By Chris Brown

9,700 jobs to be contracted out

Province to cut nearly 11,000 health-care jobs

Oct 13, 2020 | 10:53 AM

Nearly 11,000 jobs will be cut from Alberta Health Services as part of a streamlining of the system and an eye toward saving money.

Health Minister Tyler Shandro said in Edmonton today that 9,700 jobs will be contracted out for private-sector delivery. These include through previously announced initiatives in areas such as laundry and lab services and potential outsourcing of housekeeping in 2022 and food services the following year.

“Contacting out these services allows AHS to get the best value from private partners and focus on patient care and meeting community health care needs,” said Shandro.

The health minister said requests for proposals for laundry and lab services will be issued before the end of 2020, and that about 70 per cent of community lab services is currently provided by the private sector, while about 68 per cent of health-care laundry is already cleaned by the private sector.

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He said non-clinical and back-office operations will also be streamlined and efficiencies will be sought in distribution, inventory management, and how staff scheduling and overtime is managed.

The health minister said labour costs account for roughly 70 per cent of AHS total expenses.

“AHS can’t achieve savings and those savings can’t be then reinvested into improving the system for Albertans without changes to its workforce,” he said. “However, Premier Kenney and I have been clear. There can be no job losses for nurses or frontline clinical staff during the pandemic.”

The reductions will be managed by vacant positions and continued work on operational best practices, Shandro said.

The AHS board has also been tasked to do a full review of senior AHS executives by the end of year and at a minimum 100 management positions be eliminated.

Once fully implemented the changes will save about $600 million annually.

“We remain committed to making AHS as efficient as possible so we can improve wait times and quality of care for all Albertans,” Shandro said. “Every dollar that’s saved will be reinvested to improve patient care in Alberta. These changes are essential to create better health outcomes and improve sustainability so our health system will remain strong for future generations.”

This is the first comprehensive review of AHS since its creation in 2009.

Dr. Verna Yiu, president and CEO, Alberta Health Services, said the announcement today helps set the course for delivering Albertans the quality care they deserve.

“The review, its findings and now the plans for implementation of some of the recommendations are a welcome opportunity to look at our performance and continue to evolve,” she said. “The goal of the review right from the start has been for AHS to provide more efficient and effective patient care. We are on the right track and as we move forward towards implementation we will continue to serve all AB and do our best to work alongside you to keep you safe and well.”