Shared Health has offered an apology to “anyone who may have felt frustrated during the application and onboarding process,” in an email statement to the Manitoban Jan. 30.

The statement comes following the Manitoban’s publication of a story in which a student nurse shared their experiences with the hiring process to work as a vaccinator and observer in a vaccine clinic as part of the province’s ongoing vaccine rollout. As of Jan. 30, 137 student nurses had been hired for the immunization program.

Among the concerns raised were that the onboarding process happened in a strange order — being asked to sign up for shifts without knowing what position they had been hired for and did not know if they were qualified for yet — and that a package of onboarding documents containing sensitive information was emailed to the wrong person.

Other concerns included difficulty finding out information necessary to move forward in the process and constantly getting redirected to other people to answer their questions.

Shared Health explained in the email statement that the David Aplin Group — a staffing and recruitment company — has been hired to assist in recruitment for COVID-19 immunization clinics. This includes conducting interviews, posting job listings, conducting background checks as well as keeping applicants informed of where they are in terms of the hiring process.

According to the statement, applicants may have been contacted by the David Aplin Group regarding the hiring process — the firm used already existing distribution lists — but the email was intended for those applicants who had not yet completed the hiring process.

“The David Aplin Group has been brought on board to support the recruitment of people from outside the health system, [for example] dentists, veterinarians […] as well as individuals who don’t currently hold an [employed full-time] position within Shared Health,” the statement read.

In total, the provincial recruitment and redeployment team has “completed the hiring of over 1,000 employees for roles associated with COVID-19 immunization.”