The head of the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA), who said her members are "exhausted, demoralized and to be honest, they are outraged," called on the provincial government to address the province's nursing shortage through a series of measures.

"We're tired of being undervalued and disrespected by this government. Nurses are suffering crushing workloads, dangerous conditions, increased violence, endless shifts and overtime, and they're being denied time off that they desperately need, all while their wages are being eroded by inflation," said Cathryn Hoy, president of the ONA on Thursday.

She appeared alongside NDP Leader Andrea Horwath for a virtual press conference, where the two said they believe the province needs an additional 22,000 nurses. Health-care and nursing organizations have been actively sounding the alarm about nurses leaving the province to work in other jurisdictions that they perceive to have better working conditions and pay, or leaving the profession altogether.

"Ontario has the worst (registered nurse)-to-population ratio in Canada for years. Decades of underfunding have left Ontario at least 22,000 nurses short," said Hoy, whose association represents 68,000 registered nurses and health-care professionals and 18,000 student nurses. "What's even worse, there's no viable plan to build capacity."

She said the nursing shortage is getting worse with extensive spread of the Omicron variant and that as the province enters its third year of the pandemic, health workers are feeling overworked and burnt out and experiencing "moral distress" when patients don't receive the care they need.

Hoy said a provincewide plan is needed to address the nursing shortage, joining Horwath in listing a series of measures they thought could help, including the longstanding request to repeal Bill 124 — Progressive Conservative government legislation that caps public sector wages at 1 per cent — retention strategies to keep nurses in the profession, more access to paid sick days, increased mental health supports, an increase in the number of RN seats in university nursing programs, more full-time nursing positions instead or part-time ones and regular access to N95 masks.

In December, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore updated a provincial directive that outlines the province's standards on personal protective equipment for hospitals, long-term care homes and retirement residences. The new guidelines require health workers to use N95 masks, eye protection, a gown and gloves when caring for someone who has or is suspected of having COVID-19.

"We need to protect them from the airborne transmission of COVID-19 ... and although the government is saying health-care workers get N95s, they're not, they are still being challenged at their workplaces and that is wrong," said Hoy.

"They should always have access to N95s on the job, because not only is that the safest way to go, but it also makes them feel confident in their safety on the job and keeps them safe, which is so important," Horwath said.

The province said earlier this week that it is working Ontario Health and the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) to get internationally educated nurses into health-care settings that need staffing support under the supervision or a registered nurse or doctor. Health Minister Christine Elliott said more than 1,200 internationally educated CNO applicants have expressed interest in the program.

As part of the government's fall economic statement in November, it announced $12.4 million over two years to continue and expand mental health and addictions supports for health-care workers in acute care, long-term care, and home and community care. The province also announced funding to add more than 5,000 new and upskilled registered and registered practical nurses to the system.

ONA head says nurses are ‘exhausted, demoralized,’ calls for more government support to address shortage

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