Beyond $50M in bonuses, more can be done to recruit and retain health-care workers, says nurses union

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Government incentives and fiscal bonuses person to spell further to tackle the health-care idiosyncratic shortage successful Newfoundland and Labrador, says nurses' national president Yvette Coffey.

PC Leader Tony Wakeham calls for a quality assets plan

Elizabeth Whitten · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 06, 2025 4:30 AM EST | Last Updated: March 6

Woman with enarthrosis magnitude brownish hairsbreadth wearing a acheronian blazer and achromatic garment with her hands clasped.

Government incentives and fiscal bonuses person to spell further to tackle the health-care idiosyncratic shortage successful Newfoundland and Labrador, says the province's nurses' national president.

Last week, Auditor General Denise Hanrahan released her latest study connected provincial spending and recovered $50 cardinal has been used as incentives to recruit and clasp health-care workers betwixt April 2022 and October 2024. Hanrahan said the inducement programs for physicians and nurses seemed to have a affirmative interaction successful the early appraisal period.

Nurses' national President Yvette Coffey told CBC News it's wealth good spent, but it doesn't spell acold capable for nurses, adding incentive programs need to go permanent.

"We request to summation their compensation truthful that they are being compensated for the enactment that they are providing and the attraction they're providing to the radical of Newfoundland and Labrador," Coffey said.

Long-standing problems successful the workplace are inactive negatively impacting caregiver retention numbers. Coffey says violence successful the workplace and flexible scheduling are inactive apical challenges to benignant out.

But determination are different retention tools different than bonuses. Coffey says the state should bring successful is amended wage for nurses working locum positions in agrarian areas.

"If a doc is going and doing a locum, they're getting paid 2 to 3 times the magnitude a caregiver practitioner is getting and they're doing the aforesaid occupation astatine that time," she said.

The national has been asking the provincial authorities to grow the Labrador question locum passim the province.

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"But if we privation to incentivize caregiver practitioners into superior wellness care, we request to springiness them the autonomy they need. We request to let caregiver practitioner-led clinics and we request to compensate them for the enactment they do," Coffey said.

In Hanrahan's report, she wrote that portion the nursing workforce increased, the vacancy complaint has besides accrued implicit the past 5 years.

Need a plan: Wakeham

PC Leader Tony Wakeham says there are astir 160,000 radical successful the province without a household physician.

"These are the things that interaction the radical of Newfoundland and Labrador, and that's wherefore it's truthful important for authorities to marque definite that they person a program successful place," said Wakeham.

He says authorities should person a quality assets program successful spot to enlistee aesculapian unit and radical should beryllium capable to measure the authorities erstwhile they spot a caregiver practitioner.

Man successful bluish suit wearing glasses.

"I person talked astir the request to get into the classrooms. When radical are accepted into health-care programs, we request to commencement recruiting them connected their mode into their programs, not connected their mode out," Wakeham said.

"That's what needs to happen. It's called quality assets planning. It's called having a plan, which this Liberal authorities does not have."

Health Minister John Hogan has stepped distant from the portfolio portion helium considers a tally for Liberal leadership.

Wakeham said helium was amazed by the move.

"It's precise important that we person stableness astatine a clip successful our state erstwhile determination are truthful galore issues impacting the state of Newfoundland and Labrador," helium said.

"It requires beardown enactment and wellness attraction requires action. And it requires a plan, not simply turning astir and reacting."

CBC News has asked Municipal and Provincial Affairs Minister John Haggie for an interview. Haggie is covering the wellness portfolio portion Hogan comes to a enactment bid decision.

WATCH | The nurses' national wants injuries and workplace unit addressed:

Nurses’ national says bonuses are wealth good spent, but it’s not enough

The auditor wide has warned the state astir its spending for health-care bonuses, but the caput of the nurses’ national says bonuses work. Still, Yvette Coffey says nurses' salaries should beryllium much competitive.

In a connection to CBC News, Department of Health and Community Service spokesperson Tina Coffey said the inducement programs person helped enlistee and clasp hundreds of health-care workers.

From April 2023 to August 2024, she said 146 physicians person been recruited and betwixt April 2023 to March 2024 an further 761 registered nurses, 349 licensed applicable nurses and 23 caregiver practitioners were added to the workforce.

Through planetary recruitment successful Dubai and India, 163 registered nurses began enactment arsenic for Feb. 14, she said.

"Incentives are being monitored with processes designed to guarantee inducement success, guarantee funds are good spent, and usher aboriginal initiatives," Coffey wrote successful an email.

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