My Thoughts about the Nursing Shortage in Ontario

Where do I begin? Well I believe that Ontario (well really all of Canada) has a serious healthcare problem, the shortage of all healthcare professionals, of which includes nurses. Nurses are the front line professionals who physically and mentally care for patients. Because of this nurses are critical members of the healthcare team. If nurses provide the bulk of patient care, then why are there nursing shortages? Why do new graduating nurses find it hard to secure a permanent position? I feel that there are several fundamental factors that contribute to the nursing shortage.
The current nursing force is aging so quickly; that the Canadian Nurses Association suggests that Ontario alone will be short something like 70,000 RNs by the year 2011, with the number increasing each year. Check out their website for more interesting but scary statistics. (http://www.cna-aiic.ca/CNA/news/releases/public_release_e.aspx?id=62). Lack of government funding also contributes to the shortage. I currently work in long-term care and can see the effects of this on a daily basis. Just last fall, the nursing home that I work in had to terminate one full time nursing position. Due to the loss of one full-time position, the night staff are now forced to work with only 2 nurses in the building instead of 3. Another reason for the nursing shortage could be that the educational requirements are becoming more stringent making it more difficult for students to attain their degree. The RN course used to be taught at the college level taking only 3 years to graduate. Currently, it is taught at University and now takes 4 years to complete. I welcome everyone to comment on this posting. What are your thoughts? Watch the video I have attached, very touching, something to get you thinking.

Reference: Canadian Nurses Association, Canada’s Nursing Shortage Deepens: CNA Study 20/06/2002 Retreived Novemer 15 from,
http://www.cna-aiic.ca/CNA/news/releases/public_release_e.aspx?id=62).