A report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) reveals worsening nursing workforce trends in Ontario. The province now needs 26,000 additional RNs to catch up to the RN-to-population ratio in the rest of Canada. The gap between Ontario’s ratio and that of other provinces and territories has widened three per cent since 2022. “We need more RNs across all sectors working full-time at full scope, providing direct care to Ontarians,” RNAO President NP Lhamo Dolkar said in RNAO’s media release response to the troubling news (July 25). In a follow-up interview with 570 News (July 29, starting at 1:12 in the program), Dolkar reiterated what RNAO has said for years. “This is the ninth consecutive year that Ontario has had the worst RN-to-population ratio.” Dolkar also said the nursing shortage “has been an ongoing issue. We have to focus more on harmonizing the wage upwards across all sectors.” Compensation is important, she said, but not the only issue. She also addressed the need for safer working environments, healthy work-life balance, full-time opportunities and mentorship as vital to retaining and recruiting more nurses.