Alberta Premier Jason Kenney. (Your Alberta/Youtube)

By Tiffany Goodwein/CHAT News

Pleas For More Vaccinations

Additional supports announced to alleviate strain on province’s health care system

Sep 30, 2021 | 6:14 PM

With Alberta hospitals under extreme stress during the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Premier Jason Kenney says health care workers from the Canadian Military, Canadian Red Cross, and province of Newfoundland are being brought in to help.

Speaking during an update Thursday, Kenney says plans are being finalized with the Armed Forces to provide 8-10 trained ICU medical personnel. The military staff will likely be based at CFB Edmonton and will support hospitals in that city where the need is greatest.

The province is also working with the Red Cross to bring up to 20 trained staff, some with ICU training, to help out at Red Deer Regional Hospital which Kenney says is under severe stress due to low vaccination rates in rural central Alberta.

Newfoundland will be sending a medical team that will be deployed to work in Fort McMurray. “I know Alberta health care workers will be grateful for the helping hand and that all Albertans are thankful for any assistance at this challenging time,” said Kenney.

Health Minister Jason Copping says right now every bed counts and that Alberta Health Services is reaching a point where they can’t continue to expand ICU capacity.

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Kenney has also asked the federal government to secure a shipment of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. He says many unvaccinated Albertans have indicated they are willing to receive that vaccine instead of the other three currently available. “We want to do everything we can to help get these folks the protection that they need,” stated Kenney. Doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine could arrive as early as next week.

Over the last couple of weeks, Kenney says he has been speaking to private Alberta businesses about the importance of ensuring staff are vaccinated to help reduce pressure on the healthcare system.

To keep the momentum going, the premier says the Cabinet Committee approved a requirement on Thursday that all 25 thousand employees of the Alberta Public Service show proof of vaccination or a regular rapid negative test result. “The message is clear: we value our public servants and the important work that they do, that’s why we want to ensure they are operating in safe workplaces and that we are doing everything we can to protect the millions of Albertans to whom they provide services”.

Starting Oct. 15, employees will be able to declare their vaccination status and submit proof of full vaccination. They have until Nov. 30 to provide this and will be given paid time to get immunized if they are not. Employees who do not provide proof of vaccination by the required deadline will be provided with additional education about the safety and efficacy of vaccines in addition to the other testing requirements.

Kenney added that the Ministers of Health and Education will be writing to schools board in the coming days to ask that they consider similar policies for their staff, including teachers.

The premier was again asked what it would take to implement more public health restrictions including a fire breaker lockdown that many doctors have been calling for. Kenney maintains this is why the province brought in the current public health measures.

“We have to ensure that the measures we adopt actually have a meaningful impact. The crisis that we are dealing with comes overwhelmingly from the unvaccinated population which is now 16 per cent of adults. We need to address that, which is what the current measures seek to do. We will take additional action if it is necessary to protect the health care system, but any additional measures have to deal with that issue,” he said.

Kenney says policy decisions made in earlier waves of the pandemic are less relevant now because we are now dealing with 16 per cent of the population who are less likely to comply with public health restrictions.

“If Jason Kenney wanted to send a message, he would apply this mandate to his own MLAs and political staff,” said David Shepherd, NDP Health Critic, in a press release Thursday.

“Let’s be clear, elected MLAs are leaders, government Cabinet Ministers are leaders. We must lead by example. As such, I am calling for the UCP government to immediately bring forward a requirement to the Member Services Committee that all MLAs and political staff be double vaccinated against COVID-19.”

Dr. Verna Yiu, CEO of Alberta Health Services reiterated the strain that the COVID-19 pandemic is having on the health care system in Alberta. She noted the pandemic is adding extreme stress on the health care workers and urged anyone who is struggling to reach out for help.

”This pandemic is having an impact on our teams both physically and mentally. Our people have been working tirelessly to care for Albertans throughout this long and exhausting pandemic. We understand and acknowledge the stress and strain they are under, as well as the impact on their families and loved ones,” she said.

Yiu also expressed her condolences over the death of an ICU nurse. It is unknown how the nurse died, or what region the nurse was from. When pressed by a reporter for further details, Yiu said confidentiality prohibits her from sharing more.

Yiu said ICUs and hospitals remain under unprecedented pressure.

”We need everyone’s help to reduce the pressure on the ICU system. Our teams are doing everything that they can but we need Albertans to do their part,” Yiu said.

(With files from rdnewsNOW)