SHARED HEALTH DATA CAST DOUBT ON GOVERNMENT’S PARAMEDIC CLAIMS
On Thursday, April 23, MAHCP President Jason Linklater and Treasurer Wayne Chacun hosted a press conference, to which we invited members of the media and off-duty paramedics to join us in raising awareness of Manitoba’s ongoing paramedic staffing crisis and the government’s lack of action to keep their promise to add 200 net new paramedics.
During the press conference, we shared:
- Numbers from Shared Health that just don’t add up
- Holes in the Manitoba Government’s messaging
- Our recommendations
Watch the event recording here.
Here is just some of the press coverage we earned (please be advised that some of this coverage will be paywalled):
- The Brandon Sun: Paramedics raise alarm over diverted funds
- Winnipeg Free Press: Rural paramedics ‘burned out,’ union says; data shows job vacancies nearly doubled in two years
- CBC.ca: Union says Manitoba isn’t doing enough to fill vacant paramedic positions despite ‘staffing crisis’
- CBC News: Manitoba isn’t posting vacant paramedic jobs, union says
- CTV News: Union alleges paramedic shortage in Manitoba higher than reported, province says more being added
We won’t let up.
We’ll keep pushing government to implement a fully-funded allied health human resource plan to fix the staffing crisis as promised, including:
- More direct-entry PCP education seats. Manitoba is stuck at about 100 seats, while Saskatchewan has grown to 252.
- A realistic, supported “earn as you learn” education pathway for EMRs to become PCPs.
- Posting all paramedic vacancies.
- Retention and recruitment incentives for hard-to-fill positions.
