Five things experts say could ease pressures on Ontario's health-care system
Temporary emergency room closures and increased wait times have become increasingly common in Ontario as the province's health-care system grapples with staffing shortages.
Premier Doug Ford has acknowledged that more can be done to ease health-system pressures, but his throne speech this week fell short of offering solutions to the problem.
Experts and advocates are making suggestions as to what could help Ontario's overburdened health system.
They include scrapping the law known as Bill 124 -- which caps wage increases for public sector contracts at one per cent a year for three years as well as training and registering more health care workers.
They also call for the province to build publicly funded, stand-alone health centres that can perform less complex outpatient surgeries and procedures, improve work conditions for staff and implement a national system to track staffing levels at different health-care institutions to ensure that there is a balanced distribution of the workforce and prevent service disruptions.
The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario says mental health support, mentorship and good leadership in conjunction with adequate compensation will in aid retention, as nurses contend with nearly three years of pandemic exhaustion combined with the rising cost of living.
The Ontario Medical Association says 22 million patient services were delayed over the course of the pandemic, 10 million of which were surgeries and cancer screening procedures.
It says that backlog is contributing to the strain being felt in emergency departments, which could be eased by separate health centres performing the outpatient procedures.
(The Canadian Press)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Chants of 'shame on you' greet guests arriving for the annual White House correspondents' dinner
An election-year roast of U.S. President Joe Biden before journalists, celebrities and politicians at the annual White House correspondents' dinner Saturday.
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
'We are declaring our readiness': No decision made yet as Poland declares it's ready to host nuclear weapons
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Central Alberta queer groups react to request from Red Deer-South to reinstate Jennifer Johnson to UCP caucus
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.