SaskatchewanThe Saskatchewan Union of Nurses has been publishing letters from its nurses online that claim unsafe and alarming conditions in some of the province’s largest medical facilities. Letters from nurses allege unsafe conditions for staff, patientsAlex Kozroski · CBC News · Posted: Aug 25, 2025 6:28 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours agoIn a letter to the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses, a full-time registered nurse who works on the neonatal intensive care unit at the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital says they are short staffed on ‘every single shift.’ (Matthew Garand/CBC)The Saskatchewan Union of Nurses has been publishing letters from its nurses online that claim unsafe and alarming conditions in Regina’s and Saskatoon’s maternity wards.Problems detailed in the letters include short staffing, lack of beds, outdated equipment and improper care.The union’s president, Bryce Boynton, said staffing issues need to be addressed first and foremost.”They’re seeing people with more complex health issues, but no increase in resources and support to provide those services,” he said. “We’re seeing an increase in burnout. We’re seeing people who are fed up and tired … and it’s tough to provide better [care] when you have no supports.”Saskatchewan Union of Nurses President Bryce Boynton says that in a recent poll, more than half of union members said they had considered, or are currently considering, leaving the province’s health-care sector. (Will Draper/CBC)On social media, the union highlighted excerpts from one of the letters that came from a full-time registered nurse who works on the neonatal intensive care unit at the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital (JPCH) in Saskatoon. “Every single shift we are short-staffed. I have worked where we don’t have one open bed (multiple times) on our unit.… I would tell family members not to come to JPCH maternal related to how unsafe it is.”The letters were submitted anonymously to Your Voice, an online resource the union set up to protect people’s identities when they come forward with issues in the workplace. Boynton said they are having trouble keeping up with the influx of submissions.”We’re hesitant to sometimes speak up because your licence could be put at risk; your workplace might not be happy with you,” said Boynton. “You’re also embarrassed that this is the state of health care.… We’ve known things are declining for a long time now.”Another letter submitted to the union expressed grave concerns about the Regina General Hospital’s labour and birth unit.”Patients are being denied basic care, waiting in waiting rooms for hours, delivering in triage beds and being denied epidurals because of capacity pressures,” the letter said. “We are unable to fully staff our unit the majority of the time.”The Saskatchewan Health Authority said in a statement that there was an “extremely high number” of births at JPCH in July, as well as scheduled staff vacation and “unexpected” staff illness, while numbers in August returned to normal. “Despite these challenges, patient safety remained our top priority,” the statement said. “In times of increased volume, the highest-risk patients are always prioritized for care.”ABOUT THE AUTHORAlex Kozroski is a reporter with CBC News in Regina. He has also worked as a reporter for Golden West Broadcasting in Swift Current, Sask.
Nurses’ union sounds alarm on short-staffing, lack of resources in Sask. maternity wards
