Over the past year, healthcare workers have been the true heroes of our community. They have worked long hours, under tremendously difficult conditions, and have borne the brunt of an unforgiving Covid-19 pandemic.

On top of dealing with the struggles and losses of the pandemic at the hospital, at home they have had to worry about the health and safety of their own families.

Last month, the Prime Minister and I met with some of the nurses working at Victoria General Hospital. They shared their personal experiences of being on the frontlines and managing the worst hospital outbreak in Manitoba. Some described harrowing experiences of holding a dying patient’s hand, when grieving families were unable to be there during their last moments. Others had to console elderly patients who were frightened by healthcare workers dressed in gowns, masks and face shields. Some nurses became infected with Covid-19 themselves.   

Their stories were incredibly moving as they described the uncertainties of the early days of the pandemic – as hospitals attempted to rapidly acquire personal protective gear, set up testing and manage the large inflow of patients.

I know that healthcare workers will never forget the challenges they have endured over the past year. I hope that we, as a community and country, never forget how much we are indebted to those who have sacrificed so much for us.

During our conversation, the nurses described the importance of building a more resilient health care system.

In recognition of this, the federal government recently announced an additional $5 billion in immediate support for urgent health care needs. $4 billion will be dedicated to helping provinces and territories address ongoing pressures, including backlogs in access to care. Another $1 billion will be provided to support provinces and territories in their ongoing vaccine rollout, so that the vaccination effort continues to accelerate and keep up with supply.

Vaccine procurement continues to be a priority for our government. To date, over 248,180 vaccines have been delivered to Manitoba, with more on the way. We know that everyone is waiting for their loved ones to get vaccinated. We share this sense of urgency and are working around the clock to get vaccines to Canadians as quickly as possible.

Our federal government will continue to do whatever it takes to end the pandemic and rebuild our country from the greatest public health and economic crisis of our lifetime.

As seen in the Sou Wester on April 7, 2021.