Province must rebuild trust with doctors
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/11/2020 (1762 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
When physicians impart dire medical news, wise patients heed the diagnosis and follow the recommended treatment. The provincial government would be equally wise to listen when doctors warn of serious problems ahead as the hospital system is deluged with COVID-19 cases.
The concerns of physicians were outlined in a 12-page report from Doctors Manitoba to the provincial government. It was intended to remain private, but was obtained by the Free Press. Part of the report warns the province that health-care staffing is inadequate, given the surge of COVID-19 patients and a high rate of exhaustion among medical staff.
A significant part of the report deals with what the physicians say is poor communication from the province to doctors about hospital space, equipment, supplies and staff. The report quotes one emergency physician: “Staff are burning out at a tremendous rate, and not only because of the stress of an invisible enemy (COVID), but because we are left in the lurch by a government providing no communication, no cogent plan and expecting us to just figure it out.”
The lack of transparent leadership from the province is typified in an incident in a virtual town hall with doctors and Dr. Perry Gray, chief medical officer of Shared Health Manitoba.
Seeking guidance on triage protocol, the doctors asked a question that was startling but necessary: will the province clarify who should be turned away when Manitoba hospitals are full due to COVID-19?
Dr. Gray’s response: “I will not be answering that question; this is a what-we-can-do, not a what-we-can’t-do talk.”
Context is important. The question was not gratuitously alarmist. It was asked on Nov. 5 as St. Boniface Hospital had run out of intensive-care unit beds. By the next week, the hospital in Steinbach was overflowing to the point that all beds and the waiting room were full, and patients who had been triaged were sent outside to wait in their vehicles, sometimes for hours.
Fortunately, there is room for optimism in that, despite hard feelings, at least the doctors and the province are still talking, with further virtual town halls between the two parties planned for the weeks ahead.
The Doctors Manitoba report says physicians routinely feel disrespected by an evasive government. They say they aren’t adequately consulted or informed about pandemic plans, and they often learn about the province’s health plans through the media. The secrecy leads to a high level of mistrust between the provincial officials who make the health plans and the health professionals who must implement them.
Although the report doesn’t mention it, the relationship between doctors and the province may have also been strained on Nov. 1 when 200 doctors in the province penned an open letter to Premier Brian Pallister, saying “we are in grave peril” as Manitoba’s pandemic “spirals out of control.” Health Minister Cameron Friesen accused those doctors of intentionally “causing chaos” by going public with their concerns.
Fortunately, there is room for optimism in that, despite hard feelings, at least the doctors and the province are still talking, with further virtual town halls between the two parties planned for the weeks ahead.
These talks will give the province opportunity to better explain pandemic preparations to the doctors, which could help rebuild trust and confidence. It’s also crucial for the province to seek the input of the professionals who have a bedside view of the crisis as it threatens to overwhelm the health system.
A telling test of leaders is how they perform in an emergency. This province needs leaders who put co-operation over conflict, who put the common good over private agendas and grudges, and who work together to ensure the health system is at its strongest when Manitobans need it most.
