NAPE president “shocked” with state of province’s health care under the Wakeham government
NAPE President Jerry Earle says he is shocked by Premier Tony Wakeham’s recent assessment of his government’s performance in healthcare during his one-year review speech at the St. John’s Board of Trade meeting. While the Premier claims his government is delivering on its promise of better healthcare, NAPE says the reality facing healthcare workers and patients across Newfoundland and Labrador tells a very different story.
“I am absolutely shocked that this would be his takeaway from his government’s first year in office,” said NAPE President Jerry Earle. “Our members are reaching out to us every day with new and increasingly complex problems in our healthcare system. Understaffing has reached critical levels, burnout is widespread, and our members see no end in sight.”
MRI machines have been announced, , NAPE says, but questions remain about having the staff needed to operate them. Wait times for public blood collection have reached six to eight weeks in some parts of the province. Clinics are regularly experiencing closures or delayed openings due to staffing shortages, while notices to contract out public services continue to emerge.
“Our members are on the frontlines of healthcare in Newfoundland and Labrador,” said Earle. “They are sounding the alarm about the ongoing challenges facing our healthcare system, yet all this government seems to be doing is privatizing where they can, making promises for services they don’t have the staff to fulfill and ignoring the critical issues that are coming up constantly.”
NTV’s legislative reporter Ben Cleary is covering the story and will have more this evening.
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