Manitoba health sector may feel pull as Ontario casts wide recruitment net By: Carol Sanders Posted: 7:00 PM CST Friday, Jan. 20, 2023

Manitoba has opened the door to out-of-province physicians and Ontario plans to recruit from across Canada, as desperate provinces dealing with shortages vie for health-care professionals.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba last week launched fast-track registration for out-of-province doctors, so they can more quickly begin practicing medicine in Manitoba.

On Thursday, Ontario announced it will introduce legislation next month to recognize the credentials from other provinces in order to speed up recruitment — raising concerns for regulated health professions in Manitoba.

“If there was a way to cut through the red tape and get nurses registered in a more timely fashion, that would be better,” Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson said Friday. “The problem is, every province in Canada is in a desperate, critical nursing shortage.”

The same goes for physicians, said Doctors Manitoba.

“Fast-track registration in Manitoba could remove one of the significant barriers to recruiting physicians from other provinces, particularly those who originally trained in other countries,” said spokesman Keir Johnson.

“However, Manitoba has one of the biggest physician shortages in Canada right now, and a faster track to registration will only work if we can tackle the bigger barriers to attracting and retaining doctors.”

“The problem is, every province in Canada is in a desperate, critical nursing shortage.”–MNU president Darlene Jackson

Burnout is at an all-time high, with heavy workloads and demands and doctors feeling frustrated by “system issues” outside their control, he added.

The nurses union echoed the concern.

“We have to focus more on retention — on improved working conditions for nurses and actually listening to front-line workers,” Jackson said, adding, with every province in a desperate situation, she’s concerned about losing local professionals to outside offers.

“What really worries me is the potential to be poaching nurses from other provinces.”

The College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba bristled at Ontario’s plan for other reasons. Throwing open the door to nurses registered in other provinces raises questions of how professional conduct matters would be handled and reported, a spokesman said.

“Currently, there is no mechanism for the college — and indeed, likely any health profession regulator in Manitoba — to investigate the conduct of a registrant that occurs outside of Manitoba,” Martin Lussier said Friday.

“Therefore, how would professional conduct matters handled and reported? Who bears the costs of that?” Lussier said. “There are no reciprocal agreements in place about any of that between the provinces (and) territories, to our knowledge.”

The Manitoba college is concerned there may be “a number of significant risks for the public” in Ontario’s plan, Lussier added.

Meantime, the Manitoba physicians college said its fast-track registration is only open to those who qualify for full, unrestricted licensure and are in good standing with another regulatory body in Canada.

“Currently, there is no mechanism for the college — and indeed, likely any health profession regulator in Manitoba — to investigate the conduct of a registrant that occurs outside of Manitoba.”–College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba spokesman Martin Lussier

If another regulator has verified and validated the proper records, that reduces the administrative burden when they apply in Manitoba. The established qualifications for registration remain the same and must be met — therefore there’s no risk to public safety, the local college said.

Provincial Health Minister Audrey Gordon did not respond to questions about Ontario’s plan to widely recruit health-care professionals and how it may impact Manitoba’s efforts.

Her press secretary issued a statement saying the government is working with the local college of nurses to ensure more nurses from other provinces are able to work in Manitoba: “We look forward to providing more details in the near future, as a part of our government’s $200-million… plan to add 2,000 health-care workers to Manitoba’s health-care system.”

Many in the provincial health sector have scoffed at the plan.

“No one is coming to Manitoba, with the wages in Manitoba this far behind,” said Jason Linklater, president of the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

Its 6,500 members — including respiratory therapists, paramedics, and laboratory and diagnostic imaging technologists — have been without a contract for the past five years.

“The vast majority have not had a pay increase for six years,” he said. “We’re losing people, not gaining people because of that.”

“No one is coming to Manitoba, with the wages in Manitoba this far behind.”–Jason Linklater, president of the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals

Ontario’s plan to not only recognize the credentials of health-care professionals from other provinces but to allow them to expand their scope of practice, is “very attractive,” Linklater said, “especially in jurisdictions where pay is higher and incentives are better.”

Manitoba NDP Leader Wab Kinew accused the Progressive Conservative government of being “asleep at the wheel,” while other provinces are aggressively recruiting health-care staff.

“The PCs need to get in the game, whether it be with common-sense solutions… or putting forward a competitive offer that attracts quality nurses and health-care professionals,” Kinew said Friday.

“We’re ready to welcome nurses and fast track their ability to work in our province.”

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca

Carol Sanders
Legislature reporter

After 20 years of reporting on the growing diversity of people calling Manitoba home, Carol moved to the legislature bureau in early 2020.

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