NDP calls for more aid in northern Manitoba, reopening of Leaf Rapids Health Centre
The Manitoba NDP is calling on the province to increase staffing in northern Manitoba health-care facilities.
The demand stems from the indefinite closure of Leaf Rapids Health Centre, which temporarily shut down on Dec. 27. Leaf Rapids was set to reopen on Jan. 10, but, according to the Northern Health Region, remains closed as a “result of ongoing, persistent staffing issues.”
“There is no worse time than during the wave of the pandemic for this government to be closing health-care facilities in northern Manitoba,” NDP leader Wab Kinew said on a media call Thursday morning.
Kinew was joined on the call by MLAs representing northern regions of the province.
“If an ambulance has to take someone from Leaf [Rapids] to Thompson, it’s gone for anywhere up to eight hours with nothing to take its place,” Tom Lindsey, MLA for Flin Flon, said.
Lindsey said an air ambulance was available to Gillam, Man. when that facility shut down temporarily at the end of last year, but said there isn’t a similar contingency plan in place for Leaf Rapids.
“It’s just pure luck someone hasn’t gotten seriously hurt so far,” Lindsey said. “But we can’t depend on pure luck. We need this government to step up, get the resources we need into Leaf Rapids now.”
The NDP is calling on the province to reopen Leaf Rapids immediately, as well as provide long-term solutions in northern Manitoba – namely, recruiting and retaining health-care workers.
“We need that investment now,” Amanda Lathlin, MLA for The Pas, said. “Not a few years away, but now, especially during a global pandemic.”
The Leaf Rapids closure has forced residents needing clinical care and support to travel to Thompson or Lynn Lake.
Kinew said northern Manitobans have needed better access to health-care services for years, but the issue is amplified by the surge of the omicron variant.
“What has been a longstanding source of frustration, during the past few weeks and months has become an absolute crisis,” Kinew said.
The NDP is not alone in its concerns over Leaf Rapids closure.
Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) is urging the province to restore health-care services in Leaf Rapids.
“The availability of health services in the community is a longstanding issue that existed long before the pandemic,” MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee wrote in a statement Wednesday.
Settee said the organization has met with Northern Health to discuss reopening the facility, and expects an announcement regarding the reopening to be made public soon.
“The citizens of Leaf Rapids have the right to access health-care services,” Settee wrote.
Settee said he requested a meeting with Health Minister Audrey Gordon last week regarding Leaf Rapids, but hadn't received a response as of Wednesday.
In an email, a Manitoba Health spokesperson told CTV News that the letter sent by MKO was received and acknowledged.
"Our government is committed to collaborating with all skateholders in the Northern Regional Health Authority to address issues that the region faces," the spokesperson wrote.
And the Northern Health Region told CTV News they are hoping to be able to provide more information in the coming days on the centre's reopening, and provided information on public health activities still available in Leaf Rapids.
"Even though the health centre is closed, Public Health continues with all scheduled prenatal, postnatal, and immunization in-home visits as well as other scheduled public health activities," the NHRA spokesperson said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Stamp prices rise for the third time in five years amid financial woes for Canada Post
Canada Post is increasing stamp prices for the third time since 2019, a move the Crown corporation says is a "reality" of its sales-based revenue structure.
BREAKING Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, claims he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers for Jeremy Skibicki have told the court the accused unlawfully caused the death of four women, but argue he is not criminally responsible due to mental disorder.
WATCH Avian flu: Risk to humans grows as outbreaks spread, warns expert
H5N1 or avian flu is decimating wildlife around the world and is now spreading among cattle in the United States, sparking concerns about 'pandemic potential' for humans. Now a health expert is urging Canada to scale up surveillance north of the border.
Italy's white-collar mafia is making a business killing
Italy's mafia rarely dirties its hands with blood these days. Extortion rackets have gone out of fashion and murders are largely frowned upon by the godfathers.
The story of how a B.C. man found his birth mother
After his adopted parents died, Dave Rogers set out to learn more about his birth mother. DNA results and a little help from friendly strangers would put him on a path to a small town in England.
Trump fined US$1,000 for gag order violation in hush money case as judge warns of possible jail time
The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial fined him US$1,000 on Monday for violating his gag order once again and sternly warned the former president that additional violations could result in jail time.
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Holocaust researchers use AI to search for unnamed victims
Researchers in Israel are turning to artificial intelligence to comb through piles of records to try to identify hundreds of thousands of Jewish people killed in the Holocaust whose names are missing from official memorials.
Russia warns Britain and plans nuclear drills over the West's possible deepening role in Ukraine
Russia plans to hold drills simulating the use of battlefield nuclear weapons, the Defense Ministry announced Monday, days after the Kremlin reacted angrily to comments by senior Western officials about the war in Ukraine and Moscow warned that tensions with the West are deepening.