Health P.E.I. has hired six senior managers on an interim basis through private employment agencies at costs ranging from $17,490 a month to $43,750 a month.

Melanie Fraser, Health P.E.I.'s CEO, says the private employment agencies provided experienced staff on a month-to-month basis to keep the health-care system running while she worked to develop a permanent leadership team. She says it was money well spent.

"When you break that down on a month-over-month basis, it's basically the same amount that we're paying the interim person versus what we were paying the previous salaried person."

But the numbers do show a significant increase in cost to use the private employment firms.