Island nurses to rally at VIHA Board meeting

Nurses from across mid and north Vancouver Island will rally at the Vancouver Island Health Authority Board meeting in Port Alberni on Wednesday (May 29). They'll be there to demand a halt to a plan to reduce the number of nurses at the bedside at VIHA hospitals, pending an independent review.

According to a scheme called "Care Delivery Model Redesign", VIHA managers want to cut the number of professional nurses working with patients recovering from serious illnesses or surgeries and replace them with unlicensed care aides.

They want to implement the scheme at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital first, then roll it out at Royal Jubilee and Victoria General hospitals, before moving it to smaller hospitals throughout the island.

"While care aides are a valuable addition to help patients with activities of daily living, VIHA should not use them to replace the skills and knowledge of licensed and registered nurses," says Jo Salken, Pacific Rim chair for the BC Nurses' Union. "This is all about VIHA cutting budgets, not improving patient care. The evidence shows that reducing the number of professional nurses at the bedside leads to worse patient outcomes. VIHA must stop this plan and organize an independent review before it can go ahead."

For more information contact:

Jo Salken, BCNU Pacific Rim chair 250-713-7066

Art Moses, BCNU Communications 604-868-4259