Funds and training won't stop today's rural paramedic burnout: the union

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The province said this week it is investing in more paramedics to work in rural and northern areas, but the president of the union representing rural paramedics says more needs to be done to end the staffing shortages plaguing rural communities.

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“Manitoba is still burning paramedics because of the shortage,” said Jason Linklater, president of the Manitoba Association of Healthcare Professionals (MAHCP). “If there's one piece of advice I have right now, it's to hire paramedics when and where you can and encourage them in places where they're having a hard time recruiting.”

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The province said Wednesday that as part of its 2024 budget, it will provide $124,000 to Red River College Polytechnic University to add 16 advanced practice paramedic (ACP) positions to the college in 2024-25.

The funding will go toward getting more trained paramedics to work in rural and northern communities, as rural communities in Manitoba have experienced a shortage of qualified paramedics in recent years.

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Manitoba Paramedic Association director Rebecca Clifton welcomed Thursday's announcement in a media release, saying better education and training for paramedics will ultimately lead to better health in rural and northern areas.

“Advanced care paramedics are a huge asset to rural health care,” Clifton said. “With deep knowledge and a great skill set, they can provide immediate patient care, making them invaluable in remote, rural areas with difficult transport or emergency rooms.

The province also says it will encourage more students to train as ACPs by investing more than $16 million to expand job opportunities, including the addition of a third ambulance in the city of Brandon.

Budget investments will now allow for community paramedic units in eastern, western and northern Manitoba, as the province said 21 clinical service managers have been hired since January in Dauphin, Flin Flon, Lac du Bonnet, Ashern, Neepawa and the cities. Additionally, additional staff are being hired and are in various stages of onboarding.

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“Our government is investing in paramedic medicine so Manitobans can feel safe knowing they will be the first responders to respond to emergencies,” Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said in a statement released Wednesday.

Linklater said while the investment is a good thing, it will take time to address Manitoba's challenges with staffing levels and working conditions for rural paramedics and the level of emergency care for rural and northern residents.

“Manitoba has lost hundreds of paramedics in rural Manitoba in recent years, which has increased response times for the life-saving services they provide,” said Linklater. “We don't have updated staffing numbers, but we hear paramedics are still stretched as they were under PC.

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According to Linklater, the MAHCP currently estimates there are 150 to 200 vacancies for rural paramedics in the province, with vacancy rates of 30 to 40 per cent in some areas of the province.

“Recent hires are filling big holes as paramedics leave, and it's unclear if progress is being made,” he said.

Linklater said the MAHCP hopes to work with the province to address the staffing shortage and has noticed since the NDP took office that the premier and health minister have been willing to listen and take on board the union's concerns.

“MAHCP is committed to working with Shared Health and the Manitoba government to ensure we can meet our budget commitment to add 90 paramedics by 2024 and Premier Kinew's broader election commitment to add 200 more paramedics,” said Linklater.

— Dave Baxter is a local journalism initiative reporter based out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Indigenous Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

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