Manitoba Nurses Union welcomes new safety measure
In a bid to keep hospital workers safe, Manitoba will have institutional safety officers (ISOs) patrolling Health Sciences Centre (HSC) Winnipeg starting April 15.
“We fully support initiatives that increase the safety and security of people working, visiting and receiving care at hospitals across Manitoba,” said Uzoma Asagwara, minister of health, sciences and long-term care. “Institutional safety officers are long-overdue, and a significant step forward, having received enhanced training and the legal authority to enforce and exercise powers under various provincial statutes.”
ISOs are responsible for maintaining safety and security at a number of facilities across Manitoba including post-secondary institutions and hospitals.
They will be equipped with pepper gel as Shared Health and partners evaluate the suitability of other equipment within a health-care setting.
ISOs are also licensed as security guards and, in health-care environments, have additional training which allows them to accept a mental health patient from police, then secure and protect them until seen by health-care professionals, the minister noted.
“Institutional safety officers will bring an added layer of training and expertise to addressing and maintaining the safety of staff, patients and visitors at HSC,” said Dr. Shawn Young, chief operating officer, HSC Winnipeg. “We continue to do our due diligence on other safety initiatives as we work to balance the security needs of the facility with the continued need for HSC to be a welcoming space for those seeking care.”
Will there be enough ISOs in Manitoba?
Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson said she welcomes the ISOs, but is not confident there will be enough to keep everyone safe, according to The Canadian Press.
"What they've done is just take the security guards they have and have trained them to be ISOs, so we're not getting any increase in what we've got," Jackson said.
"And I'm not confident that that is adequate to cover that huge campus."
Additional training classes for ISOs are ongoing in Manitoba, with classes planned for over the next three months. The provincial government is looking to hire 105 ISOs, who have completed training and testing. They will be posted at HSC Winnipeg, St. Boniface Hospital, Victoria General Hospital, Brandon Regional Health Centre and Selkirk Mental Health Centre.
Previously, Manitoba also upgraded security cameras and panic alarm systems at hospitals in the province to keep workers safe. The government also held. lighting installation, and parkade renovations.
Hospital staff have been subjected to increasing violence, according to a previous report.
