Ottawa gets boost in ER nurses
CBC News
Posted: Aug 8, 2012 12:33 PM ET
Last Updated: Aug 8, 2012 4:02 PM ET
Ottawa's emergency rooms are getting a boost after the province announced an increase in funding that could add close to 4,000 additional nursing hours in local ERs.
The province announced Wednesday Ottawa was getting close to $1.5 million in funding for 2012-13 for a program that dedicates nurses to handle patients arriving by ambulance.
The program, first put in place in 2008, allows paramedics to get back on the job treating patients in the field and allows regular ER nurses to see patients who arrive at the hospital on their own, according to Ottawa-Orleans MPP Phil McNeely.
"The patient will benefit because they didn't want the long wait — they don't want to lie in the ambulance either," said McNeely.
The province said the $1.5 million is a 17 per cent increase from last year. The increase in funding translates to roughly 3,900 additional nursing hours.
Ottawa was one of 18 municipalities to receive new or additional funding for the dedicated ER nurses program. The province is spending about $16 million to fund the additional nurses.
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