That’s the wrong direction, but it’s not surprising given the lack of fundamental change frontline health care professionals have seen.

On behalf of our 7,000 specialized members, MAHCP is calling on our provincial government to staff up in critical allied health areas to help free up beds and relieve the bottlenecks driving up ER wait times.

“Unfortunately, Manitoba is still short of critical allied health professionals, and we risk losing more of them due to burnout, increased workloads, and wages and benefits that have fallen behind,” said MAHCP President Jason Linklater.

We’re recommending:

• more diagnostic professionals to perform tests and scans shown to have the greatest impact on reducing ER wait times;
• more physiotherapists and occupational therapists to help free up beds by making sure patients get back on their feet and return home safely, or to keep patients safe at home in the first place and avoid trips to the emergency room;
• more social workers to make sure patients can be discharged safely with the supports and resources they need; and,
• more resources in the community, including home care case coordinators.

Since their election last fall, our government has announced important health care initiatives such as expanding hospital discharge to evenings and weekends, and adding more hospital and transitional care beds. Unfortunately, these initiatives won’t succeed – and ER wait times will remain unacceptably high – without increased retention and recruitment of allied health professionals.

“MAHCP is eager for a staffing update to find out how many critical positions have been added and filled to support the expanded discharge schedule and additional transitional beds. We’re asking for a comprehensive and transparent staffing plan to ensure Manitoba is retaining, training and recruiting the specialized allied health professionals necessary to fix the ER crisis.”

The post MAHCP responds to CIHI ER wait times report appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

“MAHCP takes every opportunity we can to meet with our Premier and other government representatives to talk about critical allied health retention and recruitment challenges. We’re calling on our government for a health human resources strategy that aligns with the work of other Canadian jurisdictions. We’re seeking expanded education and training for allied health, and we’re asking for essential improvements to the Healthcare Employee Benefit (HEB) plan. Without significant investments in the professionals who deliver high-quality patient care, Manitoba’s health-care system isn’t sustainable.”

Manitoba has been losing health-care professionals to other jurisdictions and employers aren’t filling vacant positions quickly enough. In a recent MAHCP membership survey, two-thirds of allied health professionals told us they’ve seriously considered leaving their job in the last year. More than one-quarter of respondents (28%) say they’ve even considered leaving the healthcare sector altogether, putting our clinics, labs, hospitals, community and long-term care settings at risk.

“We have to stop the bleeding. We we will only be able to improve retention and recruitment when Manitoba’s government and health-care employers collaborate to improve workplace culture, address critical vacancies, and enhance wages and benefits.”

What are allied health professionals’ top workplace concerns? According to our May 2024 MAHCP membership survey:

• ‘increased workload’ (61%)
• ‘unfilled vacancies’ (48%)
• ‘not feeling valued’ (39%)
• ‘low morale’ (38%)

“We also know that those who provide health care to Manitobans do not have a health benefits plan that looks after them appropriately. This is a barrier to recruitment and retention.”

The post MAHCP President & Premier Kinew talk allied health in Halifax appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

Their mission is to work with families under a certain income level to ensure their children can access dental services, from regular check-ups and cleanings, to more intensive work like extractions, restorations and even interceptive orthodontics.

“No matter the scope of work we do during the visit, the family’s fee will depend on a variety of factors like total income, government benefits they may be receiving, number of children, etc. And the convenience of being located in a school is that if a patient from the community cancels a scheduled appointment or doesn’t show up, we can go into the student population and fill the appointment with a child in need of dental care.”

Their small oral health team gets quite a lot done, teaching school children how to brush and floss properly and conducting cavity screenings. They track cavity rates in some schools in the Winnipeg School Division, and they focus on addressing the needs of high-rate schools – those in which they’ve identified cavities in 15% or more of students.

According to Linda, there are many significant scientific studies pointing to the connection between good oral hygiene and overall health, and poor oral health can even be dangerous. The mouth is the first stop in the gastrointestinal system, which means it’s the initial collector of bacteria found in food and from other items that kids may put in their mouths, like soothers, toys, fingers, etc.

Researchers have also found links between periodontal disease and risk for pre-term, low-birth weight-babies, as well as connections to an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.

S.M.I.L.E plus provides important knowledge to patients all over the city, in schools and daycares, and to parents through community groups like Healthy Start. In addition to operating the Monday to Friday dental clinic, the team delivers presentations to teach new parents about the importance of oral health and how to minimize risks, so they can pass on the knowledge to their kids.

In addition, every three months, they visit 44 preschool/daycare facilities to apply a fluoride varnish on the teeth of more than 1,000 children. The varnish protects against the effects of improper brushing, sugary drinks, being put to bed with a bottle, or simply having the bacteria that cause cavities. For 20 years, Linda has been going directly into homes to perform this varnishing service, working mostly with low-income families, Indigenous people and newcomers.

“This is public health dentistry and much of the work we do is preventive,” says Linda, who was nominated in 2018 by a colleague for The Canadian Dental Hygienists Association Superhero Award for the origins of the varnish program and her ongoing commitment to community.

“Many of us don’t realize just how difficult it is for a low-income, uninsured family to access dental care. Recently, with rising costs due to inflation, combined with things like unexpected job loss or benefits termination, we’ve been seeing children whose parents never thought they would need to access a service like ours. There is no judgment when you enter our clinic. We want to help make sure all children have healthy mouths, so we are working to secure pedodontics dentists (children’s dentists) to work in our program so we can increase community appointment availability.”

Linda plans to spend her retirement years enjoying cottage life in Belair, while continuing to advocate for access to pediatric dental care across Manitoba’s health regions.

 “S.M.I.L.E. plus is an important training ground for senior-level dental and dental hygiene students. We’re making a real difference to children’s health and an unhealthy mouth can lead to significant costs to the health-care system down the line. I would love to see this program expanded to help people throughout Manitoba, not just in Winnipeg. We know there are great needs for care everywhere and we do it cost-effectively and professionally.”

The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority’s S.M.I.L.E. plus team of dentists, dental hygienists and assistants works with senior dentistry students from the University of Manitoba, Faculty of Dentistry and School of Dental Hygiene to deliver services, including:

• Oral health needs assessments
• School and community-based oral health promotion
• Dental pit and fissure sealant treatment
• Topical fluoride treatment
• Assertive follow-up for children in need of treatment
• School-based clinical treatment

The post Meet Linda Pharand, Dental Hygienist: Bringing smiles to children of all ages appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

MAHCP members from all over the province were recognized by the minister and Legislative Assembly, receiving multiple standing ovations for their contributions to care, their expertise, resilience and fortitude.

Minister Asagwara shared beautiful remarks about allied health’s value to a strong and sustainable system, and expressed gratitude for the roles our members play throughout the patient journey.

The post Minister of Health delivers Ministerial Statement marking Allied Health Professionals Recognition Week appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

Kind, gentle, well-spoken and compassionate, Andrew is an Occupational Therapist (OT) with Community Therapy Services (CTS), a private, non profit agency that provides OT and physiotherapy (PT) services to meet the rehabilitation service needs of individuals, care providers and care organizations in Manitoba. Andrew has worked as an OT for more than 11 years in a variety of settings, including pediatrics, acute care, neurology and stroke rehabilitation, and the last nine years with CTS.

“I always knew I wanted to help people and make a difference in others’ lives, and I learned that OT had among the highest job satisfaction ratings of the health-care professions,” says Andrew. “OT has provided so many opportunities for me to make a difference. I get to work together with clients to increase their independence and improve their overall quality of life. What could be more rewarding than that?”

A mentor told Andrew early on that he should try a variety of professional settings and find his niche. Within CTS, Andrew receives referrals from within the WRHA directly from the Home Care program, hospitals, physicians and other community programs.

Among the clients he carries on his caseload, he has carved out a unique space, specializing in consulting with and supporting clients living with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

“ALS is a devastating diagnosis for individuals and their loved ones because it’s a progressive disease that affects all aspects of life – physical, cognitive and emotional – and there’s no known cure for it. Working with clients in their home environment is a very collaborative process, and when we work with people in their own homes, there is a noticeable power shift. They feel a sense of control over their lives as compared to if they were in hospital, where they may feel vulnerable and uncomfortable. They don’t feel in control. It’s our job to help clients achieve their personalized goals and make the best of their situation.”

Andrew performs functional assessments, which can include the client’s activities of daily living (ADLs), mobility, transfers, cognition and complex wheelchair systems. He provides recommendations for home accessibility, activity adaptations, and long-term care planning to help improve a client’s living situation.

Photo: Community Therapy Services team.

OT’s assess and address the mental and physical aspects of client illness and injuries:

• Personal care: showering, feeding, dressing, medication management, etc.
• Accessibility: does their current living situation meet their needs or are they exploring options? do they require home adaptations such as a mechanical lift?
• Mobility: what is their level of mobility? are they using a walking aid or wheelchair? What type of wheelchair do they use (manual/powered)? is it meeting their needs?
• Home Care: are they receiving home care already? is the level of care appropriate?
• Level of cognition: are they displaying deficits like memory loss? can we provide them with equipment or techniques to mitigate these losses?
• Mental health: how are they coping? can we connect them with counselling to support their emotional well-being?
• Caregivers: what does the client’s caregiver(s) need in terms of support and resources? do they need guidance navigating the complex system?

“Throughout the health-care system, we hear a lot about the value of aging in place. Accommodating people at home is an intensive process but it’s important to their dignity, safety, comfort and to keeping them out of hospital. We know how much it costs to care for an individual in hospital, and how long-term stays can block patient flow. OT’s provide impactful and effective interventions that help to improve the overall efficiency of the system.”

OT’s develop individualized care plans, rounded out by a lot of listening and counselling. Andrew says it can be challenging to process it all.

“There are some tough cases, especially because we often get to know our clients and their family members well, so we connect with and care about them. We are lucky in CTS because there are 45 OT’s and PT’s (physiotherapists) to bounce stuff off and we can help one another work through those tough cases. We are a tight-knit group and there is very little turnover. Plus, my wife Julie is an OT, so we give ourselves 10 minutes at the end of each day to debrief, share ideas and insights, confidentially, of course, and we get some things off our chests.”

Andrew and Julie both graduated in 2012 from the Master of Occupational Therapy program at the University of Manitoba, and they were immediately recruited by the Saskatoon Health Region. They moved back to Winnipeg in 2015.

“My wife works in one of the WRHA’s community rehabilitation programs. She is from Carlyle, Saskatchewan, and I grew up in Northwestern Ontario, so we decided to make Winnipeg home so it would be middle ground between both our families.”

Together, the couple has travelled extensively and visited many countries, a love which they both inherited from travel-loving parents.

Andrew’s mother and father emigrated from Laos to Canada in 1979, and made Fort Frances, Ontario, their home. His dad is a chemical engineer who works in the pulp and paper mill industry, and for the past 10 years, he has been crossing the bridge into International Falls, Minnesota, to work at the mill there. His mom is a retired hospital dietary aide who still works casual.

“Fort Frances is a naturally beautiful place, and I fell in love with fishing and camping, hiking, basically all aspects of outdoor living there. Maybe when I retire from Occupational Therapy, I will go work at Cabela’s or something. That seems like it would suit me just fine.”

Andrew and Julie have one child, Mila, age 4, and another due in June.

Andrew is a dedicated MAHCP activist and joined our team of volunteer Member Advocates in 2023 to support his colleagues in Community Therapy Services.

The post Meet Andrew Sonnasinh, OT: Supporting Client Quality of Life appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

WHO: Jason Linklater, President, MAHCP

PRE-BUDGET STATEMENT: “Understaffed allied health professionals are struggling to provide care to Manitobans, and that daily struggle is reflected in rising wait times and in heart-wrenching patient testimonials. We have heard the promises that help is coming. The frontline is holding on, but this budget needs to show them that those promises are real. Specialized allied health professionals need to see commitments to train and hire additional staff, and targeted retention incentives to keep the people we have. Investments in healthcare must be the primary focus of this budget, if we want to build a strong, sustainable public health care system that will be there for all Manitobans when they need it.“

Read MAHCP’s Pre-Budget Submission: Budget submission Feb 2024 (mahcp.ca)

Our three key recommendations:

1. Focus on critical retention & recruitment initiatives.
2. Deliver much-needed improvements to health-care employee benefits and supports to bolster staff resilience and boost Manitoba’s competitiveness.
3. Expand training for high-demand allied health professions, including more accessible opportunities and incentives for rural and Northern Manitobans.

For more information or to arrange an interview with Jason Linklater:

Karen Viveiros, Communications Officer
e: karenv@mahcp.ca or cell 431-323-7499

The post MEDIA ADVISORY – Budget 2024 appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

“I came back to Winnipeg, entered the Faculty of Social Work and graduated in 2017, pregnant with my first child,” laughs Jasmine, who is now a busy mother to two children, ages three and six. “I worked for a short time in a community mental health agency and then took a term position with the stroke team after having my son. Three years ago, after having my second baby, I was thrilled to become permanent with the stroke service team so now I get to do what I love every day.” 

A day in the life of a stroke service social worker

Jasmine’s role is varied, determined by the range of clients’ individual needs and circumstances. She typically has in her caseload anywhere from 10 to 15 clients of varying ages and socioeconomic statuses.

“Surviving a stroke can result in physical health changes, as well as emotional, mental and financial concerns. Navigating our complex health-care system and social services to access resources and support is very difficult for someone who doesn’t do this all day like I do. That’s where we come in!” 

Because she works in the community, Jasmine travels between appointments, assessing client and caregiver needs, recommending services, dealing with housing challenges, filing administrative paperwork and consulting with the stroke service team, which includes physiotherapy, occupational therapy, case coordinators and more. She typically meets with her clients once per week over the course of three to six months.  

“Strokes can affect all dimensions of a person’s life: their ability to work, where they live, their communication skills, relationships, their mental health… Many stroke clients deal with emotional changes, so it’s important to get them connected with proper care for those concerns. Then there are caregivers, who may become stressed and overwhelmed. They may experience grief, increased roles and responsibilities, and financial changes, so we need to connect caregivers with support as well.” 

Jasmine’s clients are referred to her by the team’s case coordinators and allied health team, usually for a specific reason or category of issues.  

“I go in and do an initial assessment. An example of an issue might be accessibility and housing. So that client might be exploring assisted living or alternative housing, so I’ll work through their criteria with them and whittle down the list so they can process options.” 

Jasmine’s entrepreneur husband owns a fence and deck-building company, and he is keeping himself very busy building a home he designed himself for their family.  

Meanwhile, Jasmine devotes time to the union as a MAHCP District Director, and is a member of four committees and boards, including the boards of her kids’ daycares. She is dedicated to promoting social work through involvement with the professional association and by taking on students. She is grateful to be able to give back.

“It’s heartbreaking to see people struggling with health and life changes post-stroke, made even more difficult with systemic barriers and challenges with program eligibility, wait lists, costs and availability. I love helping others, and I strive to reduce client stress and time spent navigating the various systems in Winnipeg. Clients deserve the best quality, most competent care they can get.” 

Read another profile of Jasmine: Social Work Month: Helping clients piece together the puzzle | Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (wrha.mb.ca) or learn more about National Social Work Month: National Social Work Month 2024.

The post Meet Jasmine Masse, RSW: Connecting with clients & caregivers during challenging times appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

Gurminder Thindh was just 16 when his older sister married a pharmacist, and he says that set him down the path to a career in pharmacy.

“I really admire my brother-in-law; he is a positive role model and I look up to him. I decided then that I wanted to emulate his strengths and character traits, and after my first year at U of M taking the pre-requisites, I applied to the Faculty of Pharmacy and followed in his footsteps. It was a great decision; pharmacy has been an excellent career.”

Thindh graduated in 2007 and immediately went to work as a member of the massive team of pharmacists supporting Health Sciences Centre’s 24-hour acute care needs.

“I graduated at a very young age and had the stamina for HSC, but it’s really an intense environment. I was working in the Adult Medical and Surgical Intensive Care Units. We were working under high pressure, and had to work 12-hour shifts. The patients I was dealing with were often very unstable or severely ill. As a pharmacist, you must work quickly and accurately to make sure they get the medicines they need in order to survive. A few minutes could mean the difference between life and death in the ICU.”

After 13 years working the rotational schedule, which included 12-hour night shifts and plenty of overtime, Thindh got married and decided that the frantic pace no longer vibed with his lifestyle.

“I really enjoyed my time at HSC, but I worked so many nights, so many weekends, and the 12-hour shifts mean you come home, eat, pack your lunch for the next day, and go to bed. When you’re working this type of schedule, you may be present physically when you get home, but it’s tough to be present emotionally and mentally.”

In 2019, Thindh saw a term position come up at Concordia Hospital, a low acuity facility, and although he wasn’t sure how he was going to do with the different pace, the role turned out to be a great fit. Fast forward four years, and now he understands why people get excited for the weekend, and he appreciates his Friday nights. Thindh works only every third weekend, and sometimes does the ‘late shift’ (10:45 AM to 7 PM) with on-call duties overnight, but nothing like the schedule he maintained at HSC.

“Occasionally I work on the surgical ward, but I predominantly work in family medicine: patients who are ill, but not gravely ill. I deal with patients who have one or two medical issues like an infection, pneumonia, allergic reaction, asthma attack, or elderly patients who need care, but they don’t require constant monitoring. Some shifts we can be run off our feet just due to the sheer quantity of work and volume of patients, but they’re typically not life or death emergencies.”

Concordia’s Pharmacy team is made up of eight Pharmacists, five Pharmacy Technicians, 15 Pharmacy Assistants, two managers and one administrative assistant. Their approach to work is supportive and collaborative. Pharmacy Technicians are Pharmacy Assistants who have taken additional education and certification enabling them to take on expanded responsibilities that would normally have been completed by the pharmacist.

“The collaborative team environment frees me up to connect directly with patients and to spend time on the wards consulting with medical colleagues because the hospitals are starting to rely on pharmacists more and more for our clinical knowledge. With the time I’ve gained, I can spend more time digging into patient charts, researching medical issues, solving problems, and be more available to answer questions for the nurses/doctors on the unit. Activities like these increase our value to the facility.”

– Gurminder Thindh

Thindh says that his discipline is unique because the team is involved with almost every single patient who comes through Concordia’s doors.

“Whether we’re examining a patient’s existing medications to optimize their care, or screening new medications for safety and clinical appropriateness, we touch basically every case.”

At home, Thindh is an avid learner, reader and researcher. He digs into science fiction and fantasy books (one to two per week!), and he loves watching sports including The Winnipeg Jets and Tottenham Hotspur, a North London-based football (soccer) club.

He’s also a self-taught woodworker who designed and built a shed for his yard last summer. He has been married to his wife, Manbir, since 2016. Being married to a healthcare worker isn’t always easy, but he states she has been supportive and understanding despite the challenges.

“I know it can be hard on her as I may have to work odd hours or be away from family during holidays like Christmas. At the end of the day she knows that what I do provides a value to people in need. We are both empathetic souls and into helping others. In fact, my toxic trait is probably my desire to always help people. Someone is moving? Sure, I will help. Building something? Yes, I can help. Wanting to help others is the fundamental goal of any health care worker.”

When asked about his perspectives regarding the work he does, Thindh says he is grateful and considers himself very lucky.

“When it comes to my profession, I make a good living doing something I love and I take my responsibilities very seriously. I picture my grandmother. How would I want her to be treated and cared for? I believe that if someone is in a time of need that we should hold out a helping hand.”

The post Meet Concordia Hospital Pharmacist Gurminder Thindh: Reading, researching and writing ‘scrips appeared first on Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals.

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 Throne Speech Disappointing for Allied Health

Urgent Staffing Crisis Left Unaddressed

November 23, 2021 Winnipeg MB – After sounding the alarm for months on critical staffing shortages for diagnostic imaging technologists, rural paramedics, laboratory professionals, respiratory therapists and many other allied health professionals that Manitobans rely on, the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals (MAHCP) is raising concerns about the lack of concrete commitments in this year’s Speech from the Throne.

“Manitobans won’t get to the emergency room without paramedics, and those ERs won’t be open unless there are enough technologists to analyze the bloodwork or take X-rays. We’ve already seen rural ER closures, and we are hearing about rural Manitobans unable to get an ambulance in an emergency and needing to drive family members to get care,” said Bob Moroz, MAHCP President. 

“Government can’t fix rural health care, or any health care, without addressing these alarming staffing shortages in Allied Health.”

MAHCP represents over 6,500 Allied Health Professionals in 190 disciplines, including: 

Diagnostic Imaging Technologists, including MRI, CT, Ultrasound, Myocardial Perfusion, Mammogram and Sleep Disorder Studies. Recent Doctors Manitoba reports identified a backlog of over 80,000 diagnostic procedures and the urgent need for more trained technologists.

Rural Paramedics. More ambulances are out of service due to staffing shortages and with response times trending up, rural communities are concerned about lack of timely service.

Respiratory Therapists. A shortage of respiratory therapists and other trained professionals led to critically ill patients being sent out of province in the third wave. ICU admissions are on the rise again, and existing respiratory therapy resources are already strained.

Laboratory Professionals. They have been further stretched due to COVID-19. Labs continue to run below baseline staffing, and technologists’ workload has doubled. There are mounting concerns regarding turnaround times for test results as rural, and Northern ERs threaten to close due to lack of laboratory technologists. 

MAHCP has met with Health and Seniors Care Minister Audrey Gordon, and previously with Premier Stefanson when she oversaw the health portfolio, to discuss the critical staffing situation in allied health. No government commitments have been made to date. 

“Frontline allied health care professionals need a strong commitment from government to address the current staffing crisis, which is only getting worse,” said Moroz. 

“Health care professionals are retiring early and resigning from frustration and burnout, and they’re not getting replaced fast enough – we need them on the job and we need more of them. Manitobans need action now to save the services we all rely on.”

The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals is a union representing over 6500 allied health professionals representing more than 190 disciplines across Manitoba. For more information on MAHCP visit www.mahcp.ca.

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For all media requests/interviews please contact:

Amy Tuckett-McGimpsey, Communications Officer
Cell: 431-337-3440 | Email: amy@mahcp.ca

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