WINNIPEG -- Winnipeggers are being asked to make some noise on Friday evening to show their appreciation for doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers.
As part of ‘Pots for Docs,’ residents are being asked to step outside with their loudest pots and bang them in support of Manitoba’s healthcare professionals.
Mayor Brian Bowman said at a news conference that he hopes Winnipeggers take the opportunity to express their gratitude for the work of doctors and nurses “who are doing life-saving work on behalf,” and encouraged people to take part in Pots for Docs.
“Whether it’s on your balcony, your front steps of your home, I’d encourage you to just get outside and show your appreciation for those who are healthcare heroes in our community,” he said.
This event comes after hundreds of Manitoba's frontline doctors issued a plea to Manitobans to follow public health advice, as cases across the province continue to climb.
More than 200 physicians and experts also signed a letter to Premier Brian Pallister dated Nov. 1, expressing concern over the state of the pandemic in Manitoba.
Health Minister Cameron Friesen then came under fire for questioning the motivation behind the letter.
“I wonder at the motivation to produce that letter, to generate it at a time when they knew it would have maximum effect in causing chaos in the system, when Manitobans need most to understand that the people in charge have got this," Friesen said during a session with a legislative committee on budget matters on Nov. 3.
Friesen has not apologized for his comments, but said he could have better expressed himself and avoided using the term “motivation.”
"If I could go back, I would choose a different noun," Friesen said Thursday.
"Do I regret a noun that I used in a heated exchange with an opposition member? Yes. I live in a world of words and there's thousands of them that I put on the record every single day. I could have chosen a better word."
‘Pots for Docs’ is set to take place on Friday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m.
- With files from CTV’s Josh Crabb and Renee Rodgers and the Canadian Press’ Steve Lambert.
