Nurse shortage forces northern Manitoba First Nation to declare state of emergency

A northern Manitoba First Nation declared a state of emergency Friday after‐ noon, owing to a nursing shortage members leaders in the community called critical and a crisis.

Pimicikamak Cree Nation also known as Cross Lake - is supposed to have at least 13 nurses working in its nursing station, but as of Friday, there were only four. That's leading to the staff who are available experiencing burnout and a lack of sleep, while some patients are being turned away as the fa‐ cility operates on an emer‐ gencies-only basis.

"For people that don't know Cross Lake, where we're located, we are an iso‐ lated community and we don't have the other ser‐ vices," said Helga Hamilton, the community's health di‐ rector. "If we were in the city, if we were in Steinbach, Win‐ kler, you can go to a walk-in clinic, you can go to all these other places to seek healthcare."

"We have just the nursing station here, that's it. We don't have any access to any other form of health-care," she said.

Hamilton said the short‐ age of nurses is ongoing, not something that happened overnight. She said it's per‐ petuated to a point where it's critical.

Hamilton also said while the centre is supposed to be staffed with at least 13 nurses, the actual number the community requires is closer to 24. Working at four nurses, some who are pulling 24-hour shifts, is "extremely dangerous," she said.

"We need to find nurses where we can, as quickly as we can," she said.

'Health is a human right,' Chief says

Chief David Monias called on all levels of government Friday to help rectify the situ‐ ation.

"It is Canada's responsibil‐ ity, they have an … obligation to our people, to provide these services under the Canada Health Act, along with the province, that's sup‐ posed to ensure that the pil‐ lars of the Canada Act are up‐ held."

Monias also said the First Nation needs its nurses and doctors so community mem‐ bers can get necessary care.

"Health is a human right, it's a legal right, it's a treaty right and we have to make sure these are fulfilled," he said.

Hamilton also said physi‐ cians fall under the province's jurisdiction while nurses fall under First Na‐ tions and Inuit Health

Branch, which is part of In‐ digenous Services Canada.

CBC News has reached out to Indigenous Services Canada and the provincial government for comment.

Pimicikamak councillor Donnie McKay, who oversees the health portfolio there, said the community has al‐ ways been short of nurses. He said there are 8,000 peo‐ ple there and to have only four nurses is not acceptable and can't be tolerated.

He said nurses are reach‐ ing their breaking point.

"I just spoke with a nurse yesterday and you can tell by the tone of her voice she's near falling down, they're ex‐ hausted," he said. "We don't blame the nurses and they're overtired, they're stressed out, they cannot keep up with the clients coming into the nursing station, things are bound to happen."

Manitoba Nurses Union President Darlene Jackson said the nurses in Cross Lake don't belong to MNU, but are federally employed and be‐ long to the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch. How‐ ever, she said the situation is still concerning.

"It's actually really mirror‐ ing our provincial health-care system, everywhere you go in this province or this country, we are in a shortage," she said. "It doesn't matter whether they work for the Feds or if they work for the provinces, we're in a desper‐ ate nursing shortage."

Community also keep‐ ing eye out for measles

Leadership in the First Nation is keeping an eye out for measles cases in the commu‐ nity too, Monias said. As of Friday the province said no cases have been confirmed in Manitoba.

Monias said it's a similar situation to the COVID-19 pandemic where nurses came together to make sure as many community mem‐ bers were vaccinated as pos‐ sible. He said the community will need nurses to provide measles vaccines for those who may need it.

"It does scare me that it will come to our community," he said. "The scary part is that it's airborne and that's something we need to be very mindful about and very careful about."