New Brunswick’s health authorities have come under fire for their use of travel nurses in recent years.
Now, the province’s auditor general has announced that his office will take a closer look at the matter.
Paul Martin announced Wednesday that his office will audit the management of travel nurse contracts.
“This work is very important in keeping government departments and agencies accountable for the spending of New Brunswick tax dollars,” Martin said in a statement.
Martin and his team will look at issues related to procurement, oversight, internal controls, and overall value for money.
Those being audited include the Vitalité and Horizon health networks, as well as the departments of health and social development.
Martin did not say how long his audit would take or when the findings and recommendations may be released.
The news comes on the heels of a Globe and Mail investigation that found health authorities have spent tens of millions on travel nurses.
It found Vitalité signed two agreements with Canadian Health Labs worth up to $138 million and is charging rates that work out to $300 per hour, much higher than other agencies and what local nurses earn.
The investigation also revealed that the health authority failed to inform the province when it signed the two large contracts.
Former health authority trustee welcomes investigation
Meanwhile, a former Vitalité trustee is defending the health authority’s use of travel nurses over the past couple of years.
Gérald Richard said he supported Vitalité’s decision given the shortage of health-care workers, adding the health authority was facing facility closures and the shutdown of essential services.
“The system needed a break. When there’s a fire, you can’t afford to save water,” Richard said in a statement distributed by the health authority on Wednesday.
Richard said the pandemic led to departures and early retirements within the health-care system that outnumbered the number of new hires.
Relying on travel nurses was a “temporary measure” while Vitalité implemented strategies to retain and recruit health-care workers, he said.
“These efforts have been made and are being maintained, to the extent that new hires now far outnumber departures,” said Richard.
The former trustee said while he is “saddened” by the public debate around travel nurses, he welcomes news of the auditor general’s investigation.
“The use of agency staff is a practice born of a crisis situation, which is not governed by law, and which does indeed merit close scrutiny,” he said.
“The Auditor General’s recommendations will undoubtedly help not only to improve processes but also to protect the health authorities in this type of situation.”
Vitalité plans to fully phase out the use of travel nurses by winter 2026, while Horizon said it plans to do the same before the end of this year.
