As the City of Greater Sudbury marks National Nurses Week, a new report is highlighting several challenges in the profession, including staffing concerns. Mayor Paul Lefebvre read a proclamation in honour of the week, celebrated across the country May 12-18. “Our nurses are our front-line for our health care system, right? And they give so much and they all contribute enormously to our system, helping people (who) desperately need the help,” Lefebvre said. “That’s why it’s important that we recognize their sacrifice and their efforts that they do to contribute … to our community and to our society.” Local and provincial representatives from the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) were also in attendance. This year, the organization is celebrating its centennial anniversary. “(National Nurses Week) gives us an opportunity to celebrate nursing as a profession,” said Michael Roach, president of the RNAO Sudbury and District Chapter. “In the health care system, we work in a variety of environments and work tirelessly. So, it’s a good opportunity to recognize the good work that the nurses have been doing in our community.” Established in 1925, the RNAO represents roughly 52,000 registered nurses, nurse practitioners and nursing students across Ontario. There are more than 600 members in the Sudbury area. In honour of National Nurses Week, the RNAO released a report on Monday highlighting the critical needs facing the health care system. The report calls on the government to strengthen community care by addressing challenges like access to primary care, affordable housing and food insecurity. It also said the province has taken positive steps, but warns Bill 60’s expansion of for-profit care could undermine transformation goals. Dr Paul-Andre Gauthier is the clinical nurse specialist president with the RNAO, who said the industry is facing several challenges. “Lacking staff in the work environment, and we need more nurses, we need more nurses who also work full-time,” Gauthier said. “We need seasoned nurses who can support the nurses who are who don’t have that much expertise, because that’s one of the challenges. Over the years, some institutions have cut educational professors or teachers or staff (who) can help with education, continuing education in the workplace. These often have been eliminated. We need them back. We need people at the bedside.” Roach said staffing concerns remain an issue locally. “In particular, since the pandemic, we’ve seen a real decrease in the number of nurses in our community. So, that means a lack of nurses means a lack of people to cover shifts,” he said. “So lots of overtime time, lots of extra work, and, you know, dedication from the nurses to continue to come out. But, again, we need more nurses.” The provincial government has registered 100,000 new nurses since 2018, the Ontario Ministry of Health said in an emailed statement to CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca, calling it a record number. Currently, 30,000 nurses are studying at Ontario’s colleges and universities, the ministry added. “We have expanded programs like the ‘Learn and Stay Grant,’ which helps provide eligible students in nursing with funding for tuition, books and other costs and added the first new nursing program in over 20 years,” the statement reads. “Additionally, as one of Minister Jones’ first actions as Minister of Health in 2022, the Minister wrote to the College of Nurses of Ontario, asking them to find ways to break down barriers for internationally educated nurses so they could begin practising in Ontario sooner. Since then and combined with the actions our government has taken to grow our healthcare workforce, we have seen historic results.” More than 3,400 internationally-educated nurses have been supported through the province’s Supervised Practice Experience Partnership since 2022, the ministry added. To honour National Nurses Week, the RNAO will be hosting a dinner and awards ceremony for some of its members in Sudbury.
