'It's very stressful': Yellowknife nurse says short staffing is impacting patient safety

Yellowknife nurses say a nursing shortage at Stanton Territorial Hospital has reached a crisis point, and it's taking a toll on their well-being.  

They say under-staffing at the Northwest Territories' largest hospital means nurses are regularly asked to work overtime and to come in on their days off.

"For the nurses, it's very stressful. They have some genuine concerns about patient safety, their abilities to care for their patients," said a nurse at Stanton with more than a dozen years of experience working in the territory. The nurse requested anonymity out of fear of reprisal for speaking out about working conditions.

"We rarely get a day off that our phone is not ringing because someone's looking for you to come to work," said the nurse.

The nurse who spoke to CBC said they just want Stanton to be a better place for everyone to work.

"I don't think [management] is doing anything maliciously, I think they face the same struggles we do," said the nurse. 

"There's not bad people at Stanton, and I don't think there's bad people in government, but I think they're making bad decisions."

Nurses working overtime

Stanton relocated to a brand new $350-million building in May. 

As of June 5, there were 280 full-time-equivalent nursing positions at the hospital, of which 243 were filled. That's about a 13 per cent vacancy rate, said David Maguire, spokesperson for the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority.

Maguire said nurses in many areas have been working overtime, and that the health authority brings in nurses from outside the territory to fill in temporarily when needed.

I don't think there's bad people in government, but I think they're making bad decisions."- Anonymous Yellowknife nurse

"Stanton's workforce constantly fluctuates depending on hires, resignations, and different types of leave," said Maguire in a June 10 email. He said the health authority was actively trying to fill the 37 vacant nursing positions at the hospital.

"We strive to offer high quality care in all of our facilities," said Maguire in a follow-up email. "We would not be operating any facilities if we believed staffing levels did not allow us to operate safely."

Anonymous letter

Last month, an anonymous letter allegedly from "N.W.T. nurses" was given to some MLAs and Yellowknife media outlets. CBC has not confirmed the identity of the letter's author.

The nurse who spoke to CBC said the letter echoes the worries of other nurses at Stanton. The nurse said they weren't involved in writing the letter, but that they had seen it.

The undated letter says staffing at Stanton is a "huge concern." It says stress related to overtime has a "serious human impact" and may be resulting in nurses taking sick leave. 

The letter also says nurses are afraid that putting their names to complaints could lead to retaliation from their employer.

Kieron Testart, the MLA for Kam Lake, said on June 6 that he had seen the anonymous letter. Testart said doctors and nurses in his constituency have raised similar concerns about the situation at Stanton. 

Their issues are "deeply troubling considering the great amount of public money invested in this new facility," he said. "I think we need to take these concerns very seriously."

Testart said he isn't surprised the letter is unsigned.

"People are worried about speaking up because of consequences with employment," he said, adding, "I have no reason to doubt the veracity of this letter." 

Shane Thompson, the MLA for Nahendeh, was also given a copy of the letter. He said he raised the matter with Glen Abernethy, the N.W.T. minister of Health and Social Services.

"He said yes, we have a shortage of nurses, but that's across the North right now," said Thompson. 

Thompson said on Thursday that the minister had agreed to meet with the Standing Committee on Social Development next week to discuss issues raised in the letter.

Abernethy deferred CBC's request for an interview to the health authority.

CEO addresses staff

Concerns about the nursing shortage have made it to the top tier of the Northwest Territories health authority. 

Sue Cullen, the authority's CEO, responded to health staff in a letter sent to staff on June 7, which was obtained by CBC. 

"We have challenges when recruiting for skilled health and social services positions; this is especially true in nursing," Cullen writes. She notes that nurses are in high demand across Canada.

Cullen, previously a nurse herself, goes on to say she is aware that staffing concerns "may be most acute" at Stanton hospital. 

She says "resources have been taxed" with preparations for the transition to the new hospital.

"I believe we are nearing the peak of this change and appreciate this has put additional stress on the staff within the busiest care site in our system," Cullen writes. 

Cullen says the health authority is working to recruit nurses through ads on Facebook and LinkedIn, by offering help with relocation expenses, and other strategies.

The letter includes a link through which, Cullen says, staff can submit anonymous feedback.

Abernethy was informed about the health authority's response to the anonymous letter and the nursing shortage in a June 13 backgrounder obtained by CBC. 

That document says that despite the health authority's various recruiting tactics, it is still struggling to hire "'net new' employees to fill the necessary vacancies."

The backgrounder says that in light of this challenge, it is focusing efforts on training up its current nursing staff in specialized areas such as critical care, chemotherapy, dialysis and others, "so we can build a skilled workforce within the N.W.T."

The health authority did not respond to CBC's request for an interview with Cullen.