Ontario Nurses' Association Celebrates National Nurse Practitioner Week, November 7 to 13

TORONTO, Ont., November 5, 2021 – The Ontario Nurses' Association (ONA) will celebrate National Nurse Practitioner Week from November 7 to 13.

ONA President Vicki McKenna, RN, says the union is recognizing and honouring “the vital role that Nurse Practitioners (NPs) play in Ontario’s health-care system,” and the specialized care they provide.

“Nurse Practitioners are Registered Nurses with additional years of education. Their scope of practice includes providing exceptional primary care to thousands of Ontarians,” says McKenna. “For these patients, NPs are their lifeline to care. That’s why ONA is continuing to educate policy-makers on the need to ensure NPs are able to use their full potential to improve access to healthcare. Through our work with the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, we continue to urge that working conditions be improved for NPs. We can recruit and retain more of these invaluable NPs if we simply give them the respect they so deserve.”

McKenna notes that NPs also work in stand-alone clinics, hospitals, long-term care facilities and the community. “Their extended-class education enables them to order diagnostic tests and prescribe many medications. The work of NPs is helping to transform health care through the safe, collaborative and effective care they provide to Ontarians. NPs are trusted and valued by their patients.”

ONA continues to advocate for fair and equitable wages, benefits and pensions for Nurse Practitioners across Ontario, and recognizes them for their high level of skills and dedication to quality patient care. More information about Nurse Practitioner Week is available here: https://www.ona.org/news-posts/np-week/.

ONA is the union representing 68,000 front-line registered nurses and health-care professionals as well as more than 14,000 nursing student affiliates providing care in Ontario hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, industry and clinics.

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