Uzoma Asagwara

Asagwara supports a new toolkit to help rural and remote Manitoba communities identify service gaps and better market themselves to recruit health-care workers, emphasizing staying up to speed on connection methods and providing municipalities contemporary tools, including social media strategies.

Uzoma Asagwara condemns the prior closure of the Mature Women’s Centre as a "devastating decision," saying many Manitobans pleaded against it, and supports restoring menopause services by backing the provincial plan to reopen a dedicated Manitoba Menopause Clinic.

As Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara supports re-establishing a cardiac centre of excellence and creating a cardiac assessment unit at St. Boniface Hospital, saying these infrastructure investments will reduce wait times, ease emergency-department pressure, and improve patient care.

As Minister, Uzoma Asagwara supports strengthening patient flow by implementing rapid cardiology consults in emergency departments and a centralized access office, aiming to reduce wait times and increase access to cardiac care at St. Boniface Hospital.

Asagwara says the delay reflects a need for more planning for upgraded hospital technology and staff training, and blames the former Progressive Conservative government for failing to support health officials to build capacity, accusing them of prioritizing cuts to health care.

As Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara says the province must ensure adequate staffing before opening new facilities—supporting regional health authorities and frontline staff, filling vacancies to maintain appropriate staff-to-bed ratios, and delaying openings when necessary to protect patient care.

Uzoma Asagwara insists that plasma collection services must meet the highest safety standards and that Health Canada is obligated to address deficiencies with the company, advocating regulatory action to ensure services are safe and meet required standards.

Asagwara says recruitment forums help address health-care worker shortages, reporting more than 60 job offers signed and emphasizing workers are eager to work on the front lines but need guidance and in-person connections to enter the system.

Asagwara says the hiring breakdown is a 'snapshot in time' and emphasizes a coordinated recruitment-and-retention approach — expanding pathways for internationally educated nurses, strengthening training and re-entry programs, and working with rural and regional partners to expand the workforce.

As Health Minister, Uzoma Asagwara supports expanding local critical care infrastructure — opening 15 of 30 new medicine beds now and bringing ICU capacity online in Brandon — to reduce high-acuity patient transfers to Winnipeg and ensure families access care where needed.

Asagwara supports expanding local critical-care capacity in rural Westman so patients receive specialized care closer to home, reducing transfers to Winnipeg; she emphasizes improved comfort, family support during recovery and that added ICU beds will lessen transfers.

Asagwara supports recruiting temporary American emergency physicians to fill rural and northern vacancies, arguing overhead costs to the U.S. firm are minimal and expressing hope that locum doctors may settle permanently in smaller communities like Russell or Brandon.

Uzoma Asagwara supports expanding pharmacists' authority to administer measles vaccines to improve service availability. She calls it a commonsense step that leverages trusted, accessible pharmacists to make vaccination easier for families and protect those most at risk.

As Health Minister, Uzoma Asagwara supports the $5 million provincial investment to improve food quality and nutrition in care homes, calling it a substantial step to help older adults age with dignity and urging investment in bedside care and food.

Uzoma Asagwara supports creating a specialized menopause clinic in south Winnipeg that will provide comprehensive, interdisciplinary care, aiming to rebuild and expand access to specialized supports—including clinical care, education, and coordinated services—in a comfortable facility led by women's health experts.

Uzoma Asagwara says the long-delayed Bridgwater personal care home must move forward: she criticized earlier inaction, announced the province will hold public consultations beginning June 2026, and indicated the project could be completed in "a couple of years."

As health minister, Asagwara ordered the province's seniors advocate to investigate alleged mistreatment at an assisted-living facility, called the allegations disturbing, demanded answers and accountability, and said the province is open to discussions to improve seniors' safety and oversight.

Asagwara says ICU nursing is highly specialized and praises a record cohort filling previously vacant ICU seats, arguing recruitment measures—such as offering students jobs before training completion—are producing results to address hospital ICU staffing shortages and care for Manitoba's most vulnerable patients.

As health minister Uzoma Asagwara said public safety is the top priority and that banning paid plasma in Manitoba is an option on the table. She stated the government will not act until Health Canada completes its investigation and provides results.

As Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara supports expanding and improving availability of breast-cancer screening—requiring plans to ensure equitable access for vulnerable groups, lowering self-referral age to 45 (then 40), hiring more technologists, and regular guideline reviews.

Uzoma Asagwara supports enshrining a patient safety charter into law to guarantee patients safe, respectful, timely, need-based access to quality health care — including primary and community care — and to clarify the health system's obligations.

Uzoma Asagwara says the government will introduce further legislation (including nurse-to-patient ratio bills) to fill in details of the patient-care charter — including timely access — and will take legal steps to improve the health-care system and address wait-time issues.

Uzoma Asagwara supports strengthening hospital safety infrastructure by increasing institutional safety officers to 128, expanding the SAFE app to key hospitals, and installing amnesty lockers to protect frontline healthcare workers and improve patient safety.

Asagwara supports expanding newborn screening for congenital CMV in Manitoba, integrating the test into the routine newborn screening so families receive earlier answers, clinicians obtain critical information sooner, and children can get timely interventions for a stronger start to life.

Asagwara says staff were following protocols for this child's condition, has ordered a critical incident review, and insists the review must determine if there was an opportunity for the health team to learn and improve moving forward.

Uzoma Asagwara, as Health Minister, confirmed a critical-incident investigation into the emergency-room deaths, met with the family to listen and reassure them, and pledged to answer questions and take steps to prevent similar tragedies connected to emergency wait times.

Uzoma Asagwara says the government is "rebuilding long-term care" and is committed to preventing long-term care beds from disappearing in communities, intervening to keep facilities open so residents are not displaced.

Asagwara said the province remains committed to reducing the number of private nursing agencies, while supporting regions to manage patient safety in real time and allowing regions temporary flexibility to work with previously dropped agencies to ensure safe, reliable care.

Uzoma Asagwara supports offering digital health cards accessible via a mobile app to improve healthcare navigation, arguing that phone-based cards ease access during emergencies, make care more convenient, and allow parents to store children's cards for quicker access.

Asagwara supports dramatically reducing the number of private nursing agencies contracted by Manitoba (to four), implementing policies to vet and control agencies, limit costs, and ensure vetted, appropriately matched staffing aligned with expected standards of care.

As Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara supports the provincial pharmacare program providing free contraception, calling high uptake a 'clear sign that the demand was real,' saying it has 'opened doors' for those who couldn't afford contraceptives and makes a 'meaningful difference'.

Uzoma Asagwara says recruitment for a general surgeon in Flin Flon is 'active and ongoing' and that 'no one should have to leave their community to access medical care that should be available closer to home,' supporting restoration of local services.

Asagwara supports expanding training seats for lab and X-ray technologists and using return-of-service agreements to address Manitoba's diagnostic staffing shortage in rural and regional communities, advocating a 'grow your own' approach to recruit and retain personnel locally.

Uzoma Asagwara says the deaths linked to long emergency-department waits are unacceptable, has asked the chief medical examiner to review Genevieve Price's death, and has spoken with the family, indicating she seeks investigation and accountability over excessive wait times.

As Health Minister, Uzoma Asagwara supports making EMR training more accessible through a $5,000 bursary and in-community training, saying it creates a "clear pathway" for people to become EMRs and is "a step that municipal leaders and communities have been asking for for years."

Uzoma Asagwara strongly supports expanding local midwifery services in the Interlake region, calling the program transformative and necessary so families can access prenatal, birth and postpartum care locally. She emphasizes midwives’ role linking medical expertise with empathetic, culturally humble care.

As Health Minister, Asagwara says her government is rebuilding Manitoba's healthcare infrastructure—adding about 3,400 staff and 323 beds, planning 34 more—to increase capacity and prepare for respiratory season, and she blames prior government cuts for current strain.

As Health Minister, Uzoma Asagwara emphasizes ensuring frontline health-care worker safety during emergencies, strengthening supports and protocols, noting police and safety officers responded during the incident, while also stressing most individuals in mental health crisis seek help rather than cause harm.

As Health Minister, Uzoma Asagwara says restoring international students' provincial health coverage is important and a government priority; he acknowledges cuts are easier than restorations but reaffirms commitment to reinstate coverage to help attract international students.

Asagwara acknowledges the centralized scheduling rollout disrupted home-care service availability, apologizes for cancellations and delays, calls the changes necessary, says steps have been taken to restore geographic assignments and improve predictability, and says more recruitment is required.