Issues with the rollout of the Administrative Information Management System (AIMS) in the former Cypress Health Region have drawn criticism from the NDP’s rural and remote health critic, who is calling for immediate support for impacted healthcare workers. Jared Clarke, the NDP MLA for Regina Walsh Acres, said the scheduling and payroll problems linked to the new system mirror issues that surfaced during an earlier rollout attempt in the former Saskatoon Health Region. At that time, the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) scrapped the system after just three weeks. When asked whether a similar rollback could be expected in the former Cypress Health Region, Clarke deferred to Jeremy Cockrill, the Saskatchewan Party MLA for The Battlefords and Minister of Health. "That's a great question for the Minister of Health and for the SHA," Clarke said. "The problem is AIMS is bungling [payroll and scheduling] up. People deserve to be paid for the job that they've done." Swift Current Online requested an interview with Cockrill but was told he was unavailable. Instead, a written statement was provided by Saskatchewan Party media relations. “The AIMS system is a critical step in strengthening the health system for Saskatchewan patients. It replaces more than 80 outdated and unsupported systems, some over 50 years old, that can no longer safely or reliably support health system operations. Any project of this size and complexity is likely to face early challenges. The AIMS team is aware of issues that have arisen and is acting quickly to resolve these issues and ensure all employees receive accurate and timely pay. The AIMS team welcomes staff and unions to bring forward details of any challenges encountered so that necessary supports can be provided. This modernization is essential to ensuring Saskatchewan’s health system is strong, stable, and secure for years to come, supporting both patients and the dedicated health care workers who deliver their care every day.” While Clarke agreed that updating aging IT infrastructure is necessary, he said the AIMS system has consistently failed to deliver. "But what we have seen over the last number of years is that AIMS continues to fall short of expectations," he said. "It's failing to do the job it's set out to do." Earlier this week, SEIU-West called on the province to create an emergency fund to ensure health-care workers are paid correctly and on time. Clarke supported the proposal. "So that they're not missing mortgage payments, they're not missing car payments, that they can put food on the table for their kids," he said. "That's an absolute must." Clarke added that payroll instability and broader staffing issues are making it harder to attract and retain healthcare workers in rural and remote communities. "We hear a lot of concerns ... all of the time," he said. "If I'm a health-care worker in another province, or a young person looking to go into health care, and I'm seeing all of these stories and I'm hearing that I might not even get paid for work that I'm doing? I don't think that's an enticement to come and work in Saskatchewan."