Let’s get one thing straight. A large number of nurses are not being fired. No matter where you’ve heard it from it’s not true.
Nurses and some other medical staff are being “redirected” and to achieve this redirection nurses at St. Boniface and Victoria hospital are being given “position deletion notices.”
The notices do not necessarily translate into layoffs. A nurse receiving one of these notices may get her old job back or depending on seniority, be asked to move departments or even hospitals. It could also mean a change for those less senior into different shifts like weekend and overnights.
Most will still have jobs. There could be weeks long interruptions in their new assignments as the new model continues to roll out.
The union doesn’t really like it much. Of course they wouldn’t. Anytime a union has a bunch of cranky members things start to become a little bit shaky for leadership which leads to dramatic public statements. So far, to their credit, they’re watching to see how the new system rolls out and if it works without saying too much.
RELATED: 40 Winnipeg nurses to lose their jobs at Victoria Hospital as of Friday: Union
One thing that should be mentioned, again, is the “closing” of emergency rooms. It’s true. Winnipeg is losing an ER and one Urgent Care facility. The Concordia will close its ER and the Misercordia has already closed its Urgent Care.
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This has people living in those parts of town rankled. They’re saying, “What if something bad happens? Where do I go now?”
I can tell you that it’s eight minutes. That’s right, eight minutes by car from Misercordia to Health Sciences Centre. However, if you or somebody you’re with is having a heart attack you should call an ambulance. They will stabilize and transport right to St. Boniface hospital where all of the heart procedures in the province are done.
I asked this on social media yesterday. I wonder how people living in rural part of our province feel hearing these people from the Wolseley area complaining they’re losing “their” hospital? These people that have to drive, in some cases on icy highways, over an hour to get to critical care only to find out the doctor isn’t in. I’ve heard that story repeatedly from many rurals.
What about those in Transcona? Where is their hospital? My point is, it’s not “your” hospital, it’s all of ours bought and paid for by the taxpayers of Manitoba.
RELATED: Hundreds of Winnipeg nurses learn how jobs will be impacted in healthcare overhaul
I applaud these new changes especially if it does wind up creating more efficiency and better outcomes…and it couldn’t hurt to save a little bit of our money on all this overtime being paid to nurses to staff slots that were difficult to fill. St. Boniface has the worst instances of that kind of occurrence so now they’re putting a stop to it.
As for getting used to working in a new environment with new hours, I suggest getting used to it. I know many people in the private world that have taken that kind of hit and guess what?
They still have jobs.
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