Manitoba releases health audits; new CEOs appointed at Shared Health, WRHA

Manitoba’s government says there needs to be a massive shift in culture in the provincial health-care system, as previous governments have created an environment of “scarcity and fear” that needs to be addressed.

The remarks were made by Manitoba Minister of Health, Seniors and Long-term Care Uzoma Asagwara Tuesday as they announced the results of a system-wide audit and the appointment of new interim CEOs of Shared Health and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA). 

“There is a disconnect between the message our government has been saying and the decisions some health-care leaders have been making,” said Minister Asagwara, pointing to a culture of cuts created by the previous PC government as the root cause. 

Now, Asagwara says the focus of the system is shifting from cuts, to patient care and the needs of frontline staff, with the new appointments in both health agencies made to see the shift through. Dr. Chris Christodoulou is replacing Lanette Siragusa at Shared Health, and Jane Curtis is replacing Mike Nadar at the WRHA.

“The health system has lost its focus and it’s time to bring that focus back,” said Asagwara, a former nurse, at a press conference Wednesday. Asagwara called both Curtis and Christodoulou “exemplary Manitobans” and leaders in the medical field.

Minister Asagwara didn’t say outright they ordered the changes in leadership, as the CEOs answer to appointed health-care boards, but stressed they work very closely with board chairs to address needs on the frontline, saying the disconnect between government directive and leadership was real.

“The boards were not empowered to make decisions around budgeting or governance that would really benefit the system,” they said. 

“As minister, I take very seriously the responsibility that boards have to hold leaders accountable and to serve a very important function in the health-care system.” 

Asagwara says they’ve made changes to the boards recently with the focus of putting patients first in an environment of fiscal responsibility, and they’re taking the steps needed to strengthen the system, as there was no real communication between boards and governments of the past.

“We’re taking a different approach,” they said. “We’re opening those lines of communication.” 

PCs call audit political spin

The PC’s health critic Kathleen Cook, who represents Charleswood, called the release of the audits a “political exercise” at an afternoon press conference responding to the release, saying without a hard plan to address the shortcomings identified in the reports, they’re nothing but a tool for cover.

“What I think is happening here is I think we’re seeing the NDP audits as a political measure to give themselves cover for whatever is coming next,” she said. “I think any unpopular decisions in health care that the NDP make over the next few months will be blamed on these audits.” 

Asked about the culture of fear that exists within the system, Cook says she feels the remark is “a political accusation coming from a political actor,” adding her experience as an MLA has seen her interacting with workers on the frontline afraid to speak out against the NDP.

“I do know from speaking with frontline workers over the last year and a bit, that there is a culture of fear,” she said. 

“A fear of speaking out. A fear of retribution. It’s one of the reasons I go into Question Period quite often with stories from frontline healthcare workers who don’t want me to use their name because they’re afraid of retribution from this government.”

Cook went as far to say she suspects the departing CEOs of Shared Health and WRHA are being scapegoated, calling the departures “politically motivated.”

The changes however, according to the NDP, are part of an overall commitment from the government to fix Manitoba’s health-care system, with Asagwara, stressing the government has also hired 870 net-new hires, added hundreds of beds and has limited the use of private health agencies and nurses in the province.