NWT doctors “raised valid concerns” in their recent call for urgent government action to improve territorial healthcare, an association of northern nurses says.
The NWT Medical Association, which represents the territory’s physicians, issued a statement earlier this month outlining what it called “the critical need for government intervention to prevent disruptions in primary care and emergency services.”
On Tuesday, the College and Association of Nurses of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut – or CANNN – said it endorsed that message and issued 14 recommendations of its own.
Among its requests are competitive salaries and benefits, adequate staffing levels, more professional development, a safe and supportive working environment, and public awareness campaigns “about the value of nursing in northern communities.”
The CANNN statement, which was shorter than the one provided by the physicians’ body, was also less direct in its criticisms.
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Even so, CANNN said it was speaking to “formally support” the NWTMA in its assessment, adding there were “increasing risks to patient safety and the sustainability of care.”
While the NWT’s healthcare system has been feeling the strain for years, territorial politicians, patients and even some healthcare staff have been increasingly vocal about their concerns in recent months.
A committee of regular MLAs has begun scrutinizing the sustainability of NWT healthcare, while the territorial government is establishing a sustainability unit of its own tasked with better understanding what the territory’s “core” health and social services are and how healthcare cash is spent.
