(Fredericton) More and more voices are rising in the Maritime provinces demanding that governments address labor shortages in the health care sector, while several hospitals are forced to close their rooms now that exhausted staff are taking summer vacation to recover from the stress of the pandemic.
Posted yesterday at 11:57 p.m.
In Prince Edward Island, staffing shortages are so severe at Western Hospital in Alberton that its emergency department may be forced to close if someone is on sick leave, the door said. -Green Party Health Critic, Michele Beaton. Difficulties in recruiting and retaining health personnel have been increasing in the province for years, she insisted.
She recalled that the western part of the province had “essentially no walk-in clinics, so people have no choice but to go to the emergency room.” When the ER closes, she said, “people are going to travel over an hour to get to the next facility to get the care they need.”
In Nova Scotia, nurses across the province have demanded action to address chronic staffing shortages they say have been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nova Scotia Nurses Union says there are approximately 1,400 vacancies for registered nurses and 250 open positions for licensed practical nurses.
Nova Scotia’s Progressive Conservative government pledged during the election campaign to spend heavily on the province’s ailing health care system. The $13.2 billion budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year, tabled in March, contains $5.7 billion for health care, an increase of $413.4 million over last year’s spending. But Premier Tim Houston warned residents not to expect any quick changes.
Since 1er April, Horizon Health Network — operator of English-speaking hospitals in New Brunswick — hired 11 retirees and approximately 180 nursing students to work this summer. Meanwhile, the Vitalité Health Network — operator of its French-language hospitals — hired 200 nursing students.
“We recognize the workforce challenges in our health care system, and many long-term efforts are underway to improve the situation,” New Brunswick Labor Minister Trevor Holder said in a statement. communicated. “While we are making significant progress, it will take time to fully address these challenges. »
Staffing shortages have led to intermittent overnight closures of some hospital emergency departments. On June 24, the Horizon Network announced on Twitter that it was experiencing a severe staff shortage, and it warned that patients with non-emergency medical conditions could face long wait times.
The Dr Mark MacMillan, president of the New Brunswick Medical Society, said the growing number of vacancies in the health care field in Canada is concerning.
We have seen this health human resource issue come our way for years. COVID-19 has certainly compounded this problem and revealed just how fragile the health care system is overall, not just in New Brunswick, but across the country.
Dr Mark MacMillan
Mr. MacMillan said government action is needed now, but will require a long-term solution.
“In five, 10 or 15 years, what will the patient demographics be? What are the needs in this province? How many doctors do we need in northern New Brunswick, southern New Brunswick, east and west? How many nurses do we need per unit? We need to be more proactive,” he said.
Health sector staff members are tired and need a break from the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic, says Dr Macmillan.
“The past two and a half years have been very stressful and we really need to make sure these doctors and nurses get their time off for their own mental health,” he said.