Canadians: Address nursing shortage, health care

[cougarnurse]

Good story: The Telegram - St. John's, NL: Local News | Canadians want governments to address nursing shortage, health care: poll

Government spending on health care continues to be a priority for Canadians, a new poll shows.

The poll, conducted for the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions by Nanos Research, found that three out of four Canadians would choose increasing the number of nurses over a tax cut.

“Governments must not repeat the mistake of the 1990’s and use the economic downturn as an excuse to cut health care,” warns Linda Silas, president of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions.

“The nursing workforce has never recovered from those cuts. Canadians support investments in nurses.”

The poll also found that:

• Nearly six in 10 Canadians believed that the nursing shortage is a serious problem, while another three in ten believed that it was somewhat serious.
• Even in the current economic environment, health care ranks as the top priority for government spending among all Canadians.
• Nearly half of Canadians said they would likely vote against a government that did not properly fund health care.
• Nine out of 10 Canadians support or somewhat support the government doing more to retain nurses who are currently working and to increasing the number of nursing graduates.
• The majority oppose the government increasing the number of patients nurses must care for.

The poll was released on the eve of the 14th Biennial Convention of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions