The BC Nurses鈥� Union wants a better balance struck between the needs of patients dealing with addiction and the safety of health care providers.
The issue gained attention after a leaked Northern Health memo instructing staff on how to deal with patients using substances in hospitals despite prohibitions.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 want people with addictions further stigmatized around this,鈥� BCNU president Adriane Gear said. 鈥淲e need appropriate harm reduction measures and strategies, but we also need to keep people providing the care safe and we can do that. But it does require the employer taking this (issue) seriously and developing appropriate policies, enforcing them and providing appropriate education, resources and support for people.鈥�
鈥淲e need to work on the safety culture, period. There (are a) lot of things that injure and harm nurses in addition to illicit substance exposures, so let us take this opportunity to critically look at the situation.鈥�
B.C. United has cited the memo 鈥� which says that 鈥榩atients can use substances while in hospital in their room 鈥� as evidence of government creating 鈥渁 free-for-all with open drug use鈥� and calling for the end of decriminalization.
Gear confirmed instances of 鈥渋llicit substances being consumed in various care settings鈥�, but could not describe their extent.
鈥淚t鈥檚 difficult, but I can tell you that (Vancouver Island) has been a hotbed and WorkSafeBC has been involved. They have done inspections. They have issued orders.鈥�
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The Northern Health memo points to an 鈥渋ncrease in admissions of patients with possession of substances and using substances while in hospital鈥�. It tells staff that the decriminalization means they should neither be searching patients鈥� personal belongings for substances, nor taking them away if found.
鈥淚 can tell you that anecdotally, we did not hear from our members on this issue prior to decriminalization,鈥� Gear said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not saying it never happened, but it certainly wasn鈥檛 something that was鈥eported to the extent that it is now.鈥�
Gear said nurses support harm reduction, but not at the expense of their own personal safety鈥� and warned of long-term consequences given B.C.鈥檚 nursing shortage.
鈥淲e can go ahead and recruit all the nurses we want,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f we are going to harm them, if we are not going to improve conditions of work, we are not going to retain them.鈥�
Health Minister Adrian Dix Thursday reiterated that current policies prohibit the possession and use of substances in hospital environments.
鈥淭hey are unequivocal and that doesn鈥檛 mean that they are easy to enforce,鈥� Dix said. 鈥淚s it easy to enforce the rules on Ward Six of Hospital X? It鈥檚 not, of course, it鈥檚 not.鈥�
Dix said that B.C. is taking every step to ensure nurses and other health professionals do not become police officers.
He pointed out that government has hired 320 鈥渧ery significantly trained鈥� relational security officers in 26 acute care hospitals, adding it is not the sole solution.
鈥淭his is not an issue of (decriminalization),鈥� he added. 鈥淭his is an issue of dealing with people in the health-care environment with severe illnesses.鈥�
鈥淲hen people come to hospital, we do everything we can to help them get better and to keep people safe. That will continue to be our policy every day.鈥�
