Manitoba Says 158 Healthcare Workers Are On Unpaid Leave For COVID-19 Testing – Winnipeg | The Canadian News

Manitoba says that roughly 158 healthcare workers have opted for unpaid leave rather than being tested for COVID-19, and more than half come from the Southern Health region.

In a statement Wednesday, Shared Health said the numbers were current through the end of Tuesday.

Under health orders that went into effect Monday, many front-line workers in health care, education and child care must be fully vaccinated against COVID or tested up to three times a week.

Authorities said 83 of the stay-at-home workers are from the Southern Health district, 27 are from the Interlake-Eastern Health region, 26 work in the Prairie Mountain Health region, 17 are from the Winnipeg Health region. , two work in the Northern Health region, and three are from Shared Health.

The number of healthcare workers reportedly staying home under the new orders has risen from 30 reported by Shared Health on Monday and 85 reported on Tuesday.

Shared Health says that while the vast majority of healthcare facilities are not experiencing significant shortage-related impacts, Southern Health has had to redeploy staff to “ensure continued quality care services.”

This includes redeployment of staff at Eastview Place in Altona and Salem Home in Winker, Shared Health said.

A few days before the vaccine’s mandate took effect, Salem Home sent a letter to the families of its residents warning them of a possible staff shortage. They warned families that the facility might need help with laundry, meals, cleaning, and activities, and even go one step further and get loved ones out of the house, should the staffing situation turn in a problem.

A Shared Health spokesperson said designated family members are helping provide support with feeding and visiting at some sites.

They said the extra help comes from a casual group of COVID-19 employees and internationally educated nurses who have volunteered to support staff.

“Contingency plans have been implemented and continue to exist and impacts on personnel continue to be closely monitored,” the spokesperson said.

Shared Health has previously said that the vaccine mandate affects approximately 42,000 healthcare workers throughout Manitoba.

As of Tuesday night, Shared Health says more than 37,000 of the workers have completed voluntary vaccine disclosure forms online, with just over 35,000 of them indicating they have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

In all, Shared Health says 1,866 healthcare workers across the province have been identified as requiring testing under the new orders as of Tuesday night.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough, and shortness of breath, much like a cold or the flu. Some people may develop a more serious illness. People most at risk for this are older adults and people with serious chronic medical conditions, such as heart, lung, or kidney disease. If you have symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent hand washing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as long as possible and keeping a distance of two meters from other people if you go out. In situations where you cannot keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend wearing a non-medical mask or covering to prevent the spread of respiratory droplets that can transmit the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full coverage of COVID-19 from Global News, visit our coronavirus page.

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