RNAO releases its 2022 provincial election platform; calls on party leaders to prioritize Ontarians’ health

To help steer the province through the effects of a devastating pandemic, RNAO released a provincial election platform during its annual Queen’s Park Day. Ontario’s nursing crisis: Your health, your health system outlines recommendations it wants all political parties to adopt ahead of the June 2 election. The recommendations cover five key areas that shape people’s ability to be healthy: the environment, social determinants of health, nursing, care delivery and fiscal capacity.

RNAO applauds Ottawa’s pandemic role and child care proposal, wants faster action on national standards for long-term care and new funding for pharmacare

The federal government's budget contains progressive measures that address social determinants of health such as child care, affordable housing, infrastructure funding for Indigenous communities and a $15 minimum wage. It also pledges to continue programs that have lessened the socio-economic impacts resulting from the pandemic, especially on those most vulnerable. It does not move fast enough on national standards for long-term care (LTC) and offers no progress for a national pharmacare program.

RNAO’s continuing media profile: The March report

I am pleased to share our media profile for March 2021, prepared in partnership with RNAO’s communication department. The most prominent issue has been, by far, the quickly escalating third wave of Covid-19 in Ontario, driven mainly by the loosening of public health measures in the face of a faster spreading B7.1.1 variant of COVID-19. However, before getting into that, here are other issues we faced in the media. 

Provincial budget fails to deliver urgent nursing investments to care for Ontarians and to sustain the profession through the pandemic and beyond

RNAO’s media release on March 24 responded to the presentation of the Ontario budget in the legislature. RNAO is disappointed the government is failing to make the investments desperately needed to help nurses in the fight against COVID-19 and to sustain the nursing workforce after the pandemic.

Fall 2020 provincial budget once again leaves vulnerable populations to fend for themselves

The Ontario government released on Wednesday the Fall 2020 Budget. RNAO participated in the “lockdown” prior to the release and has subsequently been heavily involved with the media coverage of the budget and its ramifications. As you can see below, the budget received low scores from RNAO.