Staff shortage has HSC emergency department calling for nurses
The emergency department at the Health Sciences Centre (HSC) is facing a staffing crunch over the next couple of days.
“This is a big issue and it's seems to be escalating and getting worse all the time," said MNU President Darlene Jackson.
Shared Health tells CTV News the ER department at HSC is projecting what it calls "staffing challenges" this weekend.
The Manitoba Nurses Union says the baseline for nurses in the emergency department at HSC is 24. President Darlene Jackson says the facility may be down to only eight nurses available for Friday night, two thirds below that base level.
"I think that the staff tonight are going to work very hard, probably with no breaks, and I believe the wait times are going to be very, very long tonight," said Jackson.
There is also a concern that many beds will be unavailable with that many nursing vacancies.
Shared Health did not provide numbers of how many beds may be unavailable or how many nurses the department may be short. But in a statement it did say the hospital is putting out a call for full and part-time nurses to fill shifts, asking those already working to do overtime, and reassigning critical care nurses to the emergency department.
"These efforts to fill shifts will continue throughout the weekend. However, we do anticipate there will be some impact to patient flow as well as longer wait times for lower-acuity patients. The public should be assured that the sickest and most injured patients continue to be prioritized upon arrival in our ED to ensure they get the care they need with zero to minimal wait.”
Shared Health also says these nurse vacancies mirror national trends and says the staffing issues are more of a problem this summer on weekends, particularly in the evenings and overnight.
The Manitoba Nurses Union says more nurses are leaving the public sector and going to private agencies for better pay and hours.
Shared Health says a number of initiatives are underway to recruit and retain nurses, including financial incentives.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.