The staffing shortages that are impacting Bethesda Regional Health Centre in Steinbach are the same struggles impacting the rest of Manitoba. That, is according to Southern Health.

The regional health authority put out a statement today, responding to word from the Manitoba Nurses Union that Bethesda was below the baseline for nurses last weekend. President Darlene Jackson says the baseline for weekend staffing at the emergency room is six nurses for days and evenings and then five nurses overnight. She notes instead there were only two nurses on duty both Friday and Saturday. In fact, she thinks this has been happening on weekends for months, noting our health care system is floundering and we are in a critical nursing shortage. 

Today, Southern Health issued the following statement:

"Southern Health, including Bethesda Regional Health Centre (BRHC), is experiencing the same healthcare staffing shortages that is affecting the rest of Manitoba. Every effort is made to fill vacant shifts. There is a multitude of actions that are used to fill shifts (working within our collective agreements), such as offering overtime to staff, agency staffing, reassigning staff from other units, redeploying staff from other sites, and mandating staff. There is also effort made to bring in extra staff from different disciplines to assist, such as healthcare aides and unit clerks. Physicians have been working extended hours in the BRHC emergency department to help with patient flow when staffing issues and/or heavy work load exist. Staffing has been extremely challenging, especially on weekends and this is not unique to BRHC or Southern Health. Initially staffing was poor leading up to this past weekend, however, additional shifts were filled by various means and we are extremely grateful for the above and beyond that so many staff are doing to support our patients."

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