UPDATE: ‘Our nurses are drowning’: BC Nurses Union rallies at Fort St. John Hospital

UPDATE: A statement from Northern Health in response to the nurses rally has been added to the story.

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The BC Nurses Union (BCNU) rallied outside the hospital on Friday to raise awareness about the state of healthcare in Fort St. John. 

BCNU Regional Council Member Danette Thomsen says the nurses at the Fort St. John Hospital are “drowning” due to a staffing shortage throughout Northern Health.  

“Our nurses can’t see their patients, and their [patients] are being placed on diversion and then not being seen. They’re ending up back in the ER, and the ER is drowning,” said Thomsen. 

“The maternity unit has been shutting down. We have more surgeries scheduled, but we don’t even have our nurses. There isn’t a place in Fort St. John that’s not being impacted by the shortage of healthcare workers right now.”

Thomsen says one of the main challenges is the distance between the Fort St. John Hospital and other healthcare facilities in the region. 

 “When Fort St. John [Hospital] goes on diversion, they’re diverting to Dawson Creek [Hospital], which is already short-staffed as well and overcapacity,” said Thomsen. 

A rally was also held outside the Dawson Creek and District Hospital on Wednesday.

“Not only are these hospitals not staffed to where they should be — they’re actually caring for more patients than if they were fully staffed to care for. It’s being pushed from both ends, and everything is falling on deaf ears, is what our membership is saying.”

According to Thomsen, the BCNU has met with Northern Health “over and over and over again” to discuss the staffing crisis. She says the health authority is aware of the problem, and nothing is being done. 

“Something needs to be done,” said Thomsen. 

“Patients deserve better care, and nurses want to give that care. It’s so morally distressing, what’s happening right now, that they’re unable to give the quality of care patients deserve, and nothing has been done to assist them.”

Northern Health has introduced initiatives in hopes of recruiting and retaining staff in the northeast, including a bonus of $1,100 to $1,400 for full-time workers each quarter.

Thomsen believes Northern Health needs to focus more on retaining current employees before they lose more. 

“It’s about retaining who we have — they can recruit all they want,” said Thomsen. 

“But, if [employees] come and go, which is what’s happening right now, we will be no further ahead. We need to actually figure out how to support the workers we have and keep them here.”

Peace River North MLA Dan Davies was present at Friday’s rally and expressed his belief that the staffing shortage is a “bigger, broader issue” across the province. 

“It’s the definition of insanity,” said Davies. 

“You can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results, and that’s what we’re seeing now. Patients deserve better.” 

Thomsen gave credit to Northern Health, acknowledging the retention and recruitment programs currently in place, but believes the healthcare provider needs to listen to the frontline workers and find an understanding of what they want and need for support. 

She says nurses are trying to speak up in the workplace but are being labelled as “difficult or resistant to change.” 

“Even though they [Northern Health] say there’s no gag order on nurses, they’re being disciplined, and I can tell you that because we’re defending them. They can’t speak up,” said Thomsen. 

“They’re trying to advocate for the safety and care of their patients but are really just being ignored. My inbox is full of emails from nurses, and they’re heartbreaking. They’re really, really heavy.”

Because she believes nurses’ voices aren’t being heard in the workplace or by Northern Health, Thomsen is asking the community to support their local nurses. 

“I hope the public can understand this isn’t the nurses’ fault. We need the public support to push Northern Health to find a solution,” said Thomsen. 

“Our nurses are being lashed out at, and they understand that people are waiting in lines for a long time, but they have no power to change that. It needs to go to the people that have the power to change.”

Thomsen concluded by saying a local walk-in clinic would be a starting point toward a solution. 

“People here don’t have doctors — everybody is forced to come through the ER,” said Thomsen. 

“What are the solutions? What other things could happen that could actually support our nurses and support the people who really need the ER? Because when critical things go down, people want to know there is staff there who are able to help.”

Earlier this week, during a regular council, meeting, city council approved a zoning bylaw amendment to allow for renovations and construction of an orthopedic clinic and rapid access primary care walk-in.

Northern Health provided the following statement in response to the nurses rally:

“We are grateful for all the nurses working in our region who continue to provide high-quality care throughout all the challenges that health care has faced during and since the Pandemic.

We recognize the BC Nurses Union’s right to raise concerns around working conditions, and we continue to meet regularly with BCNU representatives to work on solutions that will address staffing and other concerns. We are confident that the work we are doing in collaboration with the Ministry of health and the BCNU will lead us to solutions that work for northern communities and that will have a positive impact on patients.”

Last year, Energeticcity.ca launched an investigative series titled Code Grey, which dives into the history and healthcare crisis in the region.