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June 7, 2006
Westman Regional Laboratory Technologist Shortage |
| Question Period |
Mrs. Leanne Rowat (Minnedosa):
What does the Minister of Health have to say to his good friend, MGEU president, Mr. Olfert, who says in a letter that I received today, and I will table the letter if the minister so wants. Mr. Olfert quotes: The medical laboratory technologists of Westman Regional Laboratory are very disappointed in remarks made by the honourable member of Health in recent weeks. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Olfert is referring, among other things, to the minister's repeated assertion that the lab is not short-staffed. Those are Mr. Olfert's words, not mine. Is the minister finally willing to acknowledge the technologist shortage at the Westman Lab is reality?
Hon. Tim Sale (Minister of Health):
Well, the numbers that I have already prepared and shared with the members opposite show that we have hired to date 152 more technologists than were in the system in 1999. We restarted the training programs that side of the House cancelled when they were in government. The vacancies that occur at Westman Lab, the seven technology vacancies, are filled with return-of-service grads who have just graduated from the course at Red River College that they cancelled and we reinstated. I have great affection for Mr. Olfert, but I just remind all of us that collective bargaining is underway, and I am not about to collective bargain through this Legislature or through the media.
Mrs. Rowat:
I am just wondering if these are the numbers that he is using, are from December 31, 2005, or are more current. One of the potential grads that he is speaking of has sort of looked at this $8,500 incentive but is actually going to Alberta to apply for a job, so, Mr. Speaker, this minister is way off base. Mr. Olfert said that it has been common knowledge for years that Westman Lab in Brandon suffers from a severe staff shortage forcing current staff to work mandatory overtime to cover vacant shifts, and that since 2000, Westman Lab has lost 50 technologists. He also states that 40 percent of the lab technologists are eligible to retire in the next five years. Mr. Speaker, I will ask the exact same question Mr. Olfert asked in his letter. Why is the minister seemingly unaware of these issues?
Mr. Sale:
Mr. Speaker, we are hardly unaware of the issues. We came into government and found that the previous government had cancelled $7 million in necessary improvements to the Westman Lab. We are doing it. We found the previous government had cancelled the training programs for technologists. We reinstated them. So, yes, there are still challenges in our technology area, but 152 more technologists today than in 1999 and quite a few more than there would have been if that program had stayed closed, which was their plan. Finally, how in the world were they going to deal with any of the issues that they get up daily and talk about when they promised 1 percent in the 2003 election to cover health care needs? They have no credibility.
Mrs. Rowat:
Mr. Speaker, we are looking for a long-term strategy from this Minister of Health. When he said that he is hiring more technicians, he is not. He is not hiring more technologists. He is not. They are being trained and they are leaving the province to find employment elsewhere. Mr. Speaker, the minister's friend, Mr. Olfert, has said, and I quote again: It is time for the Minister of Health to get his facts straight and finally to address the longstanding staffing problems at rural Manitoba's main laboratory. Will the Minister of Health stop playing with the numbers and acknowledge the technologist shortage, or is he saying that Mr. Olfert, DSM and the technologists are wrong, Mr. Speaker?
Mr. Sale:
Well, I think that it will be very useful to have the records show that now, today, this being Wednesday, the Conservatives want to spend considerably more money on health care. I think it was Tuesday when they were talking about too much money being spent on health care, Mr. Speaker. The original definition of a windshield wiper fits very well over there. It is a flip and a flop every day, and the vision does not get any clearer when you are a Conservative. It just gets cloudier and cloudier. Now, Mr. Speaker, we put the program back. We have hired 152 more, we filled the vacancies at the lab, we are putting $7 million in to rebuild it which they cancelled. What is their problem with understanding that?
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