The lack of staff at Manitoba’s busiest hospital has forced management to seek help from paramedics, and management says it will use the resource in the future.
This weekend was the first time paramedics were asked to support emergency department staff at the Winnipeg Health Science Center, said Chief Operating Officer Dr. Sean Young.
“They are an excellent resource to be able to help staff and support urgent work. Work in triage, work in [resuscitation]they have a set of skills and tools to be able to provide this service extremely well, “he told reporters at a news conference outside the Manitoba legislature on Monday.
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“Even before the pandemic became what it did, we looked at this partnership so that we could expand our capacity in ED so that we were not so heavily dependent on sister resources alone.
A Shared Health spokesman said in an email Monday that there are no paramedics working in the department over the weekend, but the practice has been used at a number of sites in Manitoba over the past few years.
Young says they have worked at Grace Hospital in Winnipeg before.
A Shared Health spokesman said paramedics called to work at the Center for Health Sciences would help monitor patients and help start IV. (Trevor Brine / CBC)
When working in emergency departments, paramedics usually help monitor patients and help start IV. They do not take on direct patient care tasks, the spokesman said.
An internal email sent to some paramedics and received by CBC News hints at a difficult situation with staff at the Center for Health Sciences.
The Sunday email, signed by Shared Health staff, required paramedics to sign up for a 12-hour night shift at the HSC.
“They’re very desperate to hire staff tonight,” an email signed by Helen Clark’s assistant chief operating officer and Dr. Rob Grierson, chief medical officer, both emergency services.
Young hinted at the fact that paramedics may be a more common sight in the emergency room.
“It’s our opportunity to actually make it more lasting, but I don’t know what those schedules will look like,” he said.
“Weekends are definitely an opportunity for us, because then some of the injuries are the most severe and some of our needs are the greatest.”
Everything but routine: union
The Manitoba Association of Allied Health Professionals, which represents paramedics in the province, says news that hospitals are asking paramedics for help is worrying.
“Shared Health is trying to present this as a routine, but it’s anything but,” said Bob Moroz, president of MAHCP. “There is still a shortage of paramedics throughout the province, so they are not a realistic solution to address the shortage of staff in hospitals.
“Recruiting paramedics doesn’t sound like a sustainable or well-thought-out plan to me, it sounds like they’re struggling.”
The union, which represents Manitoba nurses, agrees, saying paramedics play an important role in the community, but are not intended to replace nurses.
“Community paramedics” should be liaisons to help relieve pressure in municipal hospitals. They are not designed to stand in the place of a nurse. However, they have been regular in Grace’s intensive care unit lately, “said Darlene Jackson of the Manitoba Nurses’ Union in a statement Monday.
Paramedics are not a long-term solution for defective emergency departments, Jackson said, accusing the government of trying to save face.
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