The head of the West Kootenay region of the BC Nurses Union says the government needs to fund more positions otherwise more RN's will move on.

 

The union says there are now a thousand fewer registered nurses in BC than a year ago. 

 

Tina Coletti says patient safety is compromised with nurses facing an ever-increasing workload and excessive overtime when the money should be better spent on creating new positions. She says BC has fewer RN's per capita than anywhere else in Canada and the situation is getting so bad that often requests for leave are being turned down. Coletti says the situation makes nurses approaching retirement want to get out early and makes others want to move elsewhere.

 

As contract talks continue she says the province is not prepared to offer extra funding to health authorities.