A significant change is underway in British Columbia’s healthcare system. Care aides are struggling to fulfill their vital responsibilities, with many considering leaving.
According to a recent Global News investigation, there’s an unsettling trend in B.C. where care aides are likely to quit their jobs in the next two years.
The investigation brings to light the sobering fact that these committed employees are being pushed to the brink, with “45 per cent reporting that they have had to take time off work due to a workplace injury and violence, which included being struck, scratched and spit on.”
What is happening in B.C. is reflected in the other provinces.
Meena Brisard, HEU Secretary-Business Manager, said it was no surprise it prevented care aides from providing efficient care to their patients.
“This poll underscores what we have known for years. Many of our care home residents do not receive the attention they need and that our members want to provide,” Brisard said.
It’s an unsustainable scenario that eventually jeopardizes the standard of care given to people who need it most.
The Hospital Employees’ Union (HEU), representing more than 60,000 healthcare workers across B.C., called on the British Columbian government to honour its pledge made at the 2020 election to reinstate the standard pay, benefits, and working conditions that the previous B.C. Liberal government had dismantled.
In a province where the healthcare system is already under pressure from short staffing, low wages, and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, this exodus of care aides could not have come at a worse time.
For professionals who handle some of the most delicate and significant responsibilities in healthcare, this is a depressing reality.
Isn’t it time we acknowledged that these dedicated workers be well compensated for their unceasing efforts?
Brisard said the staff shortage and stress make caring for residents with dementia and mental health conditions difficult for aides and health workers.
If employees are not committed and driven, the system as a whole may collapse. Canada’s healthcare system must be compassionate and caring for future generations.
The care crisis in British Columbia demands our attention and action. The care aides in B.C. deserve better, and the B.C. government must step up to the plate and address this pressing issue.
It’s time to appreciate these incredibly hardworking professionals and give them the resources, support, and acknowledgment they deserve.