Ontario has made room for 6,000 health care workers to fill labour shortages by the end of March.
Ontario wants thousands of internationally trained nurses to come work in the province’s hospitals by March 31.
Ontario is sending about 300 of these nurses to 50 high-need hospitals in the province. They will care for patients under supervision while they work toward getting their licence in Ontario. So far, more than 1,200 internationally educated nurses have applied to the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) and expressed interest in these initiatives.
By the end of March, Ontario wants 6,000 more health care professionals working in Ontario hospitals. These workers include nursing students, medical students, and other students in the field of health care.
Ontario promised to invest $342 million over the next five years to recruitment initiatives in its 2021 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review: Build Ontario. The multi-million dollar investment is expected to add over 13,000 workers to Ontario’s health care system, including over 5,000 new and up-skilled nurses as well as 8,000 personal support workers.
In 2020, there were 20,678 internationally educated nurses registered and eligible to practice in Ontario.
