Increase in hallway medicine signals things to come: MNU president

Increase in hallway medicine signals things to come: MNU president

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According to the Manitoba Nurses Union, a leaked memo from Victoria Hospital administration stating that ER patients would be placed in hallways and staff lounges in an attempt to resolve the “current bed crisis ” is a sign of what is to come.

“I think it’s just a sign of the times, and I think hallway medicine and placing patients in areas that aren’t necessarily patient care areas is going to be a reality that we’ll see in all hospitals in this province very soon,” Manitoba Nurses Union President Darlene Jackson told the Free press Saturday.


<p>MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES</p> <p> “We just don’t have the beds in this system, there’s no more flexibility in this system,” said Darlene Jackson, president of the Manitoba Nurses Union.”/> <br /> <figcaption> <p>MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS KITS</p> <p>“We just don’t have the beds in this system, there’s no more flexibility in this system,” said Darlene Jackson, president of the Manitoba Nurses Union.</figcaption></figure> <p>The notice, released on Friday, says changes are being implemented at Winnipeg hospitals and these patients will be up to two days before being discharged and “fairly independent with relatively low care needs.” </p> <p>“At all sites in the region, this will mean moving more patients from the ER and UC to inpatient units, where the patient care space can be created – in some cases in non-traditional locations,” said the medical chief of Victoria Hospital. officer Dr. Ken Cavers wrote in the memo. </p> <p>The decision comes after a directive to ambulances to divert patients with less serious emergencies from the city’s three emergency rooms and to urgent care departments at Seven Oaks, Concordia and Victoria hospitals. </p> <p>Jackson said she heard about the memo with many Winnipeg nurses and suggested the decision may have been made to alleviate high wait times in emergency rooms and clinics. urgent Care. </p> <p>“There’s been a lot of pressure on this government about wait times – so my question is, is this a way to reduce wait times to make the healthcare system look like it’s capable to manage these patients? she says. </p> <p>“Because ER wait times are very public…I think maybe that’s a way for the province to say, let’s get these patients out of the ER, we don’t want wait times to be that high, which means that patients are transferred to areas that are not necessarily patient care areas. </p> <p>Data from Shared Health this week reveals nearly 14 per cent of patients who visited Winnipeg’s emergency rooms and urgent care clinics in March left without receiving care, with the highest rate being 24.1% at the Health Sciences Centre. </p> <div class=

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<p>JESSICA LEE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES</p> <p>This week’s shared health data reveals nearly 14 per cent of patients who visited Winnipeg’s emergency rooms and urgent care clinics in March left without receiving care.</ p>“/> <br /> <figcaption> <p>JESSICA LEE/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS KITS</p> <p>Data from Shared Health this week reveals nearly 14 per cent of patients who visited Winnipeg’s emergency rooms and urgent care clinics in March left without receiving care.</p> </figcaption></figure> <p>“We just don’t have the beds in this system, there’s no more flexibility in this system,” Jackson said. “So I’m not surprised that they’re using all the space they can.” </p> <p>Nurses had to scramble to find places to place admitted patients, she said, adding to the already overwhelming stress and exhaustion felt in understaffed wards by overworked nurses. </p> <p>“Pick up the pieces, keep them glued? It’s something nurses in this province were doing before the pandemic…the workload for nurses in this province is already incredibly heavy,” she said. </p> <p>She said MNU will work with Shared Health and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority to assess the effect of the situation on nurses in Winnipeg. </p> <p>“It’s just about asking nurses to do even more with less, asking them to step in again,” she said. </p> <p>malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca </p> <div class=
Malak Abas

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