Health-care workers on Vancouver Island and in coastal communities have been working tirelessly over the past two years, and even before the pandemic, they have been dealing with burnout due to staffing shortages, according to a media release from the federal NDP.
North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney, along with her MP counterpart Gord Johns, from Courtenay-Alberni, have joined their party’s calls for the Liberals to strengthen the country’s health-care system, to keep people healthy and safe.
“Communities like ours have faced health-care shortages and long wait times for years due to underfunding from consecutive Liberal and Conservative governments,” stated Blaney. “The demands of the past two years have only made it worse. It’s time for the government to step up for the health-care workers and system we all rely on.”
The release stated that as Parliament resumes, New Democrats remain focused on helping Canadians get through the pandemic and ensuring a stronger, public health-care system is there for people when they need it. This includes addressing the nursing and doctor shortages, by getting more qualified health-care workers at patients’ bedsides, increasing the number of beds available in hospitals and getting more stable funding to BC and other provinces and territories, according to the release.
“Nurses, care workers and doctors have been working long days, under immense pressure with few breaks, to care for our loved ones during this pandemic,” stated Johns. “They can’t be expected to continue under these conditions forever. The Liberal government owes health-care workers better than that. The Trudeau government cannot wait to fix the gaps in our health-care system, they need to invest now. Canadians cannot afford to wait any longer.”
