Informed AHS that NPAA is the fifth bargaining unit in the Regional Health Authority Collective Bargaining Regulations (RHACBR).
Awaiting next steps with lawyers and will keep them informed. Asked them to please keep this confidential until finalized and announced.
Updated us on COVID-19 response and redeployment. Few outside AHS who applied for COVID relief work have been hired/required.
Trends and issues have been on hold due to COVID-19.
RhPAP
President was interviewed for RhPAP newsletter about NPs as well as other nurses/midwives in light of the year of the nurse and midwife.
Will be published December 29th, 2020
Signed up with president email for newsletter updates.
WCB
Met November 10th, 2020
Reviewed the billing process and pulled codes used from the ER.
In process of reviewing the codes to see which are applicable to NPs.
Need to review other codes in primary care and modifiers as well.
Next meeting is not yet set.
Alberta Health
Met November 25, 2020
No update on funding model but recommended that we reach out to Peter McLeod, ED with Alberta Health, who is working on this.
Discussed the issue of the Schedule of Medical Benefits and how it does not include NPs, leading to issues in other sectors.
AH asked us to develop a briefing note to send to show impact on practice and what “work arounds” have been required.
President and VP will work on this briefing note.
Alberta Counsel (Lobbyists)
Numerous meetings in November and December.
Meeting with AC lawyers and Labour Ministry representatives Humyra Sabir and Andrea Cole to discuss how the ministry imagined that NPAA might move forward within the current legislative changes.
The next step is to form a trade union and follow the Labour Code’s steps to become certified to represent NPs.
Will meet with lawyers on December 17th to lay out the plan.
Once finalized will have the lawyers present to the board, and then hopefully out to the membership in January.
PNPAC
Review of the NP job description with addendum according to positions and scope of practice in novel areas (ie; ICU, Cancer etc).
Orientation manual is the next working group to start.
