Skip to main content

441-02606 (Health)

Paper petition

Original language of petition: English

Petition to the House of Commons

Whereas:

  • Nurses' incentives should be provided to all nurses to better create healthy relationships and a healthy workplace;
  • The government must do better in recognizing health care credentials from qualified professionals who are internationally trained and educated;
  • The government must do better and implement better strategies and incentives to attract and retain our healthcare workers in Manitoba;
  • New and experienced nurses and healthcare professionals are leaving our province and considering opportunities offered in other provinces that provide lucrative incentives and benefits to their healthcare professionals;
  • Many Manitoba seniors are on capped income and cannot afford their prescribed medications; and
  • Nurses are overworked due to high workloads.

We, the undersigned residents of Manitoba, call upon the House of Commons to work with Provincial Governments and other healthcare stakeholders to:

1. Take nurses recruitment and retention seriously to help resolve the healthcare crisis;

2. Ensure everyone who is contributing to Manitoba through taxes and our economy is eligible for Manitoba healthcare;

3. Review the nurses' workload and incentive program to include all nurses, regardless of position status and type; and

4. Reconsider some of the changes that have been made over the last few years and turn the health care facility into a facility that is capable of being, so the residents of Manitoba, particularly the communities of Tyndall Park, Maples, Burrows, Kildonan and even Lakeside have a place to go.

Response by the Minister of Health

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): Yasir Naqvi

Healthcare is a shared responsibility between the Government of Canada and the provinces and territories. While the federal government provides financial support to the provinces and territories for healthcare services, the responsibility for matters related to management of the health care system and health workforces falls within provincial and territorial jurisdiction. As part of their responsibility to administer and deliver healthcare services, provinces and territories establish training curricula and manage licensure, and regulate healthcare professionals through arms-length regulatory bodies, such as professional colleges and associations.

At the same time, the federal government acknowledges that it has a key leadership role to play in supporting solutions to the challenges facing health systems across the country, including those related to Canada’s health workforce. We remain committed to continuing to work with provincial and territorial governments to protect and strengthen the publicly funded health care system.

Budget 2023 delivered close to $200 billion to reduce backlogs, expand access to family health services and ensure provinces and territories can provide the high quality and timely health care Canadians expect and deserve. This includes $46.2 billion in new funding for provinces and territories to improve health care services for Canadians. This funding also includes $25 billion over 10 years to advance shared health priorities through tailored bilateral agreements that will support the needs of people in each province and territory in four areas of shared priority: family health services; health workers and backlogs; mental health and substance use; and a modernized health system. Additionally, provinces and territories are being asked to streamline foreign credential recognition for internationally educated health professionals, and to advance labour mobility.

On October 12, 2023 federal, provincial, and territorial (FPT) Ministers of Health issued a public statement reaffirming their commitment to supporting Canada’s health workforce so our health workers are able to provide high-quality, accessible and effective health services for people living in Canada. In particular, FPT governments committed to concrete actions focusing on retention, domestic education supply and demand, foreign credential recognition and ethical recruitment, labour mobility, and health workforce data and planning. These commitments included undertaking credential processes overseas in order to improve processing of licensure of international physicians and nurses within 90 days and support for a Nursing Retention Toolkit developed by the federally-appointed Chief Nursing Officer, Dr. Leigh Chapman, in consultation with Canada’s nursing community. The toolkit, released on March 4, 2024, highlights retention initiatives that employers or health authorities can implement to support their nursing workforce.

The details on the Ministers commitments can be found here: Federal, provincial and territorial statement on supporting Canada’s health workforce.

In addition to these commitments, Budget 2024 announced $77.1M over four years (2025-26 to 2028-29) to effectively integrate internationally educated health care professionals into Canada’s health workforce by creating 120 specific training positions, increasing assessment capacity and providing support to navigate credential recognition systems.

Presented to the House of Commons
Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North)
September 17, 2024 (Petition No. 441-02606)
Government response tabled
October 31, 2024
Photo - Kevin Lamoureux
Winnipeg North
Liberal Caucus
Manitoba

25 signatures

Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.