Nurses provide most of the patient care in hospitals. Recently, there is a shift to change the type of nursing staff that are hired. It is becoming common place to replace Registered Nurses (RN’s) with Registered Practical Nurses (RPN’s). The motivation for this direction is a direct result of cost cutting measures imposed by the Government of Ontario for the health care budget. Since this is a relatively new initiative there are few studies that support the impact that this will have on patient care in the healthcare system. A possible solution could be to look at a team approach that can utilize the skills and abilities in the most efficient and responsive way to patients in the health care system. The growing cost of Health Care in Ontario
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One reason would be in the area of skills required especially in the area of critical thinking. RN’s attend university for 4 years, receive training in clinical practice, and are also critical thinkers who do research (Born, K 2013). An important aspect of RN skills is the ability to care for complex, unstable patients with have unpredictable health needs. These are skills that are required in emergency departments, intensive care units and surgical units. RPN’s, on the other hand are graduates of a 2 year programs with training that is focused on developing skills to care for patients with less complex and more predictable needs (Born, K 2013). In cases where critical thinking is needed it is imperative that the nurses that are required have the skill set to be able to attend to the patients with quickly changing needs. St. Joseph’s Hospital in London Ontario is believed to be one of the first hospitals in Ontario to replace some of its specialized RN’s who care for premature babies with lower paying RPN’s. This shift has not been well received by the Ontario Nurses Union. "It's absolutely ludicrous," said Linda Haslam Stroud, president of the Ontario Nurses' Association and a Hamilton nurse. "Our neonates should not be put at risk. They are already vulnerable and are not stable and predictable" (Frketich, 2016). In the Neo Natal Intensive Care Unit at St. Joseph’s the local union says there is …show more content…
This cluster can be found in the Quinte area. Key proposed changes include a shift towards a more team-based model of patient care across all of Quinte Health Care’s hospitals. This means that Registered Nurses will have a larger role in care planning, discharge planning, patient and family teaching and counselling. Registered Practical Nurses will care for appropriate patients within their level of training and expertise, which includes patients with more complex needs. More Personal Support Workers will be available to help patients with their activities of daily living and mobility (Everson, K.2015). In Alberta, a pilot project, part of Alberta Health Services’ Work Force Transformation strategy, was motivated by a sense that patient care was suffering because RNs were overloaded with tasks other than providing complex care to patients. RPN’s were brought in to work with RNs to “safely and competently provide care as part of a team.” This team approach could create a balance of what is acceptable in the eyes of the funder and also maintains the integrity of a system of care that focuses on patient
One reason would be in the area of skills required especially in the area of critical thinking. RN’s attend university for 4 years, receive training in clinical practice, and are also critical thinkers who do research (Born, K 2013). An important aspect of RN skills is the ability to care for complex, unstable patients with have unpredictable health needs. These are skills that are required in emergency departments, intensive care units and surgical units. RPN’s, on the other hand are graduates of a 2 year programs with training that is focused on developing skills to care for patients with less complex and more predictable needs (Born, K 2013). In cases where critical thinking is needed it is imperative that the nurses that are required have the skill set to be able to attend to the patients with quickly changing needs. St. Joseph’s Hospital in London Ontario is believed to be one of the first hospitals in Ontario to replace some of its specialized RN’s who care for premature babies with lower paying RPN’s. This shift has not been well received by the Ontario Nurses Union. "It's absolutely ludicrous," said Linda Haslam Stroud, president of the Ontario Nurses' Association and a Hamilton nurse. "Our neonates should not be put at risk. They are already vulnerable and are not stable and predictable" (Frketich, 2016). In the Neo Natal Intensive Care Unit at St. Joseph’s the local union says there is …show more content…
This cluster can be found in the Quinte area. Key proposed changes include a shift towards a more team-based model of patient care across all of Quinte Health Care’s hospitals. This means that Registered Nurses will have a larger role in care planning, discharge planning, patient and family teaching and counselling. Registered Practical Nurses will care for appropriate patients within their level of training and expertise, which includes patients with more complex needs. More Personal Support Workers will be available to help patients with their activities of daily living and mobility (Everson, K.2015). In Alberta, a pilot project, part of Alberta Health Services’ Work Force Transformation strategy, was motivated by a sense that patient care was suffering because RNs were overloaded with tasks other than providing complex care to patients. RPN’s were brought in to work with RNs to “safely and competently provide care as part of a team.” This team approach could create a balance of what is acceptable in the eyes of the funder and also maintains the integrity of a system of care that focuses on patient