Ontario election: Nurses demand action on the nursing crisis, the erosion of public health care, and the root causes of poor health

TORONTO, Feb. 4, 2025 /CNW/ - Nurses are calling on Ontarians to place health and the underlying determinants of ill health at the top of the political agenda during the provincial election campaign.

The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) is releasing a bold platform with urgent recommendations to address the province's nursing crisis, strengthen public health care, and address the social, economic and environmental factors that shape health.  

RNAO's five key priorities:

1. Fix the nursing crisis – Retain and recruit registered nurses (RN) and nurse practitioners (NP) with competitive compensation, full-time jobs, education funding, and safe work environments.
   
   
2. Strengthen health care – Ensure a health system that is accessible, equitable, person-centred, integrated, not-for-profit and publicly funded.
   
   
3. Strengthen social determinants – Improve access to housing, social programs and liveable incomes to foster healthy, equitable, diverse and inclusive communities.
   
   
4. Act on the climate emergency – Build a low-carbon, just, and equitable economy, phase out fossil fuels and address pollution to improve health outcomes.
   
   
5. Increase fiscal capacity – Strengthen fiscal capacity through fair taxation and income measures that reduce extreme income and wealth inequality.

"Five years after the start of the pandemic, nursing is still in crisis, and Ontario's health system is at a breaking point," says RNAO President and NP Lhamo Dolkar. "Decades of underfunding and caps on pay increases have driven nurses away, with compensation falling behind other provinces and the United States. If we don't act now, more will leave – and patient care will suffer in irreparable ways." Dolkar wants to hear what political leaders will do to bolster the nursing workforce and make the profession more attractive to future nurses. She notes that recent positive steps such as increasing educational nursing seats, introducing RN prescribing, and expanding roles for NPs must be continued and scaled-up.

Dolkar also wants politicians to commit to addressing emergency service shortages, eliminating surgery and procedure backlogs, and reintegrating investor-driven clinics into the publicly funded health system. "It's time to bring pharmacare to Ontario," she emphasizes. "We must anchor the health system in primary and community care – starting with attaching 3 million Ontarians to an NP or family doctor as their most responsible care provider." RNAO is also calling for urgent reforms across other major health sectors such as long-term care and home care to ensure accessible, high-quality care for all Ontarians.

With 10 Ontarians dying every day from the illicit drug supply, our leaders must also confront the toxic drug crisis. An essential step: Reversing the current plan to close supervised consumption services sites are essential. Instead, policymakers must commit to expanding mental health care – including more harm reduction and treatment services across the province – to save lives and support communities.

It's important to look beyond health care to address the fundamental factors that shape wellbeing. This includes building government-owned or non-profit housing, ensuring living wages and strong income supports, investing in quality education and social programs, enhancing sustainable transportation and public spaces, supporting community initiatives, and advancing equity, anti-racism, and inclusion. It also requires ensuring health and safety in social media and other digital spaces. How do political candidates plan to address this?

Ontarians should also ask political candidates if they are truly committed to confronting the climate crisis. Devastating wildfires, extreme weather and soaring insurance costs make one thing clear – without urgent action, health risks and mortality rates will continue to rise. We must phase out fossil fuels and gas-powered plants, accelerate the transition to renewable energy, and enforce the polluter-pay principle. Governments must halt highway expansions, retrofit homes, transition to heat pumps, protect vulnerable communities from environmental harm, and support workers through the energy transition. Protecting the Greenbelt, wetlands, and farmland is non-negotiable – they are our natural defenses, providing clean air, safe water, and sustainable food production.

"How will we pay for these critical public investments? Presently, the top one per cent of Canadians control a shocking 26 per cent of the country's wealth. We must ensure the wealthiest contribute their fair share – this is about rebalancing our society and making it fairer for everyone," says RNAO CEO Dr. Doris Grinspun. Accordingly, RNAO argues that capital gains should be taxed at the same rate as employment income. We also call for expanded luxury taxes on high-end goods, closing corporate tax loopholes, and ending offshore tax havens. 

"With less than four weeks until election day, Ontarians have a powerful opportunity to shape our future," says Grinspun. "At the heart of RNAO's platform is a nursing- and health-driven vision: one that prioritizes families, communities, and the environment in which we live." Grinspun urges everyone to make their voices heard at the ballot box, adding, "Voting has a direct impact on the wellbeing of millions across the province. Nurses applaud politicians who advance positive change and challenge them – loudly – when they do not. We seek real progress that improves health and wellbeing for all. That's what this election must be about." 

RNAO is calling on its members, their families, and the public to fully engage in the democratic process. "Democracy is at the heart of our health. Ask tough questions, demand action, and challenge candidates to commit to strengthening health care and building a just society," urges Grinspun. "And, in light of the potential trade war by the U.S. president and the devastating impact it could have on Ontario, it is imperative that our leaders focus on building resilient social security and health-care systems to help people deal with the fallout from these external economic pressures," adds Grinspun.

She adds, "Nurses want a society that prioritizes health and dignity for all – a collective that cares for one another, respects differences and is united by a dignified present and shared future. Let's keep building it and protect it."

The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) is the professional association representing registered nurses, nurse practitioners and nursing students in Ontario. Since 1925, RNAO has advocated for healthy public policy, promoted excellence in nursing practice, increased nurses' contribution to shaping the health system, and influenced decisions that affect nurses and the public we serve. For more information about RNAO, visit RNAO.ca or follow us on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario

For more information, please contact: Marion Zych, Director of Communications, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), 1-800-268-7199 ext. 209, 416-408-5605, 647-406-5605 (cell), [e-mail]