Sask. NDP call on goverment to present staffing plan for Victoria Hospital expansion project

The renewed and expanded Victoria Hospital project was first announced on March 6, 2020. It is currently due to be completed in 2028 and Laliberte, who cited conversations he’s had with the current staff, said they have been without a contract for over three years and are feeling burned out.

“There are a lot of people who have plans of possibly just walking away from it all together. They need to be respected and valued and that’s the government’s responsibility.”

The Sask Party is planning a news conference at the Victoria Hospital site on Wednesday to celebrate the ‘achievement of one million worker hours on site.’

While applauding the workers responsible for the construction, Laliberte said people in Saskatchewan are tired of these photo ops.

“They’re tired of hearing everything is getting better while they struggle to access health care,” he said.

Mental Health and Addictions Shadow Minister Leroy Laliberte spoke to reporters in Prince Albert on Tuesday near the Victoria Hospital. (Image Credit: Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

Response from the Ministry of Health

In an email to paNOW, the Ministry of Health said, as a major hub of health care services for the northern half of the province, expanding healthcare services at the Victoria Hospital is a critical provincial priority to ensure families from northern Saskatchewan have access to high-quality health care services in the right place at the right time.

“When complete, the new tower will increase inpatient bed capacity by approximately 40 per cent, including additional adult mental health beds, an expanded emergency department, heliport and will add MRI services, bringing critical services closer to home for northern patients,” the email read.

A concept rendering of Prince Albert’s proposed $300 million hospital expansion. (Image Credit: Submitted photo/Government of Saskatchewan)

As the expanded facility becomes fully operational, hospital staffing is projected to increase by more than 500 jobs.

It said the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) is currently engaged in a comprehensive staffing plan that includes targeted promotion, educational program expansion, additional clinical placements, conditional offers to students in advance of graduation, community engagement strategies and advancement of a First Nations and Metis Recruitment and Retention plan in collaboration with local Indigenous communities.

“The Government of Saskatchewan will continue to put patients first and address our need for a stronger, more robust health care workforce through our Health Human Resources (HHR) Action Plan.”

The province said since the launch of the HHR Action Plan in 2022, through recruitment, training, incentive and retention initiatives, more than 7,500 professionals have chosen to work in health care in Saskatchewan.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

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by Nigel Maxwell

Sask. NDP call on goverment to present staffing plan for Victoria Hospital expansion project

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