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Safety was the top issue when the province met face-to-face with Health Sciences Centre workers Monday night.
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The sixth stop on its health-care listening tour with Premier Wab Kinew and Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara brought out more than 120 frontline health-care workers to hear concerns, experiences, and ideas, the province said in a release.
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“After listening to the amazing team at HSC Winnipeg, it’s crystal clear that we have to step up our game when it comes to keeping our health-care workers safe and sound,” Kinew said.
“As we continue our listening tour, we continue to hear feedback from front-line workers about how we can improve patient care, lower wait times and make the system a better place to work. That feedback informs the decisions we make as a government every day – including our vision for the future of health care.”
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Health workers have long complained about escalating violence from people under the influence of drugs or having mental health issues. The Manitoba Nurses Union filed a grievance last year, alleging its members at the Health Sciences Centre were not in a safe workplace.
An arbitrator agreed with the union in a decision in early April, citing an assault on a nurse who was accessing a staff-only entrance.
Specially trained and better-equipped security staff began working at HSC in a bid to reduce violence against health-care workers. The institutional safety officers were to be armed with pepper gel and have greater powers than regular security guards.
“HSC Winnipeg is a pillar in our health-care system, providing complex and specialized care to those that need it most. The concerns and experiences we heard last night will inform our creative solutions,” Asagwara said.
The province noted health-care workers can anonymously share their experiences, views of the health-care system, thoughts on work-life balance and suggestions on how to improve Manitoba’s health care through EngageMB at engagemb.ca/listeningtothefrontline.
– with files from CP
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