As other rural emergency rooms close, people head to Virden

During the night shift, a nurse in Verdun realizes that multiple ambulances are arriving, transporting individuals in need of mental health, cardiac, and trauma care. However, she feels that the hospital is understaffed to handle the number of patients they are admitting. The nurse, who spoke to CBC on the condition of anonymity due to concerns about potential repercussions, does not disclose the hospital's name: "There is a lot of fear associated with coming to work, and it has never been like this before." "These care duties are strenuous and demanding."
She explains that a combination of part-time closures and the suspension of emergency services in some other southwestern Manitoba towns due to a shortage of manpower has left no choice but for people from neighboring communities to come to Verdun for care, and the city's staff has been stretched to the maximum. The nurse also mentioned that the recent waiting time for an emergency room in Brandon, Manitoba, has forced people to drive approximately 75 kilometers from the west to Verdun, a community with over 3,100 residents, for quicker treatment.
Holden reveals that two local nurses and one physician from a neighboring community are currently working to maintain primary care services. However, without a full-time physician, individuals in need of emergency care must either take an ambulance or go to larger centers. In an email statement, Prairie Mountain Health confirmed the retirement of a physician "after years of dedicated service to the community" and stated that they are collaborating with the Melita community to establish a primary care service plan that meets the community's needs.
The emergency service in Verdun operates 24/7 throughout the week, except for October 4th when it closed after 8 AM and October 5th when it did not reopen until 8 AM. The nurse stressed that Verdun Hospital heavily relies on agency nurses and mandatory overtime to ensure it can provide 24-hour emergency coverage. She said, "Due to increased pressures on Verdun, we may see up to seven ambulances in a single night. This leads to burnout and concerns about the quality of care."
When you have loyalty to your community and want to keep a place open and your community members safe, there is a balance, but we also have a regulatory body that we need to report to in case anything significant happens. In our shift, there is a lot of fear about going back again." Darlene Jackson, President of the Manitoba Nurses Union, told Up To Speed's host Faith Fundal on Thursday that the future NDP government is aware of its promises to improve healthcare. Jackson said, "We're living in a healthcare system where nurses have workloads they've never seen before and feel they're not providing the care they should be to their patients. This government has committed to working with nurses to ensure that nurses are at the frontline." "It doesn't matter who's in government, you need to fulfill your promises." Healthcare workers further say Wab Kinew, the newly appointed Premier, said Friday on Marcy Markusa's Information Radio show that workers currently keeping the healthcare system going through "heroic efforts are our number one priority."
Kinew acknowledges that this challenge will also be faced by other provinces dealing with healthcare worker challenges.

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