A last-minute cancellation of expected outside agency medical staff led to Thompson Fire & Emergency Services paramedics covering shifts at the Thompson General Hospital’s emergency department last weekend.
A Northern Regional Health Authority spokesperson said June 8 that the Thompson hospital, like many other medical facilities in and outside Northern Manitoba, is facing ongoing staffing challenges that are exacerbated by the ongoing circulation of COVID-19 and protocols that restrict the activities of medical staff who test positive. When agency staff who were expected to be working at the hospital over the weekend had to cancel with little time left for the health authority to find other replacements, the decision was made to call in pairs of Thompson firefighter-paramedics to cover 12-hour night shifts and assist with tasks such as starting IVs and drawing blood.
Though the solution was unusual for Thompson, it was not an untested experiment, the NRHA spokesperson said.
“This was the result of creative thinking utilizing the contingency planning which has been used in Winnipeg/Altona and provided us the staff we needed to keep the Thompson emergency department open,” said the spokesperson.
The Thompson Professional Firefighters Association, which represents unionized firefighter-paramedics at the TFES, said in a Facebook post that although the challenge was novel, their members were up to the task and very willing to do what it took to keep the emergency room running smoothly.
“Multiple members filled 12 hour shifts to help ensure our emergency department could function as usual,” said the post. “From changing bedpans, administering IV therapy, to assistance at traumatic cardiac arrests, TPFFA members were there and doing it all. While this was very outside the norm for our association to assist with, we always stand ready to support northern health care.”
Firefighter-paramedics aren’t the only non-traditional labour sources the hospital has relied on recently, as public health nurses, a respiratory therapist and management staff have all been called upon to help staff the emergency department.
“Part of our role is to constantly anticipate needs, be those needs for a community, a facility or the region,” the spokesperson said. “We now have another tool in our chest for this type of situation.”
Shortages of workers can’t always be predictably foreseen, says the NRHA.
“Staffing issues happen for many reasons and while we plan for this, we need to continue to be creative in recruitment and vacation planning,” the spokesperson said. “While we continue our recruitment efforts for our vacant nursing positions as well as utilizing agency staff, we value a variety of care providers and are exploring alternate models of care recognizing that an inter-professional approach to care is beneficial to patients. It is important for the public to know when it is appropriate to use the emergency department and when it is more appropriate to visit their primary care provider.”
