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Yellowknifer editorial: TikTok, you’re on the clock

An X-ray is an effective window into the body’s internal structures.
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Contract nurses amuse themselves by playing with birthing balls in Stanton Territorial Hospital’s closed obstetrics unit. The temporary nurses have caused an uproar with their social media boasts over high pay and relaxed workload. Meanwhile, pregnant NWT women are forced to travel to Edmonton to give birth. Submitted screenshot

An X-ray is an effective window into the body’s internal structures.

Social media recently proved to be like an X-ray into the work lives of Stanton Territorial Hospital’s coterie of contract nurses.

It was just further proof that things are a mess at the hospital.

A major blow was dealt on Nov. 22 when it was announced that birthing services in Yellowknife would be suspended from Dec. 10 to Feb. 21, except for emergencies.

This was due to a lack of nurses.

With no obstetrics unit in use, NWT women expecting a child would have to travel to Edmonton for their delivery. This puts in question whether their spouse will be able to accompany them during a pandemic and with farther to travel. It also creates complications for mothers who already have other young children. For some, it results in more anxiety.

It’s unfortunate.

But it wasn’t like the powers-that-be shouldn’t have seen it coming, stated the union that represents hospital workers. Staff vacancies and low morale had been issues for at least 18 months, according to the Union of Northern Workers in November.

A nurse backed up that assertion: “There’s been a mass exodus of nurses in multiple departments. Mass exodus from emerge has led to the whole department being run by locums. ICU, same thing. OBS same thing. Every single department has been affected by this turnover.”

On Dec. 21, Kim Riles, CEO of the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority (NTHSSA), revealed that additional positions were approved for the obstetrics unit. Although it wouldn’t result in the resumption of birthing services at Stanton, the move was intended to create “more stability and increase the flexibility of staffing options,” according to Riles.

Fast-forward to this month. Contract nurses are in place at the hospital. Some of them find the time to take pictures of one another in the obstetrics unit playing with birthing balls. One of the photos sports the message: “How to pass the time when the birthing unit is closed.”

Another contract nurse posted a video to TikTok. Above her head an inscription reads: “When you accept a travel nursing contract for eight weeks. Show up and the unit is closed. But now you’re getting paid substantially more to do much less.”

In case you were uncertain, the NTHSSA confirmed that the social media posts were “unprofessional.”

An apology ensued from the health authority and a spokesperson assured that the employer addressed the issue internally – presumably meaning that those particular nurses would be in hot water.

It must be noted, this isn’t a slight against Yellowknife’s complement of permanent nurses, some of whom have been providing exemplary service for many years and feeling undervalued by the GNWT.

Ultimately, this is about the health authority maintaining public trust. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the NTHSSA has appealed to Yellowknifers to put their faith in public health restrictions that have deeply impacted our lives.

The same holds true for its decisions on staffing. Therefore, we were all under the impression that there were not enough nurses to do the job in the obstetrics unit, but now the public has seen that there are contract nurses sitting around boasting about generous pay and not having much work to do.

The GNWT needs to explain to Northerners and to full-time health staff why this has happened because it has birthed an embarrassing image.