Latest news with #NBNU
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Premier orders Horizon to halt changes to nursing roles
Premier Susan Holt has halted a plan by Horizon Health that would have seen registered nurses and other professionals shuffled into new roles in the areas of public health and mental health and addictions. Holt said in a statement on social media that she was "extremely concerned to hear about potential changes" that were presented to Horizon nurses and other staff at two meetings on Wednesday. The health authority's CEO Margaret Melanson had planned to speak to reporters at noon on Thursday about "changes to strengthen Horizon's Public Health and Addiction and Mental Health services." But that availability was abruptly cancelled with an hour's notice. In her statement, the premier said she and her ministers "have asked that there be a stop to these activities until meaningful consultation is done" with front-line staff. Speaking to CBC News before Holt posted her comments, New Brunswick Nurses Union president Paula Doucet said the two Wednesday meetings were billed as being about "transformational" changes to community care. But the presentations "left more questions than answers," Doucet said. She also said there was information that was "not accurate" about what rights employees had under their union contracts, and about how much the union had been consulted. "I felt very much slighted and disappointed with the misrepresentation of information yesterday, giving the idea that NBNU was part of a consultation process and that we supported this plan," she said. "In reality, we weren't consulted and, number 2, we've not seen any plan." The Holt government has delivered mixed messages on the issue since the opposition first raised it in the legislature last May. The premier accused Opposition Leader Glen Savoie of "fear mongering" when he asked questions about public health nurses being moved into other roles and replaced by licensed practical nurses. Holt promised to consult nurses and their unions, telling Savoie, "We are not doing anything without them." But she also acknowledged that there would be movement. "Change is hard and I can't tell everyone we're going to keep the system as it is, with everyone in exactly the same jobs, because we do not want exactly the same results," she said May 14. Health Minister John Dornan said at another announcement Thursday that officials were looking at how to deliver better care with "a better skill mix group." That could involve the movement of registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, social workers and nurse practitioners, he said — but only after consultation. "We need to speak to the front-line people. Yes, there will be movement in our health-care system. Yes, we will do that after appropriate consultation." He gave no indication the government would be putting a stop to Horizon's plan within the hour. Following Holt's statement, Melanson issued her own statement saying Horizon was in "the early stages of a transformation" to improve public health and addiction and mental health services. "We remain committed to engaging in ongoing, two-way dialogue with our staff and all relevant stakeholders. This transformation will not happen overnight, and it will not happen without the voices of our teams at the table," the statement said. PC Opposition health critic Bill Hogan said he's heard from nurses working in public health who were upset after being told they were being moved and would be replaced by licensed practical nurses. He said Holt's statement was "kind of like on-again, off-again" with no clear indication if changes would happen or not. "I think it's unfortunate they've taken something and made a mess out of it," he said.
CTV News
09-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
'It is killing morale': Redeployment of N.B. nurses will force staff out, says opposition
The New Brunswick government is confirming a plan to 'redeploy' some nurses within the health care system to where they're needed most, but the official opposition is calling the move a job cut. Interim Progressive Conservative leader Glen Savoie said public health nurses are scared for their jobs. He said Conservatives received messages from about a dozen nurses about the changes to come. 'Nurse are being told, 'Your job is being cut. You can either be redeployed or you can take a layoff,'' said Savoie, during question period on Friday. 'We can see that it is killing morale. It is creating chaos in the system.' Health Minister Dr. John Dornan pushed back against the allegations of job cuts. He said the regional health authorities are taking opportunities to 'put the right people, in the right place, at the right time,' 'One of the things that we are quite proud of is that we are not laying our nurses off,' said Dr. Dornan. 'We always have a role for them in different areas of our hospital, emergency care, ICU.' Dr. Dornan said staff would be moved to similar levels of seniority and work where possible, with retraining offered where needed. When asked on Friday, the Department of Health didn't provide specifics about any staffing or operational changes within the healthcare system. The New Brunswick Nurses Union (NBNU) said it hadn't received any official notification about nurse redeployments or ultimatums. 'When workforce adjustments are made, there is a process to be followed,' said NBNU president Paula Doucet, in a statement. 'We will wait to get more information on this before making any comments about this labour relations matter.' Premier Susan Holt said it was common during the pandemic for nurses to be redeployed to other roles. 'We've come in saying that we need different results in health,' said Holt to reporters on Friday. 'New Brunswickers are demanding that they get timely access to care, that they get the primary care they need. Doing things the way we've always done them is not going to get better results for New Brunswickers.' For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
