Manitoba's emergency room doctors are getting a major pay raise -- up to 50 per cent more money, or an additional $70,000 -- to help prevent summer staffing shortages.
They'll also be working 1,400 hours a year, reduced from 1,600 hours, Manitoba Health Minister Theresa Oswald announced Wednesday.
Doctors made the deal with the provincial government to keep doctors in the province, and ensure emergency rooms maintain 24-hour coverage.
It's increasingly common for new doctors to leave the province and practice medicine elsewhere, lured by more money and better incentives.
Owen Mooney, a recent graduate of the University of Manitoba's School of Medicine, is an exception.
"I think you just need to make practicing medicine in Manitoba a little more attractive," he told CTV Winnipeg.
He said about 60 per cent of his fellow medical students have decided to work in another province.
The $20 million deal means that Manitoba's emergency room doctors will become some of the best paid MDs in Canada.
The average salary will increase to around $300,000, with those working in northern Manitoba earning a further 15 per cent pay increase.
There was earlier speculation that a Winnipeg emergency room would have to close because of about 100 unfilled shifts between July and August.
With a report from CTV Winnipeg's Caroline Barghout
