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home / 世界杯决赛2022

as sask. looks abroad for nurses, some current staff feel left out

while they agree hiring workers abroad is part of the solution, some health current employees believe they should also receive a boost.

by jeremy simes

sep 13 2022
read time 4 minute read
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neil colmin, vice-president of seiu-west, inside his office on monday. troy fleece / regina leader-post
as the saskatchewan government looks abroad to hire new nurses, some union leaders are questioning whether more could be done to retain and accelerate staff already working in the system.

they say the government’s new health care strategy partly lacks plans to support employees currently slogging it out in hospitals and health-care centres, despite agreeing that more recruitment is needed to alleviate pressures.

“we note that the (human resources) plan is heavy on recruitment, but there’s no career path or education opportunities for current staff,” neil colmin, seiu-west vice-president, said in a recent interview. “hopefully it doesn’t happen, but there may be resentment from those staff who, over the last few years, have stayed the course and truly busted their backs providing care to the people of saskatchewan.”

announced earlier this week, the provincial government’s $60-million four-point plan aims to hire more than 1,000 workers over the next few years, with 200 of those employees anticipated to come from the philippines . thirty of them are expected to be working in early 2023.

the province has put out calls to attract unlicensed internationally educated health-care professionals and, as part of the plan, it will be offering accelerated training and settlement supports for internationally educated people.

while many health union leaders and small-town elected officials who’ve had to grapple with hospital disruptions  agree international workers are essential to the solution, colmin believes current staff could have also received a boost.

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he said programs and grants should be available for continuing care aides (cca) who want to become licensed practical nurses (lpn).
“they’ve already proven their loyalty to the place that they work in. they’ve seen the need and they’ve answered the call,” colmin said. “it seems that some money should also be invested into the people who are already here and are going to stick around. you can recruit as many as you want, but you need to retain as well.”
health minister paul merriman told reporters earlier this week that accelerating current employees “would be certainly a discussion” that can happen with the ministry of advanced education.
“we want to make sure that we’re doing this at a controlled pace,” he said. “we don’t want to overwhelm the health-care system with individuals that are requiring that transition time.”
he said the plan includes adding 150 training seats in the province for nursing professions, including registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses and nurse practitioners.
this will bring saskatchewan’s total nurse seat count to 944, which merriman said will “supplement our workforce for the long-term.”
the province also plans to work with partners to develop a first nations and métis recruitment strategy, convert 150 part-time positions into full-time for rural facilities, and offer mentorship and support programs.
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bashir jalloh, president of cupe local 5430, said while he agrees more support could be offered to current staff looking to accelerate, it needs to be done mindfully, noting that gaps could be created should numerous ccas become lpns all at once.
bashir jalloh, president of cupe local 5430, inside his office on monday, march 14, 2022 in regina.
bashir jalloh, president of cupe local 5430, inside his office on monday, march 14, 2022 in regina. troy fleece / regina leader-post
he said there is a program that provides scholarships to ccas wanting to become lpns. he has asked the province to look at that program.
“there’s a lot of people in the system that would benefit from that,” jalloh said.
colmin said lpn seats should be expanded and that ccas should be allowed to train on-site and online.
“we have been bringing up these issues for the last decade and they seem to have fallen on deaf ears,” he said. “we are hopeful, but cautiously hopeful, with this plan.”
but it’s not just hospital and health-care centre staff raising concerns about the plan; nurse practitioners (np) have said they aren’t being utilized to their fullest potential.
the province is considering to license physician assistants in saskatchewan at a time when nps say they could fill the void, especially in rural areas.
“we need primary care providers in communities, and nurse practitioners function as those primary care providers,” tara schmalenberg, president of the saskatchewan association of nurse practitioners, said in a recent interview.

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but as saskatchewan hires more people from the philippines, health union leaders say they hope these new recruits are supported.
after hundreds of people from the philippines were hired in 2008, lots left the profession because of issues with professional skills and also because workplaces weren’t ready to help them get used to working in a different environment.
jalloh said he hopes a long-term strategy is considered this time around so the same mistakes aren’t repeated.
“if you want to have a long-term strategy, you need to actually recruit those people and put them into the education system so those people can stay in their communities,” he said. “it’s also great to bring people in to alleviate some of the pressure, but they also have to look at improving wages and working conditions for people already working in the system.”
jsimes@postmedia.com

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