The province’s health authority says 57 NL Health Services employees were identified as possibly being in contravention of Conflict of Interest legislation.

NLHS made the revelation in a new release issued this morning. I comes after the Registered Nurses Union and Opposition started raising questions about leasing arrangements made for private agency nurses by NLHS employees at what the union called “significant profit.”

The health authority says 51 employees were informed that their leases would be terminated, and the remaining six could continue as the contracts were awarded through public tender.

NLHS says an internal review did not reveal any intentional wrongdoing on the part of the managers involved. VP responsible for human resources with the health authority Debbie Molloy says their offers of help were “well intended during a critical time in health care.”

Issue taken to the house

That response did not sit well with the Opposition House Leader Barry Petten, who peppered Health Minister John Hogan with questions during the Question Period today.

Hogan repeatedly denied signing off on the leases.

The leases in question were determined to be in conflict of interest and in violation of the Public Procurement Act.

Petten took his line of questioning even further, asking Hogan whether the leases were issued in lieu of jobs, accusing the government of mismanagement and poor oversight. Immigration Minister Sara Stoodley fielded the question.

“We have also been told internally,” said Petten, “recruited nurses were exploited in this scheme.”

He asked, “How many internationally recruited nurses who are still waiting for full-time jobs were offered housing instead of a job?”

Minister Stoodley responded, “110 nurses have arrived, and 31 are on the way before the end of the year. I just want to be clear that any nurse who have come through one of our economic immigration streams, who came with a job offer to be a registered nurse, is working as a registered nurse, and can only work as a registered nurse.”