Unions want voices heard after federal health-care deal reached

The Saskatchewan government announced Wednesday it has formally accepted Ottawa’s offer of increased health-care funding.

The deal includes a one-time, $61-million investment into health care for the province, and a $111-million annual cash injection into the province’s $6.4-billion health-care budget.

Two of Saskatchewan’s health-care unions said they want a seat at the table when it comes to deciding where the money should go.

SEIU-West president Barbara Cape, whose union represents many Saskatchewan health-care workers, said the investment is a good first step, but it’s not nearly enough to address some of the challenges workers — and patients — are dealing with.

“Everybody has seen some dismal and chronic conditions plaguing our hospitals, long-term care homes, and home care,” she said.

“Sixty-one million is enough to get the engine firing again, but to keep those engines working at their top performance, we need to continue to have that regular influx of investment.”

Cape said there should be strategic, targeted investments every year, in every province and territory, and said the $61-million top-up should be invested into retaining Saskatchewan’s current health-care staff.

“I think that has to be our No. 1 priority,” she said, adding she hasn’t heard anything that addresses worker retention in the announcement from the government.

She said there is more talk about recruitment than retention, which might not be the best plan in the long term.

“I think that’s going to come back to bite both our federal and provincial governments,” she said.

Cape said SEIU-West was not consulted by the provincial government on decisions about where the federal funds will go, but said the union should be involved in any further discussions.

“Unions and our members are the frontline experts, much more so than any elected politician that you could shake a finger at,” she said. “We want the experts at the table to help make those decisions.”

Nurses also want their voices heard.

Saskatchewan Union of Nurses president Tracy Zambory. (File photo/650 CKOM)

The Saskatchewan Union of Nurses (SUN) is also looking to pull up a chair when it comes to provincial health-care discussions.

“When we start the conversation, registered nurses must be included in the dialogue,” SUN president Tracy Zambory said.

She said the investment from the federal government is exactly what the health care system in Saskatchewan needs, but now the hard work must begin. The most important issue, she said, is finding a way to get more nurses working in the province.

“Our most pressing need right now is to urgently deal with the critical registered nursing shortage. That is a must,” Zambory said.

Zambory echoed Cape’s comments on retaining workers, saying that should also be a priority for the new funding.

“We cannot expect there to be actual real success in recruitment if we do not have the mid- to late-career nurses there to mentor people,” she explained.

The union head called for the formation of a nursing task force, where nurses, unions, educators and other stakeholders could provide information on issues in pediatric hospitals and emergency rooms.

“We are going to be treated with the respect that we deserve as the largest group of health-care providers in the province,” she said, adding it’s essential for provincial leaders and the Saskatchewan Health Authority to come on board with the idea and help create the proposed task force.

That ball has already started rolling. Zambory said she met with Paul Merriman, the province’s health minister, last week and recently met with the health authority to revisit the idea of a nursing task force.

She said no promises were made, but the door isn’t completely closed on the idea just yet.

— With files from 650 CKOM’s Steve Seto