The culture and working conditions of Saskatchewan healthcare are driving workers out of the province and contributing to the province’s nursing shortage.

That’s from Shannon Orell-Bast, a breast cancer patient and medical social worker who joined the NDP at the Legislature today.

Orell-Bast has received 16 rounds of chemotherapy, 25 radiation treatments, a double mastectomy with no reconstruction and 17 immunotherapy treatments since she was diagnosed with breast cancer and began treatment in August 2022.

She says she would like to see improvements in the culture and working conditions, so the health authority is able to better retain their staff.

Saskatchewan had 982 active general practitioners during Premier Moe’s first year in office, according to the latest Medical Services Branch report. Recent data suggests that there are currently 968 active GPs, an overall decrease of 14. For comparison, British Columbia is up 708 GPs last year alone.