Latest news with #UzomaAsagwara
Winnipeg Free Press
23-07-2025
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Home-care scheduling chaos worsening, overwhelmed staff say
Home care workers feeling overwhelmed and burned out because of heavy caseloads say leadership's response to a recent Free Press report on the city's centralized scheduling office only intensified the pressure on staff over the past weekend. 'Expectations are already way too high, and they constantly ignore our concerns,' said one employee, who asked not to be identified, fearing the consequences of speaking out. 'The direction on Friday was to fill all of the calls for the weekend by Friday at 4 p.m., which is impossible.' The employee, whose position is being withheld to protect their identity, said that between Friday and Sunday, more than 2,100 scheduled visits by nurses and health-care aides were cancelled with notice. That figure represented about a quarter of the visits that were expected to go unfilled late last week. Internal data showed more than 8,660 visits were at risk of being unassigned heading into the weekend. The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority said Tuesday that 727 visits were cancelled on Saturday, while another 782 were shelved Sunday — significantly lower than figures from late last week. Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said Tuesday that the lower total of missed visits came after the WRHA was told last week to remedy the situation. Asagwara said they are also working quickly to bring more 'expertise' to look at the system and recommend changes. 'A fresh set of eyes,' Asagwara said, adding those people could be installed within days. Some of the experts will include front-line workers, including nurses and health-care aides, who Asagwara called 'rock stars' in wanting to provide the best possible care for clients. They will work closely with WRHA leadership and the province, the minister said. However, Progressive Conservative health critic Kathleen Cook said Tuesday it's safe to say that enough time has passed to indicate the switch to a centralized scheduling office hasn't worked. 'It's been four months since they rolled it out… and I think it's incumbent on the minister to say they tried something and it didn't work and maybe it's time to revert back to the old scheduling system,' Cook said, adding she has heard similar concerns from nurses and health-care aides, and raised them during question period in April, only to be told by Asagwara that she was fear-mongering. 'Worse, they assured Manitobans these issues were being addressed and resolved very, very quickly. We now know that was not the case. These problems persist. If the scheduling system is the problem, let's fix it.' Asagwara shot back, saying it was under the former Tory government that the 2023 death of cancer patient Katherine Ellis, who was incorrectly classified and denied timely home care, led to a review. That review produced 21 recommendations, including the shift to a centralized scheduling office. The WRHA centralized its home-care scheduling system in March, in an effort to improve communication, workload and client support. The overhaul has been harshly criticized by workers, who have complained of long wait times in contacting the central office. 'The critic has a short memory, and would do well to understand where this rollout came from,' Asagwara said. 'I think it's incredibly disingenuous of the health critic to comment on a system that is a direct result of the PCs' failings.' On Tuesday, two employees told the Free Press that leadership pushed staff, including resource co-ordinators, to work additional hours. While staff were previously only permitted to take on full shifts, management reportedly said they could now pick up partial hours to help manage the growing backlog. 'Their desperation was showing,' one employee said. Added another: 'They wanted them to ensure that visits were covered until the following Wednesday, which is hard to do when you're already trying to cover thousands of visits that are for the same day and next day.' While leadership was physically present at the office over the weekend, employees said they didn't check in to offer help or support. 'Their presence is being received as an intimidation factor; that we must be on our best behaviour while they are here,' an employee who worked the weekend said. 'Our breaks were also scheduled for the first time since moving here, which makes us feel like children who have to be constantly micromanaged.' Looking ahead to the upcoming weekend, internal data shows 8,152 home-care visits — affecting 2,860 clients — remain unfilled for Saturday and Sunday. The WRHA, which oversees about 16,500 home visits daily, has said those numbers are fluid and often fluctuate up to the day of service. Their latest seven-day average for cancelled visits, they said last week, was 3.7 per cent. Meanwhile, a new voicemail system meant to prioritize urgent calls has been rolled out haphazardly, employees say. 'Nurses and health-care aides are leaving messages on the wrong line, and they are also scheduling people to only answer phone calls for the entirety of their shift,' one said. 'It seems their general response to the health minister's questions is to offer as much overtime as people want and put increased pressure and blame on the schedulers who are already burned out from working as hard as we can with the limited number of staff we have. 'This is not sustainable. The mood in the office is toxic, people are struggling with their mental and physical health, and we are tired of coming into work each day feeling like things will continue to get worse.' 'The pressures are high,' another employee said. 'The expectations are high. The support is low, and the wild thing is that they tell us that we should be 'fully staffed' now, but then post over 50 available shifts for the weekend… if we had enough staff, we would not be needing to post that many available shifts for office staff.' Scott BilleckReporter Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade's worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024. Read more about Scott. Every piece of reporting Scott produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
15-07-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Some patients without Manitoba health cards can receive care in hospitals
A new change now allows Manitobans without health cards to receive care from doctors in hospitals. Doctors Manitoba says physicians are now able to use Good Faith Billing, where they can bill regional health authorities for services they provide to patients who do not have a valid Manitoba health card. Patients eligible for Good Faith Billing include newborns that don't have a health card yet, new residents of Canada, those experiencing temporary homelessness and people released from incarceration. 'This is a small and simple step that will give physicians more time to focus on their patients instead of chasing down paperwork,' Manitoba Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said in a statement. 'Plus, patients who, for whatever reason, are not able to present their health card will have a smoother experience knowing the RHA will sort out the details with their family doctor later.' The billing does not cover tourists in Canada from other countries, patients from Quebec, transients and most out-of-province students. Doctors Manitoba says to be eligible for Good Faith Billing, services need to be provided in hospital settings.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Thompson residents warned to pack essentials as possible evacuation of northern Manitoba hub looms
Officials in Thompson are warning the roughly 13,000 residents of the northern Manitoba city to prepare for a possible evacuation in the coming days, as an out-of-control wildfire burns just north of the city. On Friday, the municipality issued a pre-alert notice in a statement posted to Facebook saying residents should begin packing essentials so they're ready to go if an evacuation order is called for the city, which is a hub for many services in northern Manitoba. A Thompson personal care home is evacuating 33 residents to Flin Flon due to air quality concerns, a spokesperson for Shared Health told CBC on Friday, in what they described as a "limited movement of long-term care residents." The move is a precautionary measure to reduce risks from smoke exposure to vulnerable people with underlying health concerns, the spokesperson said. The province said five other residents of the Thompson hospital's psychiatric ward were also being transferred as a precaution. However, there were no plans for a full hospital evacuation as of Friday afternoon. In a statement to CBC News on Friday, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara acknowledged it's "a worrying time for folks up north right now," but said the health-care system is "constantly assessing the wildfire situation" to make decisions that are best for patients. The wildfire north of Thompson was 16,370 hectares in size, according to the province's most recent fire bulletin on Friday. The fire is still considered out of control. Northwest of Thompson, an out of control fire burning near the community of Lynn Lake has grown to 80,120 hectares, the fire bulletin said. That town's 600 residents were evacuated a week ago, shortly after they returned from a previous mass evacuation last month. This time, Lynn Lake evacuees were taken to Brandon, about 800 kilometres south of their home. At a news conference Thursday, where Premier Wab Kinew declared a second state of emergency this wildfire season, officials said nearly 13,000 Manitobans were under evacuation orders due to wildfires. Garden Hill Anisininew Nation, a fly-in community located about 475 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, began evacuating its more than 4,000 residents on Thursday, when about 1,000 residents were being flown out by the Canadian Armed Forces, Kinew said. Seven flights were planned using a Hercules aircraft, as Garden Hill's airstrip is big enough to accommodate the large military plane, Kinew said. "That really increases the amount of people who could be moved out quickly," the premier said Thursday. The wildfire burning near Garden Hill is about 2,500 hectares in size and is out of control, the province said in its Friday fire bulletin. The province said 500 people stayed at an emergency shelter at a soccer complex on Leila Avenue in Winnipeg on Thursday night. Officials said the Billy Mosienko Arena on Keewatin Street would start housing evacuees again on Friday, while the RBC Convention Centre would become available over the weekend. CBC reached out to Garden Hill leadership on Friday for an update on the fire situation but had not received a response prior to publication. Find the latest wildfire information at these sources: Are you an evacuee who needs assistance? Contact Manitoba 211 by calling 211 from anywhere in Manitoba or email 211mb@
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Thompson residents warned to pack essentials as possible evacuation of northern Manitoba hub looms
Officials in Thompson are warning the roughly 13,000 residents of the northern Manitoba city to prepare for a possible evacuation in the coming days, as an out-of-control wildfire burns just north of the city. On Friday, the municipality issued a pre-alert notice in a statement posted to Facebook saying residents should begin packing essentials so they're ready to go if an evacuation order is called for the city, which is a hub for many services in northern Manitoba. A Thompson personal care home is evacuating 33 residents to Flin Flon due to air quality concerns, a spokesperson for Shared Health told CBC on Friday, in what they described as a "limited movement of long-term care residents." The move is a precautionary measure to reduce risks from smoke exposure to vulnerable people with underlying health concerns, the spokesperson said. The province said five other residents of the Thompson hospital's psychiatric ward were also being transferred as a precaution. However, there were no plans for a full hospital evacuation as of Friday afternoon. In a statement to CBC News on Friday, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara acknowledged it's "a worrying time for folks up north right now," but said the health-care system is "constantly assessing the wildfire situation" to make decisions that are best for patients. The wildfire north of Thompson was 16,370 hectares in size, according to the province's most recent fire bulletin on Friday. The fire is still considered out of control. Northwest of Thompson, an out of control fire burning near the community of Lynn Lake has grown to 80,120 hectares, the fire bulletin said. That town's 600 residents were evacuated a week ago, shortly after they returned from a previous mass evacuation last month. This time, Lynn Lake evacuees were taken to Brandon, about 800 kilometres south of their home. At a news conference Thursday, where Premier Wab Kinew declared a second state of emergency this wildfire season, officials said nearly 13,000 Manitobans were under evacuation orders due to wildfires. Garden Hill Anisininew Nation, a fly-in community located about 475 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, began evacuating its more than 4,000 residents on Thursday, when about 1,000 residents were being flown out by the Canadian Armed Forces, Kinew said. Seven flights were planned using a Hercules aircraft, as Garden Hill's airstrip is big enough to accommodate the large military plane, Kinew said. "That really increases the amount of people who could be moved out quickly," the premier said Thursday. The wildfire burning near Garden Hill is about 2,500 hectares in size and is out of control, the province said in its Friday fire bulletin. The province said 500 people stayed at an emergency shelter at a soccer complex on Leila Avenue in Winnipeg on Thursday night. Officials said the Billy Mosienko Arena on Keewatin Street would start housing evacuees again on Friday, while the RBC Convention Centre would become available over the weekend. CBC reached out to Garden Hill leadership on Friday for an update on the fire situation but had not received a response prior to publication. Find the latest wildfire information at these sources: Are you an evacuee who needs assistance? Contact Manitoba 211 by calling 211 from anywhere in Manitoba or email 211mb@
CBC
12-07-2025
- Health
- CBC
Thompson residents warned to pack essentials as possible evacuation of northern Manitoba hub looms
Officials in Thompson are warning the roughly 13,000 residents of the northern Manitoba city to prepare for a possible evacuation in the coming days, as an out-of-control wildfire burns just north of the city. On Friday, the municipality issued a pre-alert notice in a statement posted to Facebook saying residents should begin packing essentials so they're ready to go if an evacuation order is called for the city, which is a hub for many services in northern Manitoba. A Thompson personal care home is evacuating 33 residents to Flin Flon due to air quality concerns, a spokesperson for Shared Health told CBC on Friday, in what they described as a "limited movement of long-term care residents." The move is a precautionary measure to reduce risks from smoke exposure to vulnerable people with underlying health concerns, the spokesperson said. The province said five other residents of the Thompson hospital's psychiatric ward were also being transferred as a precaution. However, there were no plans for a full hospital evacuation as of Friday afternoon. In a statement to CBC News on Friday, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara acknowledged it's "a worrying time for folks up north right now," but said the health-care system is "constantly assessing the wildfire situation" to make decisions that are best for patients. The wildfire north of Thompson was 16,370 hectares in size, according to the province's most recent fire bulletin on Friday. The fire is still considered out of control. Northwest of Thompson, an out of control fire burning near the community of Lynn Lake has grown to 80,120 hectares, the fire bulletin said. That town's 600 residents were evacuated a week ago, shortly after they returned from a previous mass evacuation last month. This time, Lynn Lake evacuees were taken to Brandon, about 800 kilometres south of their home. Garden Hill evacuees heading to Winnipeg At a news conference Thursday, where Premier Wab Kinew declared a second state of emergency this wildfire season, officials said nearly 13,000 Manitobans were under evacuation orders due to wildfires. Garden Hill Anisininew Nation, a fly-in community located about 475 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, began evacuating its more than 4,000 residents on Thursday, when about 1,000 residents were being flown out by the Canadian Armed Forces, Kinew said. Seven flights were planned using a Hercules aircraft, as Garden Hill's airstrip is big enough to accommodate the large military plane, Kinew said. "That really increases the amount of people who could be moved out quickly," the premier said Thursday. The wildfire burning near Garden Hill is about 2,500 hectares in size and is out of control, the province said in its Friday fire bulletin. The province said 500 people stayed at an emergency shelter at a soccer complex on Leila Avenue in Winnipeg on Thursday night. Officials said the Billy Mosienko Arena on Keewatin Street would start housing evacuees again on Friday, while the RBC Convention Centre would become available over the weekend. CBC reached out to Garden Hill leadership on Friday for an update on the fire situation but had not received a response prior to publication.
