The William Charles Health Centre at Montreal Lake is one of 28 facilities in NITHA. (submitted photo)  

By Glenn Hicks

Protection Shortages

Northern health centres need help on PPE shortages

Apr 7, 2020 | 4:00 PM

Health centres offering service to the 33 communities that make up the Northern Inter Tribal Health Authority (NITHA) are sounding the alarm bell about shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies for workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

NITHA board chair, Chief Carolyn Bernard, said there was limited to no supplies in northern Saskatchewan. She voiced her concerns the province had not consulted First Nations about their need for PPEs in the North, after Ottawa had committed $50 million to the provinces and territories in its $1 billion COVID-19 response package.

“Our communities are small, and we also have multi-communities that are bigger, and if we do have an outbreak we’re going to be in trouble,” Bernard told paNOW.

She explained NITHA’s most recent inventory showed 40 per cent of their health sites did not have the necessary PPE’s to support an outbreak. She added even though health centres had received much needed swab kits for COVID-19 testing, “the nursing staff can’t use them without the proper medical equipment such as masks, which are, in many cases expired.”

Bernard said NITHA had received a partial fill for an order placed with Indigenous Services Canada and the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) in February, but there was no word on when more supplies were coming.

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“There’s no timeline for the arrival of the previous PPE request, so it’s about moving forward …to be on it,” she said.

The request for protection equipment included varying quantities of masks, gowns, gloves, face shields and hand sanitizer, based on a 72-hour surge and eight-week surge.

In a statement to paNOW, the Ministry of Health said, in part, it has been working with NITHA, Indigenous Services Canada, and the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) on ways to better coordinate their efforts and ensure an effective response to COVID-19 in communities across Saskatchewan.

It added the Province’s order through the Federal/Provincial/Territorial (F/P/T) Collaborative Procurement was discussed with NITHA officials on March 26, before being revised after more input and submitted March 30.

“The Federal government is beginning to ship some items (masks, gloves), although not in the quantities ordered,” the ministry said. “The items received in Saskatchewan from the Federal order will be shared throughout the health system to ensure the highest priority needs of citizens across the province are met.

“In the interim, the SHA has provided some urgently needed items, such as testing swabs, to address immediate needs.”

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glenn.hicks@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @princealbertnow