Earlier this year, The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care responded to the recommendation of the Canadian Nursing Advisory Committee, the voices of nursing professional organizations such as RNAO and the growing body of supporting research by flowing additional dollars to hospitals for “nursing related activities”. As a result, funding was targeted to “increasing full-time positions for nursing (base funding will be conditional upon achieving targeted improvements of two years) . . . to your 70% full-time employment target”.

TBRHSC fully embraces the opportunity to provide an environment that fosters commitment to quality patient outcomes, professional nursing practice and improved management of nursing resources. A 70% full-time nursing employment will help us to fulfill that responsibility.

Evidence and studies have shown the benefits of 70% full-time nursing employment include:

• Improved patient outcomes and satisfaction.
• Efficient human resources utilization and system cost-effectiveness.
• Improved nurse-physician collaboration and team work.
• Enhanced organizational commitment.
• Successful recruitment and retention outcomes.
• Sustainability of the nursing profession.

Rhonda Crocker, VP Patient Care Services & Chief Nursing Officer stated that: “Nurses are at the heart of healthcare and we need to create a plan to ensure we are able to recruit and retain nurses…the addition of more full-time, stable jobs, will allow our Health Sciences Centre to more effectively do this to meet our patient care needs.”

Dot Allen, Manager of Neurosurgery and General Surgery informs that: “At the unit level, this will mean that the patient will see the same nurse more regularly at the bedside, rather than having a new nurse each day, and that a nurse will know her patients better and will be able to provide better care".

We have developed a plan to achieve a 70% full-time employment target. To that end, we will

• Create 35 New Full Time Nursing Positions through a change in the method of scheduling part time nurses. This change would bring TBRHSC scheduling methods in line with most other Ontario hospitals.
• We will not eliminate any part-time staff. All regular hours will be maintained. Our plan will decrease overtime and ensure that we are effectively utilizing our staff to provide optimal care.
• We will seek to improve vacation quotas for nurses through this change and develop a stable and quality work setting that supports improved patient outcomes related to continuity of care.

Currently we are at 56% full-time employment...our plan will take us to the Provincial Target of 70% full-time.

Anne Ross, Director of Medical Services says: “A 70% solution results in a greater number of full-time staff on the unit participating on a consistent basis in multidisciplinary rounds and patient care consultations – this will mean improved patient care outcomes".

George Fieber, Manager of Staff Development/Professional Practice Leader said: “More full-time nursing staff will have a positive impact on our ability to provide clinical education to improve the delivery of nursing care based on best practices. The growing body of evidence shows that increasing full-time positions to 70% not only improves patient outcomes and satisfaction, but also enhances nursing worklife, satisfaction and safety. We are committed to achieving this goal”.

“We are currently collaborating with our nursing unions to develop a process plan for implementing these changes”, states Lora Wyman, Manager of Human Resources.

We value our nurses and are committed to work together with them to create an environment which supports best practices and is responsive to patient care needs. Our Goal is to continually improve upon the care we provide. We are proud of our nurses and the excellent care they provide to patients and families each and every day.

For more information, please contact:

Rhonda Crocker
Vice President, Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer
Phone: (807) 684-6018

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