The Ontario government is investing $57.6 million over the next three years to recruit and retain up to 225 additional nurse practitioners (NP) in the long-term care sector through the new Hiring More Nurse Practitioners (HMNP) for Long-Term Care program, which will also allow long-term care homes to request funding for eligible employment expenses, including salary, benefits, and overhead costs, for newly hired NPs.
Doctors and nurses across Canada have been calling for help for months, as the COVID-19 pandemic overwhelmed resources that they say were already stretched — leading to an unparalleled wave of staff shortages that they say is reaching a breaking point. In the meantime, the average emergency department wait time in Ontario is now at 20.7 hours for patients admitted to most hospitals, regardless of size.
Members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) assure that roughly 15,000 healthcare workers and 500 paramedics must be hired this year alone to maintain current patient care and service levels at hospitals across the GTA. During a news conference held this week, union representatives called on the province to address the severe staffing shortages plaguing Ontario hospitals and putting immense stress on those who work in them.
Today, September 29, 2022, is National Coffee Day so we figured it would be the perfect time to record another episode of A Cup of Joe with Joe and talk all about what's happening in the world of Caring Support! Our very own Joseph Jongsma and James Smith give us all the updates on new and upcoming features to get excited about.
New research by Unity Health Toronto indicates that Ontario family doctors left the profession at the start of the pandemic at double the rate of the years before COVID-19 hit. The study revealed that about three percent of family doctors across the province (around 385 doctors) stopped practising between March and September 2020, which accounted for an estimated 170,000 patients losing access to primary care.
Several Ontario hospital leaders say much-needed beds could be freed up by a new law that would move discharged patients awaiting long-term care to nursing homes not of their choosing, although some hope to avoid using it on a broad scale. The law, which went into effect Wednesday, allows hospitals to send those patients to homes up to 70 kilometres away in southern Ontario and up to 150 kilometres away in northern regions, on a temporary basis.
We'll keep you updated on all new application updates and features!