Nurses at Hillside Centre refused to work in January, citing insufficient staffing levels.
WorkSafe BC was called and another nurse was called in, said Tracey Quewzance, the Thompson-North Okanagan representative for the B.C. Nurses’ Union (BCNU).
It’s just one of the ongoing issues between the Interior Health Authority (IHA), which runs the psychiatric facility, the BCNU and the Union of Psychiatric Nurses (UPN).
The dispute goes back years and, at its heart, involves debate over the proper staffing level for a facility populated by adults with a variety of serious mental-health issues that, for a majority of them, can lead to acting out and aggression.
Both unions have asked for meetings with the IHA, but the last one was in the fall, said Maureen MacKinlay, the IHA’s director of tertiary acute and rehabilitation mental-health services.
One was held in September, with a follow-up in October or November.
“I can only say we have provided them with information and have heard their concerns,” MacKinlay said.
Adding to the disagreement is a personal-alarm system staff use to call for help that is unreliable, Quewzance said, and has been for about two years, when the supplier shut down.
She said system issues include not showing the location of the staffer who triggered it or not causing an alarm to be sent to other staff.
This requires rebooting and has left staff lacking confidence in the system, she said.
The backup system is using walkie-talkies, MacKinlay confirmed: “Currently, we have no problems with the system.”
WorkSafe BC became aware of the faulty system about 18 months ago and told the IHA to replace it, Quewzance said, noting more than a year ago the IHA advised the union it had allocated funding and would replace it.
“WorkSafe asked again in September and was told it was still out for quotes,” she said.
MacKinlay said the IHA money allocated last year wasn’t enough and the process had to be done again to allocate more.
“An RFP [request for proposal from potential suppliers] takes time,” she said, adding it issued it recently, although she is unaware of the specific date or the deadline date for submissions.
UPN president Dan Murphy said the original amount was $70,000.
“And now IHA is saying we don’t have the money? I thought safety trumps all.”
Murphy, himself a veteran psychiatric nurse, said there are many facilities in B.C. and Canada with similar systems that work well. He said that reality should have made the search for a supplier easier for the IHA.
Murphy said that, along with the patient who attacked a nurse in December, every other patient in the pod — the term Hillside uses for its different areas — had also been designated aggressive.
“And that patient shouldn’t have been on the ward.”
MacKinlay declined to respond to Murphy’s concerns, citing patient privacy.
Murphy said the nurse involved in the incident returned to Hillside recently and comments directed to her by management upset her.
He said another nurse spoke up to defend her and was suspended.
MacKinlay also declined to discuss the allegations, again citing personnel privacy.
She reiterated assertions made by the IHA in recent months, that staffing is adequate at Hillside.
“It has the highest level of staffing for a facility like this in the province,” MacKinlay said.
She said staffing is based on acuity and census — how many patients are in each pod and how ill they are.
“And if we can’t manage due to a high level of aggressiveness, we involve the RCMP,” MacKinlay said.
She said Hillside deals with “a highly complex patient group.”
She said the centre’s Code White system — used to determine when a nurse needs help when dealing with an aggressive patient — is a good tool that helps the staff.
MacKinlay said staff have been able to use verbal-strategy training to talk down many agitated and aggressive patients.
Murphy said the situation at Hillside is bad.
“These nurses have less protection than a policeman has,” he said.
“They’ve seen so much up there and they don’t feel supported — and they don’t want to work there anymore.”
