BC Nurses’ Union members rallied outside Northern BC’s largest hospital yesterday to draw attention to what they call an on-going crisis.
According to them, the University Hospital of Northern BC in Prince George is regularly operating at between 118 and 125 percent capacity.
On top of that, the hospital regularly finds itself covering for other emergency rooms, as staff shortages prompt closures across the north.
Now, those two factors are leading the hospital towards a breaking point, with wait times to get care continually on the rise.
Northern Health, meanwhile, is hoping a newly signed collective bargaining deal will help to address the well-documented staffing crisis.
That plan looks to instill new nurse-to-patient ratios to reduce backlogs, though details on the plan have been scarce so far.
