How can Manitoba’s rural, First Nation communities fix their health-care crisis?

As First Nation communities across Manitoba are dealing with health-care staffing shortages – a situation that remains dire – leaders are trying to find solutions.

The head of Keewatinohk Inniniw Minoayawin Inc. (KIM) says it could better care for the needs of First Nations people in northern Manitoba if it took over from the Northern Regional Health Authority.

“We have physicians, surgeons, we have senior administrators,” KIM CEO Barry Lavallee told CityNews. “The big difference the system we would be in charge of, is we would not permit racism to impact access to services.”

On Monday, Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation declared a state of emergency due to a lack of nurses in the community. The nursing station is only open for emergencies, leaving residents no other option but to travel vast distances for basic medical care.

“This is not a new issue,” Lavallee said.

The same situation is occurring in Pimicikamak Cree Nation.

“Health is a treaty right, it’s a human right and it’s also a legislative right,” said Pimicikamak Chief David Monias at a press conference in Winnipeg Monday.

Pimicikamak Cree Nation is supposed to have around 13 or 14 nurses at all times, but Chief Monias says they have half of that number for a community of 8,000 people.

“The majority of our people die as a result of health and a lack of medical services and that is plain fact,” he said. “That is a fact we continue to see day in and day out.”

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Government data show that nursing stations in remote First Nations communities in Manitoba were facing a 67 per cent operational vacancy in the last fiscal year, and that all Indigenous Services Canada-operated nursing stations in Manitoba have run at a reduced capacity due to staffing shortages.

Darlene Jackson, president of the Manitoba Nurses’ Union, says the critical nursing shortage is a Canada-wide issue, not just Manitoba.

“Traditionally, staffing those rural and remote areas is getting more difficult,” she said. “It’s always been a challenge, but it is getting more difficult.”

–With files from The Canadian Press