Celebrate Nurse Practitioners' Week 2023
November 5, 2023
We recognize the vital role that Nurse Practitioners (NPs) play in our health-care system and celebrate the work of our NP members during Nurse Practitioner Week, November 12-18.
NP Week is held annually to raise awareness of the exceptional care they provide to communities across Ontario. It is an opportunity to educate policy-makers on the need to harness the full potential of NPs to improve timely access to health care for all Canadians.
NPs receive extended education and provide comprehensive primary care including the ability to assess, diagnose, prescribe medications, monitor, and educate their patients on managing chronic illness and a host of other issues. In a health-care system struggling with a lack of primary care providers and health-care services, it is more important than ever that we find ways to improve working conditions to retain and attract NPs.
On October 5, 2022, the Ontario government announced its new Hiring More Nurse Practitioners (HMNP) for Long-Term Care program. According to this plan, the province will invest $57.6 million over the next three years to hire 225 additional NPs in the long-term care (LTC) sector.
In response, ONA stated in a media release that while this is a start, it is not enough: “ONA has long urged this government to fund more full-time Nurse Practitioners (NPs) for long-term care, to bring their exceptional skills, education and knowledge and enable them to provide care to residents who are medically complex. While this is a start, the timelines can and should be accelerated to benefit residents.”
