Nursing groups decry Ontario decision to delay 9,000 hirings
Last Updated: Thursday, October 23, 2008 | 9:18 AM ET
CBC News
Two nursing groups are critical of the province's decision to delay the hiring of 9,000 nurses.
The hiring announcement was made Wednesday as part of Ontario's restraint initiative. In his economic statement, Finance Minister Dwight Duncan said the province will run a deficit of $500 million this year.
The province earlier promised to hire the nurses over four years. Now it says it will spread it over five years, saving $50 million this year.
Catherine Mayers, who sits on the board of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario, says the move may have a disastrous effect.
"I think the seasoned nurses, perhaps, will leave the hospital setting a lot sooner than they would have because they're not getting the support and they're just being too overworked and overwhelmed," she said.
Linda Haslam-Stroud, president of the 54,000-member Ontario Nurses' Association, agrees and says the province needs the extra 9,000 nurses now.
"Ontario ranks second-lowest of all provinces in Canada, as far as the number of nurses we have per patient," she said.
The province has also announced it will be deferring the addition of 50 family health teams by one year. That move is expected to save $3 million.
