Hospital Human Resource Pressures Expected to Continue Throughout Summer Months
June 27, 2022
Hospitals across the South West continue to experience human resources shortages, including physicians, and all Hospitals are working closely together to minimize potential service impacts and manage wait times. Despite the incredible efforts of all staff and physicians, and after a very challenging two years, it is becoming increasingly difficult to staff all programs and services. In fact, localized nursing shortages have already resulted in overnight Emergency Department closures and temporary suspensions of Labour and Delivery Services.
At the request of Ontario Health West, all hospitals in the South West region have prepared a coordinated summer planning overview that predicts staff availability across programs such as Emergency, Surgery, Labour and Delivery and Laboratory. The goal of the overview is to identify where there are concerns regarding consistent service provision and to ensure that necessary contingency and communication plans are in place.
“Our commitment to providing high quality, safe health care services will be balanced with the availability of resources and respect for the wellness of our teams,” says Andrew Williams, President & CEO. “Where service adjustments become unavoidable, often at the last minute due to either unplanned staff absences or high bed occupancy, our commitment is to make sure that all health care partners and communities are aware. This includes knowing plans that are in place to ensure continued service access through adjacent organizations.”
Over the past four years, more than 4,400 staff have retired from the health care field with the number of unfilled positions in 2021 increasing 91% from the previous year. As 1 in 5 staff are over the age of 50, turnover in the health care field is expected to remain high. In a recent Ontario Hospital Association survey, burnout and stress from caring for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic were the main reasons cited by staff currently leaving their roles.
Hospitals are very aware that all health care partners are facing the same staffing challenges. We all have a shared responsibility to look to broader system solutions to ensure our health care programs and services are provided in a manner that reflects the staffing realities we are collectively facing now and into the future.
In emergency situations, hospitals remind the public to call 9-1-1, as Emergency Medical Services (EMS) are a key part of our Emergency Response Team. These team members will start immediate care when dispatched and will transport patients to the best hospital location for continued care.
If your needs are non-urgent, please consider other health system supports, such as your primary care provider’s office or Health Connect Ontario (formerly Telehealth Ontario).