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By Vernon-Monashee MLA Harwinder Sandhu

Sound Off

SOUND OFF: Transforming our healthcare system to put people first

Oct 12, 2022 | 10:29 AM

EVERYONE IN B.C. DESERVES to have access to the health care they need, when they need it. And making sure that this care is available is one of the top priorities of our government. Last week, we took the latest step when we introduced a new health human resource strategy. This strategy will optimize the healthcare system, expand training and improve recruitment and retention of health care professionals.

But this strategy is not the beginning of our work – it is a continuation of the work we have been doing to reinforce the healthcare sector since New Democrats took office in 2017.

For 16 years, the previous government made cuts that left our system struggling. In 2009, now-BC Liberal leader Kevin Falcon was minister of health, and he forced health authorities to absorb $360 million in funding cuts. This meant cutting thousands of MRIs and surgeries as well as mental health and addictions services.

The BC Liberals even started replacing nurses in hospitals with care aides, as part of their so-called “care delivery redesign model,” and patients suffered. I was proud to stand alongside nurses who advocated for patients and healthcare staff in demanding an end to this policy.

Not only did these cuts affect people who needed healthcare at the time, they also had lasting impacts on our entire health workforce. Falcon’s contract-flipping led to thousands of hardworking healthcare workers being fired, only to be offered back their own jobs at lower wages, without the stability and benefits they deserve.

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He also cut the number of seats in nursing programs at our post-secondary institutions, meaning fewer qualified nurses starting work each year in B.C.

We’ve been working hard to reverse these years of neglect. Since 2017, we’ve committed more than $1 billion to support healthcare workers and increase access to health care. This has included adding more than 950 staff in team-based primary care, hiring more than 7,000 new staff to support seniors care, offering bursaries to more nursing students, and expanding health sector education and training placements from 8,000 to 11,400.

As a nurse, I experienced firsthand the impacts of the BC Liberal cuts on our healthcare system, and the difference that it made to finally have a government that truly cared about the workers at the heart of that system. As a nurse who trained internationally, I also can attest to the support this government has given to internationally educated nurses to make it easier for them to begin practicing in the province.

Since March 2020 when the pandemic was declared, we have been in a public health emergency, which put additional stress on our health sector workforce. The new health human resources strategy will help us resolve the challenges people are facing right now, while building a strong, resilient public healthcare system for the future.

One of the first actions will be expanding the scope of practice of pharmacists, so they can adapt and renew prescriptions, helping ease the pressure for people without a regular primary care prescriber. And by 2023, we will enable pharmacists to prescribe medications for minor ailments and contraception.

We’re also adding 40 new undergraduate seats and 88 new residency seats in the medical program at UBC, to train more doctors here in B.C. While we continue to train more new doctors, we’re also making progress in recruiting more qualified physicians.

As of October 1, we’ve signed contracts with 54 new family physicians under a new incentive program launched in June 2022. These doctors will be providing full-service primary care to people in communities throughout the province, and more than 60 other physicians are currently in discussions about signing contracts.

We know that our healthcare system would not function without the hard work, skills and passion of thousands of workers. In order to transform the way patients receive care and address our pressing challenges, we must provide strong support to our healthcare system by transforming the way we train, recruit and retain this workforce. More actions will be announced in the coming weeks.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.