Solutions

Heath care workers have made-in-the-North solutions that will lower costs for governments while improving care for patients. These solutions will provide Northerners more care in the communities they live in and foster better relationships between caregivers and patients, leading to better outcomes.

Here’s how we create better care for the North, now.

1. Make it faster and easier to connect Northerners with health care jobs.

• Invest in improving local training and recruitment. By starting outreach to high schools and offering opportunities for job shadowing and summer jobs, more Northern young people will consider a career in health care in their communities.
• Ensure that Northern training programs like the Nunavut Arctic College are connected with hospital and health authority human resource departments so that there are stronger relationships, leading to hires.
• Modernize hiring practices with simpler job applications and shorter hiring timelines so that workers aren’t waiting weeks to get a job and are forced to look elsewhere.

2. Use every worker to make the health care system stronger.

• Temporary contract health care workers are helpful, but the priority should be having a strong, permanent workforce in the North. Instead, use contract nurses to improve staffing ratios and to support the local team when people are on vacation.
• Continuity matters. By creating long-term relationships and bringing the same temporary workers to the same communities ongoing, patient care will improve.
• Give permanent staff more flexibility and work-life balance so they don’t burn out. Job sharing is one way to support permanent staff.
• Competitive compensation and benefits go a long way to retaining and recruiting all health care workers. Fair wages and benefits that keep place with inflation will encourage workers to consider the North.

3. Give heath care workers a seat at the table.

• Northern health care workers are experts on what is working and what isn’t. Governments should have regular discussions with staff and unions, and listen to the recommendations that are provided.
• Workers and governments should collaboratively establish minimum nurse-to-patient ratios, which will improve patient safety and quality of care.
• Provide health care workers ongoing professional development, and the time needed to participate. By investing in education leave and replacements to cover shifts, people will get more training and skills that they can bring to the North. 

Are you ready to join us and tell governments to support changes that will fix the Northern health care crisis? Add your name.