Media Advisory - Front-Line Registered Nurses to Rally Against RN Cuts: Royal Ottawa Health Care Group cutting 19 RN positions

OTTAWA, Dec. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Ontario Nurses' Association (ONA) members will rally outside of the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group tomorrow to protest cuts to 19 front-line registered nurses (RN).

The registered nurses will be joined by ONA Vice-President Cathryn Hoy, RN to raise public awareness of the impact on patient care ? and RN safety ? the cuts will result in.

"The Royal Ottawa Health Care Group's layoffs will have a negative impact on the very patients our nurses want to provide high-quality, specialized care to," notes ONA First Vice-President Vicki McKenna, RN. "The cuts ? to six full-time and 13 part-time RNs, equates to 25,600 hours of RN care lost per year," she says.

"Just last week, Ontario Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Eric Hoskins said government knows that more RNs, not fewer, need to be in our health-care facilities," says McKenna. "Let's be clear: our patients need and deserve the high-level skills RNs bring."

The employer has notified ONA of cuts to RNs working in its Integrated Forensic and Mood and Crisis programs.

ONA is the union representing 65,000 registered nurses and health-care professionals, as well as more than 16,000 nursing student affiliates, providing care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, clinics and industry.

Visit ONA at: www.ona.org; Facebook.com/OntarioNurses; Twitter.com/OntarioNurses

SOURCE Ontario Nurses Association