Media Advisory - Registered nurses say LHINs need more power to help them improve health system planning, remove unnecessary duplication and better serve Ontarians
TORONTO, Jan. 27, 2014 /CNW/ - A committee looking into how the province's Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN) are functioning will hear the views of registered nurses when representatives of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) appear before an all party legislative committee meeting in Hamilton on Tuesday (Jan. 28).
RNs work in every sector of the health system and know what aspects of system planning are going well and those that need a second look. Dr. Doris Grinspun, RNAO's chief executive officer says the association wants to see LHINs given greater powers so they can plan and control all aspects of health system planning and funding in their respective regions. Grinspun argues there are competing layers of administration within the current system, which stymie the delivery of health services to seniors needing home care and those who need a primary care provider. Grinspun says the changes RNAO is proposing will also lead to more coordinated and cost-effective care.
"We know health dollars are scarce and that's why we want LHINs to be granted greater authority so these regional bodies are in charge of all aspects of health care from primary care and hospital care to the delivery of home care services, something LHINs currently lack the ability to do. In a report RNAO released in 2012, the association argued that the health needs of people in communities throughout the province would be better served if LHINs were regarded as the overall health system planner and funder.
In its submission this week, RNAO is also calling for LHINs to adopt a greater emphasis on health promotion, chronic disease prevention and management, mental health as well as measures to ensure the health effects of poverty are reflected in their mandate.
Who: Doris Grinspun, RNAO's Chief Executive Officer; Tim Lenartowych, Special Projects Manager-Office of the CEO
What: RNAO presents its recommendations on how to reorganize the health system to the Standing Committee on Social Policy
Where: Centre Ballroom, 116 King Street West, Hamilton.
When: 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, January 28, 2014
The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) is the professional association representing registered nurses in Ontario. Since 1925, RNAO has advocated for healthy public policy, promoted excellence in nursing practice, increased nurses' contribution to shaping the health-care system, and influenced decisions that affect nurses and the public they serve.
SOURCE: Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario
For a copy of RNAO's presentation or to arrange an interview with an RN, please contact:
Marion Zych, Director of Communications, RNAO
Cell: 647-406-5605 / Office: 416-408-5605
Toll free: 1-800-268-7199 ext. 209
[email protected]
www.RNAO.ca
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