As of March 21, 2025, MGH鈥檚 main entrance on Coxwell Avenue is closed as the next phase of our redevelopment project begins. Patients and visitors can use the new temporary main entrance on Sammon Avenue between Coxwell Avenue and Knight Street. View our campus map.
By Lucy Lau
With just three years of nursing practice under her belt, Emmanuella Ezeri considers herself 鈥渞elatively new鈥� to the healthcare field. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have the experience of 20 years, 30 years that some other nurses have,鈥� she says.
But when the registered practical nurse (RPN), who works on Michael 九游体育鈥檚 (MGH) nursing resource team (NRT), received the opportunity to be redeployed to long-term care (LTC) homes in March 鈥� ones that were experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks at the height of the pandemic 鈥� she didn鈥檛 hesitate to dive in headfirst. 鈥淚t was a challenge and I was excited for a new challenge,鈥� she says.
For three months, Emmanuella worked at both MGH and LTC homes in the GTA. There, she cared for critically ill patients and helped LTC staff with tasks like hypodermoclysis and IV administration. Eventually, she trained the on-site nurses on these duties, too, so they would be better equipped to meet the increased demand in care. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 just want to give them fish,鈥� Emmanuella says. 鈥淚 was trying to teach them to fish, too.鈥�
Many shifts at the LTC homes were long and 鈥渉ectic,鈥� Emmanuella says, and required quick thinking and resourcefulness as the team navigated shortages in personal protective equipment (PPE), an issue that plagued many care facilities during this time. Still, she says she wouldn鈥檛 have changed a thing about the experience. 鈥淣ursing isn鈥檛 about being comfortable,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 supposed to challenge you and put you up on your feet.鈥�
Emmanuella鈥檚 shifts were among more than 4,800 at MGH that changed sites during the pandemic when a surge in traffic in some hospital areas, like the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and a ramping down of services in others, like surgery, meant many nurses, personal support workers and others had to be temporarily reassigned to meet evolving needs in different units.
Some, like Emmanuella, were redeployed off-site to LTC homes and pop-up COVID-19 testing sites in the community. Others, like registered nurses (RN) Bishnu Kandel and Glenda Fernandez, found new temporary homes at MGH. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 go to school for ICU training, so I was excited, nervous,鈥� says Bishnu, who was redeployed to the ICU from general internal medicine in March. 鈥淭here鈥檚 been lots to learn. With the support of the nursing and management teams in the ICU, it鈥檚 been a smooth transition.鈥�
Glenda, who was also redeployed to the ICU from general internal medicine in the spring, says she appreciates the opportunity to build on her skillset. She says it鈥檚 been a goal of hers to become an ICU nurse since she witnessed the critical care her grandmother received years ago in the Philippines. 鈥�Nursing is continuous learning,鈥� she says. 鈥淜nowing your limitations and having the initiative to embrace learning will help you grow professionally.鈥�
Emmanuella鈥檚, Bishnu鈥檚 and Glenda鈥檚 redeployments were facilitated by a team of MGH staff 鈥� some of them redeployed themselves 鈥� who set up a makeshift command centre in the hospital鈥檚 Gray Steele Boardroom on March 23. With in-person meetings suspended as a result of infection prevention and control (IPAC) guidelines, the conference room became the hub of an internal 鈥渕atchmaking鈥� system that coordinated the relocation of surplus staff to areas where their skills were needed most.
It was the first time MGH had set up a formal redeployment centre, a measure that鈥檚 outlined in the hospital鈥檚 emergency response plan. 鈥淚t was a rapid prototyping and redesign process,鈥� says Jasmin Soobrian, an improvement consultant in MGH鈥檚 organizational quality and safety unit who was redeployed to help design and manage the day-to-day operations of the redeployment centre. 鈥淲e were essentially building the plane while flying it.鈥�
Sandy Cowie, an occupational therapist at MGH, was also redeployed to the centre. Working with a small team, Jasmin and Sandy managed a flood of data from dozens of MGH units, redeploying more than 60 staff a day during COVID-19鈥檚 peak. The process involved developing detailed forms where unit leaders could identify what surplus staff were available or, on the other hand, what staff were needed. The team also developed a survey early on in the pandemic that recorded the skillsets of all 3,000 MGH staff, so some clinical areas, like the ICU, could more easily determine which caregivers were best equipped for their departments.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud of our flexibility and our ability to address time-sensitive, rapidly evolving needs over the course of the pandemic so far,鈥� says Taylor Martin, manager of the NRT and new nursing initiatives at MGH who, along with Gwen Elling, manager of human resources, oversaw the redeployment centre.This information was relayed directly to the redeployment centre where Jasmin, Sandy and others filled staffing needs with the individuals available, coordinating with clinical programs whenever necessary. 鈥淔or every single redeployment match we made, we would make a phone call,鈥� Jasmin says. 鈥淪o it was a lot of work in terms of making sure each employee knew where they were going for their next shift or, in some cases, the next few weeks or months.鈥�
Jasmin says she and Sandy regularly engaged with unit leaders and applied feedback to ensure the process was as streamlined as possible. It was also important for surplus staff to receive reassignments that best fit their abilities and schedules, and that they were set up for success in their receiving units. 鈥淲e have a lot of roles within the hospital and a lot of different skillsets,鈥� says Sandy. 鈥淪o it was about making those matches work in a way that was going to meet the organization鈥檚 needs while also ensuring that people were using their skills to their best advantage and to the patients鈥� benefit.鈥�
Any outstanding needs were filled by the staffing office, which assigns where members of the NRT go for each of their shifts. Leann Jeethan, a scheduling clerk in that office who worked alongside Jasmin and Sandy in the redeployment centre, says her workload definitely increased from March to June. But she felt pride in being able to help 鈥渂ehind the scenes鈥� during the pandemic. 鈥淚 get peace of mind when I鈥檓 able to fill staffing needs with people,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd when I know units have the sufficient number of people needed to run smoothly.鈥�
With the ramping up of services across MGH, the redeployment centre stopped actively redeploying staff on July 19. But the success of the centre during the past few months means MGH now has a reliable blueprint in future events that require the redeployment centre to be relaunched. 鈥淚鈥檓 proud of our flexibility and our ability to address time-sensitive, rapidly evolving needs over the course of the pandemic so far,鈥� says Taylor Martin, manager of the NRT and new nursing initiatives at MGH who, along with Gwen Elling, manager of human resources, oversaw the redeployment centre.
Taylor says, if reassembled, the redeployment team will continue to take a 鈥減eople-centred approach鈥� by ensuring training, resources and information are available to redeployed staff so they feel safe and supported in their receiving units. Sandy says she appreciates how so many MGH nurses, nursing attendants and others went above and beyond their duties. 鈥淲e were phoning people and asking them to do something that was maybe outside of their comfort zones yet all of our staff were really receptive and understanding,鈥� says Sandy.
She鈥檚 confident 鈥� and grateful 鈥� that MGH staff like Emmanuella, Bishnu and Glenda will be ready to be redeployed again if the time comes. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very rewarding to be looking after very sick people when they really need us,鈥� Bishnu says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the whole point of nursing: caring and supporting not only patients but their family members, too.鈥�
鈥淚 would definitely do it again,鈥� adds Emmanuella. 鈥淚 would not even blink or bat an eye.鈥�