‘It’s going to bankrupt health care’: Spending on temp agency nurses up more than 550% since pre-pandemic at one Toronto hospital network
By: Erika Dominguez, Sunmedia
A spokesperson for Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children has said that spending on temp agency nurses has increased about 550 per cent since the COVID-19 pandemic hit hospital admissions in the city.
The spokesperson, who asked not to be named due to fears of backlash, confirmed that the extra costs have increased the hospital cost by an average of about $1,500 per day.
“As of May 3, the hospital has an excess deficit of $4,300,000. It takes money out of our operating budget for our hospital, which is not sustainable.”
The spokesperson said that the additional expenses have arisen due to increases from “temporary staff.”
While the spokesperson said the hospital is working with “temp agency costs to find a sustainable solution,” the hospital has not said whether it will be closing its temporary staffing programme.
The Toronto Star reported that at least 20 temporary staff nurses are currently working in the hospital.
Temporary staffing costs the hospital approximately four per cent of its overall operating budget, the spokesperson said.
But in a statement, the hospital said: “The health system is making sure that as quickly as possible, temporary staff nurses are transferred into our permanent staff nurses. This will ensure that we have the health system staffing required to continue operations.
“We are committed to protecting the health of our community.”
When asked for further comment, the spokesperson said that they have reached out to the hospital’s head of clinical nursing, who was unavailable for comment, and are working with the hospital board to understand “this situation”.
“We’re asking the public and the media to be patient,” they said.
“We’re working on this and are asking for the public to be patient. (The hospital) will share the data as soon as it is publicly available.”
What’s the hospital’s new temporary staffing cost?
According to the spokesperson, the temporary staffing cost
