‘We should be increasing nurse care through safe staffing ratios, not gutting an already decimated nursing workforce,’ says ONA official
Barrie’s Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) has cut 12 nursing positions, a move the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) says will further strain an already understaffed health‑care system and reduce the level of care available to patients.
ONA, which is tracking nursing reductions across the province, says RVH has eliminated 10 full‑time registered nurse positions in dialysis, professional practice, emergency, angiography and clinical cancer trials, along with two nurse practitioner roles in geriatrics.
ONA provincial president Erin Ariss called the decision “another blow” to a system she says is already struggling.
“It is unacceptable that Ontario, which already has the lowest number of registered nurses per capita in Canada, is cutting more to make up for the underfunding of our public health‑care system,” Ariss said in a statement on the association’s website.
“Cutting care will make it harder for those in the Barrie community to access care and hurt the safety of patients and workers alike,” she added. “We should be increasing nurse care through safe staffing ratios, not gutting an already decimated nursing workforce.”
Ariss says the cuts reflect a broader trend of hospitals reducing staff to balance budgets amid what she described as “intentional underfunding” by the province.
“The Ford government is intentionally underfunding our public health‑care system in its quest to justify more privatization, and employers are balancing the books by cutting nurses,” she said. “Now, patients in Barrie will wait even longer for care, nurses and health‑care workers will be expected to care for more patients than is safe, and our system will suffer yet another blow. These cuts must be stopped.”
RVH, which recently reported a $7.8‑million deficit, announced a long‑range financial sustainability plan earlier this month aimed at ensuring the hospital can continue meeting the needs of a growing region while maintaining safe, high‑quality care.
In a statement, RVH officials say the plan focuses on operational efficiency, innovation and aligning resources where they are needed most.
“RVH recognizes the essential role nurses and nurse practitioners play in delivering care and remains committed to supporting and retaining its nursing workforce,” the statement said.
“As hospitals across Ontario face growing demand, increasing complexity of care and significant financial pressures, our focus is on ensuring we have the right people in the right roles to support patient care.”
Hospital officials said the positions referenced by ONA were part of a broader resource‑alignment process announced June 3, noting the changes reflect patient demand, available funding, service levels, benchmarking and utilization.
“Consistent with this approach, RVH is prioritizing redeployment and retention wherever possible, with nursing opportunities available across the health centre,” a spokesperson said.
“We are following the processes outlined in the ONA collective agreement to ensure a fair, transparent, and consistent approach for all impacted staff,” they added. “While these decisions are necessary to align resources with patient needs and available funding, it is important to underscore that RVH continues to require strong nursing capacity across the organization.”
ONA has launched a public tracker showing where RN positions are being eliminated across Ontario, and says it will continue updating the list as more cuts are made.
“Underfunding and understaffing in our public health‑care system has devastating impacts on everyone,” Ariss said. “I am counting on Ontarians to pay attention to what’s happening and, more importantly, to speak up and demand the Ford government stop funding private care and reinvest in safe staffing ratios.
“We will all need health care, and we will all need nurses to provide it,” she added.
ONA represents 68,000 nurses and health‑care professionals and 18,000 nursing student affiliates working in hospitals, long‑term care, public health, community care, clinics and industry.