Some Toronto nurses say SARS premium not enough

Ontario Health Minister Tony Clement said the province will cover the cost of doubling the pay for health-care workers on SARS duty at four Toronto hospitals.

The hospitals -- Scarborough General, North York General, St. Michael's and the Etobicoke site of William Osler Health Centre -- are part of an alliance formed to handle Toronto's SARS cases.

The proposed pay hike would would boost the salary of top-end nurses to $66 per hour. The rate would be equivalent to that earned by temporary nurses placed by private agencies, whose high pay has been a source of anger for staff workers.

Clement said his government supports paying health-care workers at the four hospitals more because they are a "special case." But it does not endorse paying more to health-care workers dealing with SARS in other hospitals.

"If you're saying that the solution to SARS is to pay everyone double in the system, that isn't the solution."

Though the extra money would be welcome, the president of the Ontario Nurses Association said it should not be limited to health-care workers dealing directly with SARS.

Barb Wahl points out that the latest cluster surfaced in an orthopedic unit and a rehabilitation centre and therefore the increase should encompass all hospitals dealing with SARS.

"Everyone's at risk," Wahl said. "The nurses throughout the hospital should get this."

The dispute over wages surfaced as nurses rallied at Scarborough Hospital to protest the province's handling of the SARS outbreak.

At the protest, CUPE President Sid Ryan said it was time to apply a new strategy in the fight aganist SARS. "Instead of saying we have to live with a new normal, our strategy has to be to eradicate SARS, much like they did in Singapore."

That would lead to new measures such as province-wide standardized screening and patient-transfer procedures, Ryan said.

One nurse -- who worked in a SARS ICU for two weeks during the first Toronto outbreak -- said even a premium salary isn't enough to tempt her back. Calling the experience "tiring, hot and emotionally draining," the nurse told CTV News, "no amount of money could pay me for that."

On Tuesday, nurses took their cause to Queen's Park -- demanding a public inquiry into how the disease has been handled in the province.

But Clement stopped short of committing to an independent process, instead promising a public review.

Repeating his commitment Wednesday, Clement told reporters, "It's absolutely crystal clear no one wants a finger-pointing exercise."

Clement also said a "whistleblowing" nurse who chooses to speak out should not have to worry about job security.

"We will not tolerate retribution on that front. She's doing her job from my point of view. That's exactly what a nurse should be doing."

In an open letter to health-care workers released Wednesday, Clement acknowledged the nurses' safety concerns.

"We are taking appropriate steps to help prevent the spread of SARS and other infectious diseases," he said.

Clement also praised their dedication, but reminded them of their No.1 priority: "While I know how hard it is sometimes, our patients must remain our priority."

Barb Wahl points out that the latest cluster surfaced in an orthopedic unit and a rehabilitation centre and therefore the increase should encompass all hospitals dealing with SARS.

I don't know how I forgot to mention how HOT that gear is. You're sweating before you get it all in place.

3 posted on 06/04/2003 11:03:23 AM PDT by Judith Anne (The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits.)

This is what socialized medicine is all about in Canada - the money, and who gets it.

It's a sordid, venal, and squalid tale all round. Socialist systems bring out the absolute worst in people.

This is what socialized medicine is all about in Canada - the money, and who gets it
Isn't private medicine about the money and who gets it? Isn't that why it works so much better? These nurses should go work in private clinics if their communist government isn't paying them enough.

I disagree. This is what supply and demand are all about. Toronto fired over 5000 nurses to save hospital money, and now they're paying through the nose to agencies to staff hospitals they gutted. In order to keep the nurses they have left, they have to pay a premium.

People who want nurses, who are educated professionals, to work for less than they are worth are communists, imho.

6 posted on 06/04/2003 11:31:27 AM PDT by Judith Anne (The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits.)

It is certainly no coincidence that all the countries with SARS are also socialist dictatorships. China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kanada. Socialism breeds virulence.

"This is what supply and demand are all about."

This is what strong public sector unions are all about in Canada. They have the citizens by the b*lls. Medicare is an extortion scheme to shake down the taxpayer for the benefit of so-called health-care 'professionals'.

Maybe on your planet it's different.

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