HSC nurses meeting with health minister about ER staff shortages
Staffing shortages at Winnipeg's emergency rooms and urgent care centres are still translating into longer wait times for emergency care, with nurses being brought in from other departments to help with the workload.
Health Sciences Centre (HSC) chief operating officer Dr. Shawn Young said despite their busy emergency room, there are still hundreds of vacancies at the hospital, meaning nurses with resuscitation skills from other areas are working in the ER.
"So when we are short on a particular night or a particular day we've been asking the ICU to help and most of the time they have been able to help with one, two or three nurses," said Young.
In August, the average wait time for all urgent care centres and emergency rooms in Winnipeg was a little more than 3 hours– 22 minutes longer than the previous month.
The average length of stay in the ER was steady but still well above pre-pandemic levels at 20.38 hours.
As well, 16 per cent of patients left the ER without being treated, nearly 30 per cent at HSC.
Darlene Jackson, president of the Manitoba Nurses Union (MNU), said HSC adult emergency nurses are meeting Thursday evening with Health Minister Audrey Gordon to discuss the current problems.
"Nurses need to be able to talk about their experiences and give real life examples of what's happening right now and where they're seeing some failures," said Jackson. "And I think that would be very helpful for the nurses to actually be able to bring those examples and those issues forward."
Jackson said she's heard 30 nurses will be attending the meeting.
A government spokesperson tells CTV News Winnipeg that Minister Gordon has met with healthcare staff at various levels over the last year and more meetings are planned for the coming weeks to get feedback directly from HSC ER nurses.
- With files from Michelle Gerwing
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 mm among weather alerts in effect for 7 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres, air quality advisories and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
A fight to protect the dignity of Michelangelo's David raises questions about freedom of expression
Michelangelo's David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue's religious and political significance is being diminished.
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
China's latest EV is a 'connected' car from smart phone and electronics maker Xiaomi
Xiaomi, a well-known maker of smart consumer electronics in China, is joining the country's booming but crowded market for electric cars.