Registered Nurses Demand Minimum Nursing Home Basic Care StandardsFollowing the federal Speech from the Throne, the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) called on the federal government to model long-term care standards on the Minimum Nursing Home Basic Care protocols developed by RNAO, protocols the Ontario government continues to ignore.
- a minimum of 48 minutes of worked hours of direct care from a registered nurse (RN) - a minimum of 60 minutes of direct care from a registered practical nurse (RPN) or licensed practical nurse (LPN) - a minimum of 132 minutes of direct care from a personal support worker (PSW) It also set out minimum staffing requirements, including: one full-time equivalent (FTE) nurse practitioner (NP) per 120 residents; one FTE nursing staff member (preferably an RN) to support the functions of infection prevention and control, quality improvement, staff education, onboarding and orientation; mandate that staff (RN, RPN/LPN, PSW) only work in one long-term care home; ensure salaries for nurses and personal support workers in long-term care are commensurate with those paid to health workers in other sectors, such as hospitals; and ensure full-time employment with benefits is offered to staff who want full-time work, enabling continuity of care for residents and improved staff retention.
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RNAO's minimum standard of care would ensure that each long-term care
home provide a minimum of four worked hours of direct nursing and
personal care for each resident per 24 hours, according to the following
staff mix formula: