP James Bezan (Selkirk-Interlake-Eastman), said he was surprised to hear his MRI had been flagged for potential preferred treatment, especially since he remembers waiting at least five months for the scan.

"Since it wasn’t emergent I waited," said Bezan, who had a separated shoulder. He joined the waiting list at the end of summer 2011, got the MRI in January 2012, and had surgery the following summer.

Bob Freedman, who was on the WRHA board at the time, is listed as having received two MRIs on March 4 and April 25, 2014. Freedman said he needed the MRIs because of a gall bladder attack and the life threatening complications he had after his subsequent surgery.

"My doctor said if I hadn’t been in good health I wouldn’t be here today," he said on Monday.

Freedman, like Oswald and Bezan, said he is on the list even though "I’ve never received a phone call (from the auditor general)."

Neither Blady nor Chomiak could be reached for comment. Katz did not respond to an email request for comment.

The provincial government was shut down for Easter Monday. Ricard could not be reached for comment while a spokeswoman said Health Minister Kelvin Goertzen was unavailable for comment.

In the case of the professional athletes, many of the names are well-known to fans of the Jets and Blue Bombers. The document shows several current and former players, such as oft-injured Evander Kane and Zach Bogosian, assistant captain Dustin Byfuglien and former starting quarterback Drew Willy, had multiple MRIs, some just weeks apart.

Spokesmen for both the Bombers and Jets declined to comment, citing privacy issues.

Interim NDP leader Flor Marcelino said in a statement all Manitobans should receive "treatment according to medical need...

"No other consideration should be relevant."

Marcelino said no NDP MLA has ever "sought, requested or knowingly received preferential treatment for medical services" and even the auditor general’s report said he couldn’t find "evidence that conclusively determined that some persons of influence sought expedited access."

But Marcelino said all the people listed in the report should receive an apology from the auditor general, health minister and the department of Health, Seniors and Active Living for the breach of private medical information.

"All Manitobans have a right to privacy," she said. "The inappropriate disclosure of numerous patients’ private medical information is wrong and deeply concerning.

"The auditor general has a duty to set the record straight. The improper disclosure of private medical information has cast an unwarranted cloud on the reputations of many individuals." http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/manitoba-moose/team-battled-to-the-finish- 419676343.html

Team battled to the finish

By: Mike McIntyre

THEY didn’t have anything left to play for except pride. But the showed they had plenty of fight left in them — both figuratively and literally — as they ended their season in memorable fashion.

The Moose played the role of spoilers, beating Cleveland 1-0 Friday night in a must-win game for the Monsters that ultimately cost them a playoff spot. It was a physical, chippy affair in Ohio that included a second-period brawl that spilled into the Manitoba bench.

Moose enforcer Darren Kramer was ejected after being given a rare "fighting off the playing surface" game misconduct. He traded blows with a Cleveland player — despite not being on the ice at the time. Kramer received a three-game suspension on Monday that carries over to next season.

Kramer had no regrets Monday before the suspension was announced, saying he was coming to the defence of what he felt were liberties being taken with his teammates.

"That’s how we want to build this team. Everybody has each other’s back, be a tough team to play against. We’re building something here," said Kramer. "This city deserves playoff hockey, both with the Jets and with the Moose. And I think it’s coming pretty quick."

Moose captain Patrice Cormier also dropped the gloves, saying he always tries to lead by example.

"It wasn’t planned, that’s for sure. We said we were going to go out and play hard for each other and one thing led to another and it kind of got out of hand a little bit," said Cormier.

Manitoba head coach Pascal Vincent also began his off-season a couple hours earlier after being handed a game misconduct for "abuse of officials." It was a rare outburst for the usually stoic Vincent, who was unhappy his team had taken 11 penalties to Cleveland’s two through the first four-and-a-half periods of their two-game final series.

"It’s an emotional game and I told the referee what I thought," said Vincent.

He credited his team with finishing the season right — on a 4-1-1 run — and not simply going through the motions.

"The effort of our team has never been a problem. We didn’t doubt the fact they would show up," he said. "There’s a lot of pride in that room and we wanted to finish the season properly. It was a playoff type of game and we wanted to create that type of atmosphere. http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/manitoba-moose/moose-season-success-not- entirely-measured-by-win-loss-record-419641383.html

Moose season's success not entirely measured by win-loss record

By: Mike McIntyre

For some, there was growth and development and even opportunity. For others, frustration and disappointment as they slid further down the organizational depth chart.

Such is life in the , where the only constant is change. And the Manitoba Moose certainly experienced plenty of that during what turned out to be year filled with numerous ups and downs. Players, coaches and staff gathered for one final time on Monday for medicals and exit interviews before heading their separate ways to begin the off-season.

It might be easy to call this Moose campaign a failure, considering they finished far out of the playoff picture for a second straight year since returning to Winnipeg.

But there is more here than meets the eye, where true success isn't always judged by a win-loss record.

Players like Kyle Connor, Jack Roslovic, Eric Comrie and Nelson Nogier took significant steps this season. All four made their NHL debuts and will continue pushing for work with the Winnipeg Jets in the future.

"It was nice being able to get that experience under my belt and I think it just sets me up for a really good spot to work this summer," Nogier said Monday.

The kids were certainly alright, as Roslovic led the Moose in points, Connor led the team in goals and Comrie solidified himself as a solid No. 1 goalie at this level. All told, a dozen different players wore both aMoose and a Jets jersey at some point this year.

"I think it was a good season, I took strides as a player and got better. I got more consistent at this level about playing the right way for the whole game," said Connor. "I think it all kind of fell into place."

Brendan Lemieux likely would have made it 13 Moose players suiting up for the Jets if not for suffering a broken foot last month which sidelined him for the remainder of the year. It was the same injury he suffered in training camp last fall which delayed the start of his year.

"It was definitely a tough year for me. But a lot of growth I thought in my game," Lemieux said Monday. He's chomping at the bit to show the big club he can be a difference-maker as early as next season.

The Jets made a couple of free agent depth signings last summer in the form of defenceman Brian Strait and forward Quinton Howden. Both expressed regrets Monday at how their seasons played out on a personal level, with each appearing in just five NHL games.

"It was a little disappointing for me, obviously not being able to be with the Jets a little bit more. But I enjoyed my role here helping out the younger guys. We had a fun team and it was nice to see everybody take steps," said Strait.

Howden suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in early March but said he relished the opportunity to play pro hockey in his home province. He also sung the praises of the team's prospects.

"The young guys that we had here this year are exceptional. This team is definitely headed in the right direction," said Howden.

Jets prospects such as Chase De Leo, JC Lipon and Jimmy Lodge continued to show signs of improvement, while others such as Ryan Olsen, Scott Kosmachuk, Jan Kostalek and Brendan Kichton battled inconsistency and found themselves as healthy scratches at various points.

"Looking at my numbers, not the best year for me. I dealt with a lot of adversity this year," Kichton said Monday. He led the Moose in scoring last year with 11 goals and 30 assists, but put up just one and 22 helpers in 63 games this season which included breaking his finger in the first game of the year.

"I felt like it was a bit of an outlier year as evident by my previous numbers. Everything happens for a reason, right? Maybe having this year helped me improve my mentality and helps me down the road," said Kichton.

With so many call-ups and injuries, the Moose ended up dressing 46 different players this season including 13 who spent time in the ECHL. One of those, Dan DeSalvo, earned himself an AHL deal early in the season and finished third on the Moose in scoring.

There were also surprising contributions from defencemen Kevin Czuczman and Peter Stoykewych, who both had solid campaigns on the blue-line while playing on AHL-only contracts.

"I absolutely love it here. Great city, honestly one of the best places I've ever played. I have nothing but good things to say about this organization. Head-to-toe it is first class," Czuczman said Monday on his hopes to return to Winnipeg next season.

TSN 1290 (AUDIO LINKS) http://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/vincent-we-finished-the-season-the-right-way-1.726575

Vincent: We finished the season the right way

Manitoba Moose head coach Pascal Vincent joins Rick Ralph to recap the 2016-17 Manitoba Moose season.