September 30, 2003
A decline in nursing vacancies this year indicates Manitoba has turned the corner on the nursing shortage issue, Health Minister Dave Chomiak announced today.
"Our efforts to educate, recruit and retain more nurses are beginning to pay off," the minister said, in response to the release of the Manitoba Nursing Labour Market Supply Report for 2003.
According to the report, there are 1,028 permanent nursing vacancies in Manitoba, a 24 per cent improvement over 2002 when there were 1,352 nursing vacancies across the province.
The minister said the Manitoba Nursing Strategy, implemented in 2000, has played a significant role in educating more nurses and making this province a more attractive place to work. The five-point strategy included:
In March, Manitoba Health announced its three-year progress report on the nursing strategy, indicating that more than 600 nurses are graduating this year, up from 210 in 1999.
Most of those nurses appear to be staying in Manitoba. In a University of Manitoba survey of 614 nursing graduates between 1999 and 2002, 90 per cent of new nurses entering the labour force were working in Manitoba.
By the end of 2002, Manitoba had 10,945 practicing registered nurses compared to 10,792 in 1999, according to the College of Registered Nurses in Manitoba.
Chomiak cautioned that the loss of nurses to retirement by mid-decade means Manitoba Health will have to work with universities and colleges to ensure there is a sufficient supply of nurses to work in Manitoba health facilities
"We are beginning to see improvement from the 1990s when cuts in nurse education and jobs had a devastating impact on the people who deliver front-line health care," Chomiak said. "However, we need to continue to improve and enhance the work environment for nurses."
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