UNA Statement on the Continuing COVID-19 Crisis: Alberta needs leadership and action

United Nurses of Alberta calls on Premier Jason Kenney, Health Minister Tyler Shandro, and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw to return to their jobs and resume regular communication on the province’s response to COVID-19 with the public.

Alberta’s health care system is in crisis as the fourth wave of COVID-19 continues to escalate throughout the province and the Kenney Government must step up and provide leadership.

Alberta’s nurses and other health care workers feel abandoned and bewildered as they try to work through the surging COVID caseloads propelled by the Delta variant of the coronavirus with no visible government leadership.

The current situation is unsustainable and inexcusable. We can no longer pretend this is “the best summer ever.”

Hospital and ICU admissions have reached rates similar to those in previous waves of the pandemic. Nurses and other health care workers are suffering burnout and exhaustion. In the absence of leadership, they are doing their best to pick up the slack, sacrificing their own physical and mental health.

But without leadership the crisis in the health care system grows worse daily.

The Alberta government must acknowledge that the impact of the fourth wave is real and serious. It must implement renewed public health measures to contain community spread.

This should include reinstatement of proper contact tracing, including notifying schools, urgent action to address school ventilation, and increased vaccination outreach to provide access to Albertans facing barriers.

It must not abandon health care workers and Albertans, which appears to be the Kenney Government’s current strategy.

In the absence of government leadership, UNA is grateful to the municipal governments, school boards, universities, businesses, and others who have stepped up to encourage masking and social distancing, as well as immunization, within their limited powers.

UNA urges all Albertans to wear masks, continue to practice social distancing and ensure they are fully vaccinated.

The absence of our elected leaders at this moment is inexcusable and must end. We need leadership and action now.

United Nurses of Alberta represents more than 30,000 Registered Nurses, Registered Psychiatric Nurses and allied health care workers in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.