{
  "id": 2030384,
  "title": "‘Frustrated’ Selkirk nurses plead for help",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/19/frustrated-selkirk-nurses-plead-for-help",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-08-19T22:21:51.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Winnipeg Free Press",
    "slug": "winnipeg-free-press",
    "url": "https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2026/08/19/frustrated-selkirk-nurses-plead-for-help"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Nurses at Selkirk Regional Health Centre in Manitoba have written to the province's premier and health minister, pleading for urgent action to address staffing levels that are endangering their safety. The Manitoba Nurses Union and 35 emergency room nurses penned a letter detailing multiple incidents in the emergency department. A nurse was stabbed with a pen by a patient who waited 24 hours for care, and another was bitten by a patient. Union president Darlene Jackson stated that the nurses' frustration stems from problems that have been growing, not just emerging recently. The letter requested safer nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, elimination of single physician coverage in the emergency department, an institutional safety officer, and more secure rooms for high-risk patients. The hospital sees over 26,500 patients annually, and in July, one doctor was responsible for 47 patients on shifts, with wait times of up to 23 hours. The province recently added over 1,400 nurses to the system since 2023, but union president Darlene Jackson questioned the effectiveness of this figure. Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara acknowledged the concerns raised by nurses, emphasizing the province's commitment to improving safety and addressing the issues.",
  "summary": "The province must take immediate action to increase low staffing levels that are putting Selkirk emergency room nurses at risk, a letter sent to the premier and health minister says. […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}