Nurses kick-start 2018 provincial election with release of policy recommendations
More than 130 registered nurses (RN), nurse practitioners (NP) and nursing students are headed to Queen’s Park Thursday to issue a challenge to political parties hoping to win the upcoming provincial election: Adopt policies that will improve the lives of all Ontarians.
Improving health for all is the name of the policy platform members of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) will unveil at a media conference on Thursday, Feb. 22.
To be released during the association’s 18th-annual Queen’s Park Day, the platform includes priorities in five key areas: access to nursing care, health system transformation, living standards, the environment, and the government’s fiscal capacity.
“Nurses’ primary goal is to keep people healthy. To do that, our province must invest in healthy policies that influence and shape Ontarians’ well-being long before they need a health-care provider,” says RNAO’s President Carol Timmings. “Addressing these factors is critical to building a society that leaves no one behind and treats its people equitably.”
“We are less than five months away from a significant day in this province’s future,” says RNAO Chief Executive Officer Doris Grinspun. “We are releasing our policy priorities aimed at improving health for all Ontarians, and urging all parties to include these imperatives in their election platforms if they want to capture the interest of nurses – who have the highest trust from the public.”
After the platform is unveiled, RNAO members will take in Question Period. In the afternoon, they will gather at the University of Toronto’s Hart House to hear speeches and take part in question and answer sessions with the Honourable Eric Hoskins, minister of health and long-term care (1 p.m.), PC health critic Jeff Yurek (1:45 p.m.), and NDP health critic France Gelinas (2:45 p.m.). Nurses will round out their annual day at Queen’s Park with a panel discussion on homelessness featuring street nurse Cathy Crowe.
WHO:
- RNAO President Carol Timmings, Chief Executive Officer Doris Grinspun and more than 130 RNs, NPs and nursing students
WHAT:
- Media conference to release Improving health for all: RNAO’s challenge to political parties
WHEN:
- Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018, 9:30 – 10 a.m. (Queen’s Park media conference to release Improving health for all)
WHERE:
- Queen’s Park Media Studio, Main Legislative Building, Queen’s Park
The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) is the professional association representing registered nurses, nurse practitioners, and nursing students in Ontario. Since 1925, RNAO has advocated for healthy public policy, promoted excellence in nursing practice, increased nurses’ contribution to shaping the health-care system, and influenced decisions that affect nurses and the public they serve. For more information about RNAO, visit our website at RNAO.ca or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
SOURCE Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario
