Smoky Lake Mayor Discusses Local Impact of COVID-19

Smoky Lake Mayor Discusses Local Impact of COVID-19

Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser

Town of Smoky Lake Mayor Hank Holowaychuk says the rising number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has definitely put a huge strain on the entire health care system.

“Our disaster emergency management gets updates in regards to COVID-19 patients.” While Holowaychuk did not have the numbers at his fingertips, he said, Our doctor recruitment and retention committee met last week and discussed briefly the implications of what’s happening, everything from long term care to the lodge and continuing care because everyone is running short staffed, and it could potentially impact patient care.

We did have a webinar with Alberta Health Services, (AHS). “Part of it, and this is my opinion, is the policy they have on the amount of full-time nurses they can hire versus part-time. Compared to other provinces we’re way lower with the number of full-time positions. And now, and I made this point very clear, all the costs of this overtime is astronomical. We would have been far better off to have hired more fulltime nurses in the first place.”

As far as why AHS is not hiring more nurses to work full-time? “They think they are saving the system money. I’m not a specialist in that, but I just know what goes on. This has been going on since I was first elected in 1992.” Holowaychuk said many nurses left the province and never returned and many others quit or switched professions.

Mayor Hank Holowaychuk.

(Michelle Pinon/Photo)

As to how they will make it through this surge of COVID-19 with all of the staff shortages? Holowaychuk replied, “That’s the challenge. It’s everybody’s problem. Not just AHS, not just the government, not just municipal leaders. Everybody has to realize the implications of where we are at now and take every step to reduce and minimize the number of people who are getting infected and ending up in intensive care.

The problem with choice is there’s implications. There’s ramifications, and people have to look at the greater good, and if people don’t want to look at that then look at the impact it’s having on our ICU and its capacity. Even thinking we have to triage, deciding who lives and dies, or have to move patients to other provinces if they can take them, or bring in the army. Extraordinary costs. And when you have businesses shut down and everything else it just piles up. We’re in for a big train wreck here.”

He went on to say, “I think the government, with all due respect, missed the mark. Wishful thinking doesn’t solve the problem. So, ‘Open for Summer’ was not the right thing at the right time at the right place. We should have been listening to our doctors and our health care professionals.

It’s going to have huge implications. The Province of Alberta accounts for almost half the COVID-19 cases in the country, and they have bigger populations in Ontario and Quebec, and look at where we’re at.”