Staffing shortages in health care have been a chronic issue since the pandemic, but new restrictions on overtime\u00a0Vancouver Island’s health district is making the problem worse, according to union leaders representing health-care workers.<\/p>\n
This spring, Island Health implemented a fatigue policy. Broadly speaking, it stipulates that employees shouldn’t work more than\u00a016 hours in a 24-hour period<\/p>\n
The health authority states that its goal is to ensure front-line staff get the rest they need to reduce injuries and sick time, and to ensure patients get quality care. But union leaders say the restrictions on overtime are having the opposite effect.<\/p>\n
They report that health units are going understaffed even when there are people willing to work, and the result is added strain on staff at the expense of patients.<\/p>\n
“We don’t want to be relying on overtime as a long term solution,” said Sarah Kooner, president of the Health Sciences Association of B.C. which represents health professionals such as lab technologists\u00a0and physiotherapists.<\/p>\n
“But our members also know that in the face of chronic staffing shortages, overtime is often the only way to make sure that patients are getting the care that they need,” Kooner said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Limiting overtime may also be costing the health-care system money in the long run, she warned. For instance, when occupational therapists are short-staffed, patients have to wait a longer time to be assessed for discharge from hospital. The ripple effects include delays to new patient admissions and overcrowded emergency rooms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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‘Our members … know that in the face of chronic staffing shortages, overtime is often the only way to make sure that patients are getting the care that they need,’ said Sarah Kooner, president of the Health Sciences Association of B.C. (Health Sciences Association of B.C. )Teams short-staffed<\/p>\n
The Hospital Employees’ Union, which represents support staff such as care aides, housekeepers,\u00a0activity workers and more, is also reporting that its\u00a0members are routinely being denied overtime shifts, leaving care teams short-staffed.<\/p>\n
The B.C. Nurses’ Union is also seeing difficulties, and president\u00a0Adriane Gear said there are both direct and indirect impacts on nurses. Nurses are being denied overtime hours, which is resulting in too few nurses on the floor. Furthermore, their\u00a0support staff \u2014 such as care aides \u2014\u00a0are also being denied overtime, leaving the nurses\u00a0on shift\u00a0to pick up the extra work.<\/p>\n
“The burnout factor for nurses alone, I would think, would be enough to reconsider the strategy,” Gear said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The president of the B.C. Nurses’ Union said the fatigue policy is having a downstream impact on members, with nurses finding themselves managing additional duties, alongside shortages in their own ranks. (Darryl Dyck\/The Canadian Press)<\/p>\n
Island Health did not grant an interview about the fatigue policy. In a statement it said that overtime has not been eliminated, and that its policy is about wellbeing. However, it also made reference to cost-cutting, saying\u00a0it’s reviewing its scheduling practices\u00a0to reduce how frequently staff are working an “inordinate” number of shifts in a row or working shifts “at premium rates of pay beyond the expected norm.”<\/p>\n
Leaked memo<\/p>\n
An internal memo obtained by CBC News sheds light on how the fatigue policy is being implemented.<\/p>\n
In a July 11 letter from an Island Health manager to staff members, it says no overtime is to be approved for health care assistants, nursing unit assistants, or for general workload coverage. However, in some circumstances, a health unit can make an appeal to senior leadership for overtime approval “if the impact is significant enough.”\u00a0<\/p>\n