Crisis continues at Grace Hospital

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This article was published 07/06/2023 (945 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PCs Ignoring Doctors as Crisis at Grace Hospital Continues

Health care is in crisis in Manitoba, and the situation at the Grace Hospital is particularly dire. Doctors have been sounding the alarm for months, but the Progressive Conservative government refuses to listen.

Earlier this spring, 45 doctors from Grace wrote a letter to the health minister, raising their concerns about the state of health-care in the hospital. They wrote that critical staffing shortages are causing doctors to fear for patient well-being and are harming the ability of health-care workers to provide high-quality care. Patient safety, the doctors wrote, “remains severely compromised at the Grace Hospital because of the current inadequate response and commitment to properly fund a position,” resulting in care “below the standard of medical care that Manitobans deserve.”

Unfortunately, the government has once again failed to take action on this crisis. A proposal introduced by doctors to improve the staffing model was initially approved, only to be retracted just days later.

It is clear that this government does not learn from its mistakes. Just weeks after receiving the letter from Grace doctors, Premier Heather Stefanson and Health Minister Audrey Gordon claimed an earlier letter sent to the minister by orthopedic surgeons at Grace was fake when the NDP brought it up in Question Period. The letter was signed by 10 surgeons, who raised concerns about the hospital’s ability to offer the basic standard of care due to severe staffing shortages, resulting in significant delays and cancellations in surgeries. Despite the fact that the doctors called the situation dire and said an urgent change was needed, the health minister claimed the letter was fake instead of taking action. Either she had not read the letter or she was simply trying to mislead the public — both are bad.

This is an unacceptable way for the premier and her health minister to treat health-care workers, and we all know the devastating effect it is having on Manitobans when they try to seek the treatment they need. While the PCs would prefer to ignore the pleas of doctors, the Manitoba NDP will always listen to front-line healthcare workers and take action to fix health care in Manitoba.

As the MLA for St. James, I want to hear about your health-care experiences. You can reach out to my office by phone at 204-792-8779, or by email at adrien.sala@yourmanitoba.ca