Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw during a COVID-19 update. (Image: Government of Alberta)

By Regan Tate

Premier Smith to replace CMOH Dr. Deena Hinshaw

Oct 12, 2022 | 3:22 PM

EDMONTON, AB – Premier Danielle Smith is promising some big changes to healthcare in Alberta, including leadership.

Smith says chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw will be out. Hinshaw was a key advisor to former Premier Jason Kenney and his cabinet throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Smith says, while she appreciates the work Hinshaw has done, she “will get new advice on public health.”

Smith indicated that Alberta is in a new phase “where we are talking about treating coronavirus as endemic as we do influenza and so I will be developing a new team of public health advisors.”

Smith indicated that Hinshaw is still employed by Alberta Health Services and that a change is anticipated to take place before the end of the year.

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As for the healthcare system itself, Smith is promising frontline workers that “reinforcements are coming.” Smith says Alberta can no longer continue understaffing hospitals, force staff to work mandatory overtime, call people in on their days off, or make them cancel holidays.

Smith maintains a lot of the struggles in the system over the last two and a half years were created by AHS policies, including mandatory vaccinations. She adds that AHS failed to increase surge capacity ahead of the delta variant wave of COVID-19.

“This is a management problem, it is not a problem with our front-line workers,” says Smith. “Our front-line workers need to be supported and what happens in a business when they fail to meet targets and they fail to meet direction you change the management and so that is what we are going to do, we are going to change the management.”

Smith believes Alberta will be able to recruit additional healthcare workers by not having a vaccine mandate, fast-tracking professionals with foreign credentials, and encouraging recent graduates to remain in Alberta instead of going to the United States to work.

Smith also thinks Alberta will be able to bring back former front-line workers who left the industry due to burnout and what the premier calls poor working conditions.

“I think it’s worth a shot because what we’ve seen over the last two and a half years is that the working conditions created by Alberta Health Services have caused so many people to leave the system.”

READ MORE: New Alberta Premier Danielle Smith backtracking on controversial comments

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