Nurses signing on for critical care centre

Prairie Mountain Health is having success in recruiting nurses to work in the soon-to-be-opened Brandon hospital critical care centre.

Around 30 positions have been posted online for the internal medicine unit, which has seen interest from internal PMH staff and nurses working outside the health region and province, said Prairie Mountain CEO Treena Slate.

PMH has recruited nurses from Nova Scotia, Ontario and Saskatchewan to work in the new building so far, she said.

“We are having good success in filling a lot of those positions. So, that’s really good.”

The new facility is scheduled to open early in the new year.

The regional health authority plans to open 10 of 16 intensive care unit beds and half of its 30-bed internal medicine unit to start, Slate said.

“I think with a staggered approach, we will be successful in hiring all the positions that are required to open the planned starting bed occupancy in our new facility,” she said.

The initial 15-bed internal medicine unit will provide specialized care for patients focused on preventing, diagnosing and treating diseases, infections and other medical conditions.

The existing 10-bed ICU, including its staff at the Brandon Regional Health Centre, will be transferred to the critical care centre when it opens, Slate said. Once the regional health authority fills its current ICU vacancies, the new building will expand up to 16 beds, she said.

“We’ve done a lot of promotion of the new building in terms of showing videos to staff and sharing the news widely within our region and on our website and social media pages,” Slate said.

Some internal staff have toured the new building and had the opportunity to experience what it’s like to work in the ICU, speaking with ICU nurses and asking them questions. The tours have generated feedback from newly hired staff about where equipment should be placed and what to expect in terms of their upcoming workflow.

“I think all of those efforts together have been beneficial,” Slate said.

Prairie Mountain Health frequently engages with students in the nursing programs at Brandon University and Assiniboine College about working within the health authority.

“So that will be another opportunity for people to train in that environment and prepares them well for employment there,” she said.

The health authority could not confirm on Monday how many nurses have been hired to work at the new centre.

There hasn’t been an additional recruitment effort for doctors to staff the facility because existing ICU and internal medicine physicians in PMH will be transferred to work in the new building first.

“In (the) future, there will be a need to add more physician resource and support, but at this current time, there is not,” Slate said.

The new building is a “state-of-the-art environment” for providing patient care and will offer bright, single-room occupancy featuring a ceiling track lift to support patients, she said.

The 24-hour ICU is the only ICU between Winnipeg and Regina and plays a vital role in ensuring people in western Manitoba have access to life-saving care.

The critical care centre is a major investment in providing better patient support for Brandon and the Westman area, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said in a statement.

“Prairie Mountain Health has been clear that a phased opening is the safest way to ensure every bed that comes online is fully supported by the right staff and clinical resources, and our government is thrilled that expanded services are coming to the region,” Asagwara said.

Since forming government in October 2023, the NDP government has recruited 1,100 net new nurses across Manitoba with 51 net new health care workers added to the Brandon Regional Health Centre, the province said.

Last month, Indigenous elder Deborah Tacan performed a blessing ceremony within the new building, which was very meaningful to health care staff and is an important part of providing culturally safe care, Slate said.

The Brandon Regional Health Centre has had an Indigenous health patient advocate since 2021 and another will be added to work in the new building, she said. This role supports Indigenous patients during their hospital stay and can act as a spokesperson for the patient to ask questions.

The hospital also has an Indigenous spiritual care worker who has been providing spiritual services or ceremonies to patients and families for about a decade.

Once construction has finished at the critical care centre, orientation and training will begin for staff in anticipation of the site’s first patients.

» tadamski@brandonsun.com