Letters, Oct. 2

Are clinical psychologists next?

Re: Province hires 17 psychiatrists to work in Winnipeg, Selkirk (Sept. 25)

Manitoba’s government has shown that it knows how to solve a specialist staffing crisis in health care. Clinical psychologists are still left to wonder when it will be their turn.

The Manitoba Psychological Society (MPS) welcomes the recent announcement of 17 new psychiatrists in the public system. Any investment in mental health deserves to be celebrated, especially in light of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health’s report card that was released in August 2026. Manitoba received overall grades of F and D for mental health and substance use health, respectively. Although disappointing, this is not surprising given that Manitoba spends five to six per cent of its health budget on mental health and addictions, about half the recommended rate of 12 per cent.

The announcement proves that targeted recruitment and retention strategies work. Meaningful salary increases and retention stipends have effectively eliminated psychiatry’s 20 per cent vacancy rate in the public system. These strategies have enabled psychiatry residents trained here in Manitoba to stay and work in the province.

Once again, MPS calls on the government to use these same strategies to recruit and retain clinical psychologists in the public health system, where the vacancy rate exceeds 30 per cent. Every empty position means longer wait times for Manitobans who need access to specialized assessment and evidence-based treatment for mental health and physical health conditions. It also means growing moral distress and burnout for the psychologists left to carry the load.

MPS is grateful for the public and media support that followed our last letter. We are also encouraged by Minister Asagwara’s follow-up comments to this announcement, suggesting there will be good news about recruitment and retention efforts for clinical psychologists in the coming weeks.

Let us be clear: psychologists are not asking for anything new, only the same proven recruitment and retention strategies already offered to other health professionals. Manitobans waiting for care cannot afford for clinical psychologists to be forgotten again.

Dr. Colleen Murphy

President, Manitoba Psychological Society

A moment of truth

Re: Hero fought to remember children lost at residential school (Sept. 29)

I want to thank Niigaan Sinclair and the Free Press for his informative and moving article on the Brandon Indian Residential School children’s burial site. The historical yet disturbingly recent realities it reviews are stark and dark.

Powerful, too, are the stories of those who’ve tirelessly done the work to rectify the situation, over many decades, in the face of what must often have felt like a truly Sysyphean, possibly futile and certainly thankless undertaking.

I particularly appreciated the chance to read and learn and be inspired on our National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

David Dyck

Winnipeg

PCs must explain themselves

The resignation of Obby Khan as leader of Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative Party raises serious questions — not only about his leadership, but about the conduct and priorities of the entire PC caucus.

What is particularly troubling is that Khan won a caucus confidence vote, yet some MLAs apparently were unwilling to accept that result and were prepared to continue challenging his leadership. If that account is accurate, it reflects a disturbing lack of respect for the very democratic process the caucus had just used to resolve its dispute.

Leadership contests and disagreements are a normal part of political life. But when internal disputes become more important than governing and representing constituents, Manitobans have every right to ask: Who is actually being served — the public or the politicians?

Mr. Khan deserves credit for acknowledging his mistakes and for recognizing the significance of becoming Manitoba’s first South Asian and Muslim party leader. His decision to remain as the MLA for Fort Whyte also means he continues to have a responsibility to his constituents.

At the same time, his resignation should not end the questions surrounding what happened inside the PC caucus. The Progressive Conservatives now have an obligation to explain themselves. Political parties are not private clubs; they are organizations made up of elected representatives who have been entrusted with public responsibilities.

Manitobans deserve opposition MLAs who spend their energy scrutinizing government, proposing solutions and representing their constituents — not fighting prolonged internal battles.

Whatever one thinks of Obby Khan’s leadership, the events of the past few days should serve as a reminder that political power comes with responsibility. The people of Manitoba should not have to pay the price for political infighting.

Yog Rahi Gupta

Winnipeg

The fullness of life

Re: AI, animals, and us (Opinion, Sept. 29)

Jordan Laidlaw’s wide-ranging essay on the impacts of AI and ASI certainly raises many questions, not only about recent developments but, more importantly, the very nature of humanity. These are not new, rather they have engaged the best minds of philosophers, theologians and, more recently, psychologists for thousands of years.

It seems to me that the uniqueness of our species arises from a recognition that we are more than just smart animals. Those who rely on animals such as dogs and horses know that the animal and human kingdoms have much in common, including what we now call “consciousness.”

However, there remains a critical difference, in my view — the freedom to make ethical choices. For example, a well-trained horse will respond to certain human cues as it participates in battle, but it simply lacks the capacity to become a conscientious objector and refuse to engage in the slaughter.

Just as animals cannot make ethical choices despite their often-impressive intelligence, so it is for AI. Indeed, the current fears arising from its astoundingly rapid development involve humanity’s innate abhorrence of unethical and/or immoral acts. Hitler surrounded himself with people who were certainly smarter than most, yet they perpetuated many of the greatest war crimes in recent history. Some might also point to the United States’ development and detonation of atomic bombs.

Laidlaw’s word choices are examples of how the fullness of humans includes aspects that are beyond the realm of what we call intelligence — pray, compassion, dignity, rights. Indeed, his deep concerns for the natural world seem to exist beyond the realm of intellect — they are about ethical intentionality.

Edwin Buettner

Winnipeg