Abusive behaviour taking toll on IWK’s emergency staff in Halifax, says department chief

Emergency department staff at the IWK Centre in Halifax say they've been subject to abusive behaviour and language, including threats, in recent months, as COVID-19 continues.

The IWK Health Centre in Halifax has revealed in an Instagram post that emergency department staff have been subjected to abusive behaviour and language, including personal threats, from people coming to access care.

In a statement posted Tuesday, IWK said that its “emergency departments, in particular, are facing growing pressures and staff and doctors are doing the best they can to respond to patients’ needs in a timely manner.”

“If you are coming to an emergency room for care, you may expect longer than usual waits,” reads the statement.

Dr. Katrina Hurley, chief of the IWK’s emergency department, said it’s been difficult for both staff and the public after a long year dealing with COVID-19.

“It’s been difficult because of fear. It’s been difficult because of restrictions. I think many people are experiencing difficulties accessing care, and it may be leading more patients than usual to our department,” Hurley said.

She explained that during COVID-19, the volume of people coming to the emergency went down considerably and so the wait times weren’t very long.

But since the beginning of July 2021, the IWK’s emergency department has been seeing a number of patients that is “over what is seasonally normal.”