Hospital Staff and Paramedics to Reveal Number of Staff Needed Just to Maintain Service Levels at Toronto Hospitals: Media Conference Tuesday, Scarborough Hospital (ER)

In Ontario hospital staff turnover rates have doubled and paramedics are struggling due to rapid increase in call volumes. Toronto hospital staff and area paramedics are warning that the depth of the hospital staffing crisis will worsen and that patient access to care is in peril under the provincial government's current course, which includes the elimination of more than $1.6 Billion in special COVID-19 funding.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) will hold a media conference on Tuesday, September 27, 2022, at 12 noon at the Scarborough General Hospital - Emergency Department entrance - to release Toronto-specific data on how many nurses, paramedical, clerical and support staff would need to be hired this year by hospitals in the area, just to maintain existing patient care and service levels.

Hospital emergency room (ER) and other unit closures, and staffing shortages will "only intensify" under the current health human resource strategy of the PC provincial government, says Dave Verch, a registered practical nurse (RPN) and first vice-president of CUPE's Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE).

Officially the hospital staff turnover rate in Ontario is 14.95%. "This is an unsustainable level of loss of experienced health care workers," says Verch. "None of this is normal nor is it acceptable. With an ageing and growing population here in Toronto, the provincial government is on a course to cause untold suffering for patients and front-line hospital staff."

The hospital staffing crisis is contributing to ambulance unavailability, as offload delays for paramedics prevents timely response to 911 calls. The problem is compounded by understaffing of paramedic services relative to demand. This is particularly pronounced in Toronto, where call volumes have increased by an average of 4.5% over the last decade.

"Toronto's paramedics have stepped up admirably to continue serving our city while being forced to do more with less, often risking injury and burnout. But even as paramedics are missing breaks and consistently working overtime to provide the best service possible, there are often critical ambulance shortages in Toronto as in other parts of the province. Our system is crumbling and it's high time for the Ontario provincial government to work on a staffing strategy that ensures safe staffing levels and a high-quality paramedic service," says Mike Merriman, CUPE 416 -Toronto Paramedic Services - Unit Chair.

At Tuesday's media conference, Verch and Merriman will be joined by staff working at the Scarborough General Hospital (3050 Lawrence Ave., East) and paramedics from Toronto and other communities across Ontario.

In Ontario, CUPE represents 50,000 front-line hospital staff including RPNs, personal support workers, cleaners, porters, paramedical and administrative and other workers and more than 6000 paramedics and dispatchers. CUPE represents about 1200 paramedics working for the City of Toronto

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