Alberta Health Services sick days within national average, health minister says

Claims that Alberta Health Services is squandering money on sick leave aren't based on fact, says the province's health minister.

Sarah Hoffman squared off with Wildrose health critic Drew Barnes over internal government documents obtained by CTV News showing many AHS managers, who are allowed 16 weeks of sick time, are taking exactly that before returning to work.

"I want to make sure we have all the hard facts," Hoffman said Wednesday during an interview on CBC Radio's Edmonton AM.

Barnes says Albertans have lost accountability over the health system.

"Hundreds of Alberta Health Services managers, not front line workers, are taking between three weeks and 16 weeks of sick leave a year," he said.

"The report showed many of the them come right back to work as soon as their paid sick leave is up. It's the optics, and it's the waste and the inefficiency."

Hoffman said Barnes is relying on anecdotal data.

"My biggest concern is that the official opposition isn't actually looking at the facts. They refer to anecdotal evidence, and comments that they're hearing on the ground.

"And when he says these aren't front line workers, he simply is wrong."

Protocols for tracking sick leave 'sufficient'

Hoffman says the current protocols in the place for tracking sick leave within AHS are sufficient.

Audits are common, while sick notes and documentation are required for prolonged absences, Hoffman said.

Cracking down sick leave would cause "great chaos in the system," she said.

"The evidence actually shows that people are pretty cautious about taking sick time, and sometimes people do get cancer or do have serious mental health issues and have to take time off, and that's why its there."

Hoffman says, on average, non-union employees at AHS report 6.5 sick days a year, and that number is on par or below rates in other western provinces, and lower than the national average for non-union employees.

Furthermore, she argues that forcing healthcare staff to work while sick puts the public at risk.

"While I can work to a cold or the flu, I certainly don't want anybody working with people who are immunosuppressed or who are vulnerable (going to work).  Something as simple as a could potentially cause death," Hoffman said.

"So I have to say the tone and disrespect that Mr. Barnes is sharing is very worrisome."

More scrutiny needed

Barnes is unconvinced, and would like to see more scrutiny placed on sick leave claims, and the cost burden they create for taxpayers.

"Alberta Health Services knew this sick-leave taking was a potential problem a year ago and asked for attendance awareness and they were only able to improve the sick leave amount by one per cent," Barnes said. 

"And now, instead of actually fixing the problem, the health minister and Alberta Health Services are saying it's not a problem. I'm concerned about the lack of accountability."

Hoffman said she will be exploring the need for more documentation to ensure concerns about sick leave are addressed. 

"If I've learned anything over the last few weeks from the opposition, it's that their math is bad and their facts are often wrong, but we will follow up."