Saskatchewan’s healthcare system is facing a mounting crisis as new data reveals the province lost 230 full-time registered nurses in just one year, according to the Canadian Institute of Health Information (CIHI).
Sask NDP is sounding the alarm, blaming the Sask Party government for the exodus of healthcare workers and the strain on the province’s hospitals and clinics.
“The Sask Party’s plan is failing. This is why our emergency rooms and rural hospitals are facing chronic closures. This is why our friends and neighbours can’t find a family doctor or get a procedure on time,” said Mowat.
“This government is driving healthcare workers out of the province.”
The CIHI data paints a grim picture of the healthcare workforce in Saskatchewan under Premier Scott Moe’s leadership.
Since Moe took office in 2018, the number of rural/remote registered nurses has dropped by 24%, with 526 fewer nurses in 2023 compared to 2018.
Long-term care facilities have seen a 10% decline, losing 95 registered nurses over the same period.
The psychiatric nursing workforce has shrunk by 8%, with 63 fewer psychiatric nurses.
The province’s nurse practitioner workforce showed virtually no growth in 2023, with only one full-time nurse practitioner hired.
Mowat also highlighted Saskatchewan’s poor standing in physician-to-patient ratios. The province has the second-worst physician ratio in Canada, with just 221 doctors per 100,000 people, and the lowest specialist ratio, at 103 specialists per 100,000 people.
“The Sask Party is going out saying they have the best recruitment strategy in Canada as our healthcare workers leave in record numbers. This government is delusional,” said Mowat.
“Anyone who has tried to get care in a Saskatchewan hospital can see that the system is in crisis.”
The NDP is calling for a complete overhaul of the province’s healthcare recruitment and retention strategy, emphasizing the need to work collaboratively with healthcare workers to address systemic issues.
“Everyone is tired of the excuse that this is a so-called national problem. The Sask Party is dead last in Canada. It’s time they own their record,” said Mowat.
“We need to massively overhaul our recruitment strategy and build retention solutions with our healthcare workers who are currently shouldering the burden of this government’s failures. Our healthcare workers deserve better, and our patients certainly deserve better.”