Sarah Ecker, a Fredericton registered nurse, listened to Prime Minister Blaine Higgs’ press conference on Friday. He had conflicting feelings, but he became more and more disappointed as he passed.
After a death in a New Brunswick emergency room, Higgs announced that he had dissolved the boards of Vitalité Health Network and Horizon Health Network, the health minister would change positions with the Minister of Social Development and the CEO of ‘Horizon Health had been fired.
Ecker was pleased to see the removal of Dorothy Shephard as health minister, but was surprised to learn that Dr. John Dornan, Horizon’s general manager, had been fired.
Dorothy Shephard, the former New Brunswick health minister, was sacked and is now social development minister. (Shane Magee / CBC)
Higgs overlooked any responsibility, Ecker said. He said there is a staffing crisis in New Brunswick and that the problem of staff shortages will not be solved by shuffling management.
“[Higgs] mentioned that people are doing their vital data in the ER while they are waiting, yes, this is a fantastic intervention that should be done, but if you have four nurses working in the emergency room and people come in with a big emergency, like, something. it has to give, ”he said.
“There are only so many people. You can only do so much.”
He said adding new policies and procedures will only add more stress to the front line.
The nurses’ voices are unheard, Ecker said. She hopes front-line staff will have opportunities to share their views and the government will recognize the need for more staff.
“I really think they have to work on morale,” Ecker said. “It’s like one of those cyclical issues where you need more staff to raise morale, but you need better morale to encourage more staff.”
COVID-19 reveals system defects
Higgs said during the press conference that he was “horrified” by the death in an emergency waiting room. Ecker said it is not a new problem and that there was some responsibility attached because that situation was the news.
Ecker said the health care system is in “thin ice.”
“COVID just flashed a flashlight about a problem that was in the dark and is now just bringing to light all these cracks,” he said. “It may be the drop that breaks the camel’s back.”
Ecker said Horizon staff received a notice earlier in the week asking staff to wear masks in public and lead by example. He believes Dornan saw that having healthy staff would have an immediate impact for the good of the health care system.
Dissolution of boards
Ecker described the dissolution of the health authority boards as a “unilateral power grab.”
He said he believes any voice representing a larger group of people has disappeared.
Norma McGraw, a former Vitalité Health Network board member, said she was not too surprised by the decision.
Norma McGraw, a former board member of Vitalité Health Network, said she was not too surprised by the decision to leave the boards. (CBC)
“Something was expected [would] pass and Higgs [would] eventually acting on the pressures coming at him to improve the health care system, ”he said.
He said he did not know how to talk about the decision to dissolve the boards until the announcement was already made.
Johanne Lise Landry, spokesperson for Vitality Health Network, confirmed in an email On Friday the health network received no correspondence about the revocation of its board.
McGraw said he would like to know what the board did that did not meet the Prime Minister’s standard.
He said Vitalité should have self-government in its healthcare network. He said removing the board to replace it with a single appointed administrator will lessen the influence the community has on the Vitalité health network.
But he said he hopes the appointed trustee can make the change.
“Everyone wants the system to improve and if that’s what it takes to get the result, well, I wish Mr. Higgs the best,” McGraw said.
What’s next?
Paula Doucet, president of the New Brunswick Nurses Union, said she was called to a brief meeting at 2:15 p.m. Friday where she heard the announcement.
She was surprised that the boards of the health authority were under guardianship and was disappointed by the removal of Dornan.
Dr. John Dornan, former president and CEO of Horizon Health Network, was fired. (Ed Hunter / CBC)
“I felt like I really understood the front-line issues and the issues that nurses posed,” she said.
But he said systemic changes need to be made so that front-line staff can feel supported.
“We were in a shortage before the pandemic and then, you know, two and a half years, almost three years after that pandemic, the staff, the retired nurses, the health care providers, you know, all the our allied health workers are exhausted. “
He said the decisions announced Friday are a start. But he plans to contact new Health Minister Bruce Fitch, the Prime Minister and others to find out where to go.
Paula Doucet, president of the New Brunswick Nurses Union, said systemic changes are needed for front-line staff to feel heard and supported. (Ed Hunter)
The New Brunswick Medical Society issued a statement yesterday in support of the government’s change of leadership. The statement says the company hopes to meet with the health minister to discuss how the government will address the priorities set out in the provincial health plan.
The statement also thanks Dornan for his service as CEO of Horizon, stating that he “did an admirable job guiding Horizon in incredibly difficult circumstances.”
Ecker said it looks like Higgs is not looking at the root cause.
“It won’t be fixed just by shuffling the cover. We really need a deliberate, intentional and significant change, not just more bureaucracy,” he said.
“I know [Higgs] Yesterday he talked a lot about removing barriers and bureaucracy. But I have a feeling the emperor only has a new pair of clothes. “