Manitoba·NewThe union representing Manitoba’s nurses says it would welcome an in-depth review of what led to the death of an 82-year-old woman following more than 30 hours in Winnipeg emergency departments.’We are failing patients’: Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene JacksonArturo Chang · CBC News · Posted: Nov 27, 2025 7:24 PM EST | Last Updated: 5 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence. The family of Genevieve Price, 82, said she died following a more than 30-hour wait for hospital care in Winnipeg in November 2025. (Submitted by Michelle Price)The union representing Manitoba’s nurses says it would welcome an in-depth review of what led to the death of an 82-year-old woman following more than 30 hours in Winnipeg emergency departments.Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said they’ve asked the chief medical examiner to review the death of Genevieve Price at St. Boniface hospital this weekend.The woman had initially gone to a minor injury clinic for a swollen hand, but the family said staff had told her she required IV antibiotic and more intensive care.The provincial review would be in addition to Winnipeg Regional Health Authority’s own investigation into the death, which has been ruled a critical incident. Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson said Thursday she welcomes a second investigation if it can come with solutions to what she said are systemic issues.”It’s not one person who didn’t do their job: our system needs help,” Jackson said. “We’re failing patients right now. Patients are falling through the cracks.”Price had been transferred to St. Boniface from Grace Hospital. Her family said had been waiting at a hallway at Grace for hours as her situation worsened.Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson says the province needs to look for systemic solution to end long wait times at emergency departments. (Felisha Adam/CBC)Median wait times at the Grace and St Boniface emergency departments were higher than in all other Winnipeg hospitals as of September, according to the WRHA’s website. Half of all patients coming to those emergency rooms had to wait longer than 6.43 and 6.18 hours, respectively. The median wait time for all Winnipeg hospitals was just over four hours on average.One in 10 patients waited longer than 15.19 hours at Grace and 13.17 hours in St. Boniface as of September.Jackson said nurses at Grace Hospital had raised concerns earlier this week about not being able to keep up with patients.”Thirty hours turned into more than two shift changes,” she said. “So then there’s three sets of people that had seen [Price] who didn’t see what she was like when she came in and of course wouldn’t realize the trend.”Daughter calls out current, past governmentProgressive Conservative Leader Obby Khan and Premier Wab Kinew traded blame and hurled insults at each other after Khan raised the issue of wait times as well as Price and Chad Giffin’s deaths during a testy question period exchange Thursday.Asagwara told CBC Radio’s Up to Speed later that day both deaths are unacceptable. Price’s death is “a devastating loss for a family that by all accounts, did everything they could to get their mom the care that she needed,” the minister said, adding that they have spoken with the family and will keep them updated on both reviews.”Right now, it’s about ensuring that every step is taken so that the family has the answers they deserve and that we understand how we can prevent this from happening again.”Price’s daughter, Michelle, who is a home care nurse and posted about her mother’s death on social media Wednesday, said in a statement the health-care system needs “systemic changes,” including safe ratios and more funding.”The NDP was elected on a promise to fix health care and they need to do more than talk,” she said. “As nurses we feel like we are treading water and slowly drowning. … The [Progressive Conservatives] cut the amount of ERs and cut funding. We have been ‘making do’ with not enough for too long.”With files from Felisha Adam, Up to Speed
Union asks province for solution to long wait times after death of nurse’s mother, 82
