“we definitely are in a regional, provincial and national war for talent. it is no longer the high-tech war for talent — it is for nursing talent,” said hedgecoe.
the openings represent nurses who are leaving the profession — some to go to the u.s. — and the fact that demand grew during the pandemic.
but doris grinspun, ceo of the registered nurses association of ontario, said the province must take a different approach to solve nursing shortages — a longstanding problem that became more severe during the pandemic.
bonuses, she said, are disruptive because they simply move nurses around — from long-term care or other places — instead of addressing the root causes of the shortage.
one of those causes has been long-term understaffing that has now been exacerbated by the pandemic, she said.
grinspun said she is pleased to see the province is supporting more nursing graduates in the province, but she said more has to be done, including making it easier to recruit nurses from overseas and better strategies to retain nurses.
many nurses are now leaving ontario to work in the u.s., where recruitment drives are under way, or are leaving the profession. some have told surveys that they plan to leave as soon as the pandemic is over. a key to retention, she said, would be to end bill 124 that limited public sector wage increases in ontario — including for nurses — to one per cent.