CancerCare clears staff to use main doors after safety concerns raised

CancerCare will allow staff to use the main doors into the building “going forward” after the nurses union says their members were forced to use a hidden, more dangerous entryway without any security.

Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson said nurses and other staff were asked to begin using a door on the west side of the building starting during the COVID-19 pandemic, as patients were screened for the virus at the main door, but have continued to receive memos from CancerCare since then asking that staff refrain from using the main doors.

“There often are individuals lying passed out by the door, there’s often people hanging out back there because it’s a hidden area,” Jackson said Tuesday. “It’s not safe.”

Jackson said that a nurse who recently tried to use the main doors after a person was blocking the west side entrance was denied and scolded by security, with another memo from HSC following.

“It is such an unsafe area for these nurses to have to utilize, and I fail to see why they couldn’t use the front door as they did in the past,” she said.

CancerCare has five other entrances around the 675 McDermot Ave. building, and staff had been asked to use other doors during the pandemic, but the practice has continued since, said spokesperson Twylla Krueger, to help manage congestion during peak clinic hours and allow security to focus on patient access.

“That said, going forward, staff are permitted to use the front entrance, while still asking for their co-operation to prioritize these doors for patients during our clinical hours,” she said in an email.

The change comes after a string of violent incidents at the nearby Health Sciences Centre campus that Jackson said has spread to CancerCare. About a month ago, she said a nurse reported being randomly slapped by a person in the area while walking from the parkade to CancerCare.

A nurse working at CancerCare who spoke with the Free Press on the condition of anonymity said they had been recently told the change was made to protect “patient confidentiality,” but expressed skepticism.

“Well, I laughed. Every person that works in this building takes a (Personal Health Information Act) pledge,” they said.

CancerCare’s statement, which asks that staff “prioritize these doors for patients during our clinical hours” falls short of what’s needed for safety, the nurse said, noting peak patient care hours at CancerCare are between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

“Ninety-five per cent of the staff in this building work 8 to 4:15… it’s just a joke,” they said.

Earlier this month, MNU members voted to “grey list” the Health Sciences Centre, a union tactic that would see members discourage other nurses from taking on new jobs or available shifts at the hospital, after four women and a teenage girl were sexually assaulted on or around the campus grounds on July 2.

In a memo sent to HSC staff last week obtained by the Free Press, interim president and CEO of Shared Health Dr. Chris Christodoulou said a meeting was held with “multiple partners to address the safety concerns… as highlighted in the recent grey-listing announcement.”

The memo announced four town halls, scheduled on different days in August and ranging from 60 to 75 minutes long, would be held in the food court for staff to express their concerns to the HSC executive.

”We do not take this situation lightly,” Christodoulou said in the memo.

“The road ahead may be complex, but I believe by collaborating and fostering an environment of openness and respect, we can drive the positive change needed to improve the safety and well-being of everyone at Health Sciences Centre.”

Jackson said she has not heard from Shared Health on the vote and expressed concern with the public location of the town halls.

“I do not think it (is) conducive for individuals to be really honest with what was happening,” she said.

A Shared Health spokesperson said they held a two-hour meeting with the president of MNU’s local at HSC on Aug. 8, the same day as the grey-listing vote.

“Private meetings are also available for those who prefer to speak confidentially,” the spokesperson said in an email. “Future drop-in meetings will be scheduled at varying times to maximize accessibility.”

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca