Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Of Course Nurses Know What's Right: A Focus on Front Line Nursing

15 papers providing intelligence, policies and practices. Assembled August 20, 2007

Broadening the Patient Safety Agenda to Include Home Care Services

A coordinated and collaborative approach to generate new knowledge pertaining to safety in home care in Canada has been undertaken by the Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI), VON Canada, and Capital Health (Edmonton).

Building the Canadian Paediatric Trigger Tool

Research on adverse events (AEs) has highlighted the need to improve patient safety.

Can we afford to sustain Medicare? A strong role for federal government
This report urges provincial and territorial premiers to call for federal "uploading" of provincial drug programs. CFNU President Linda Silas says that if Pharmacare is embraced by premiers, it could grant relief to the provinces and provide genuine benefits for all Canadians.

Creating Positive Solutions at the Workplace: Time to Work Together
Creating Positive Solutions at the Workplace: Time to Work Together, was presented by Linda Silas, at the March 22-23 international conference A Call to Action: Ensuring Global Resources for Health. The paper highlights examples of positive initiatives that will make a difference to nurses bringing research to action.

Enhancement of Patient Safety through Formal Nurse-Patient Ratios: A Discussion Paper
A strong body of evidence exists to suggest that by achieving optimal nurse staffing levels that closely match the acuity level of patients, the quality of care is improved. Furthermore,achieving optimal nurse staffing levels also enhances the quality of worklife for nurses. The study shows that Nurse-Patient Ratios could provide a useful roadmap, pointing the way for legislators to put enough nurses where they are needed, when they are needed.

Getting Better Health Care: Lessons from (and for) Canada
Economist Armine Yalnizyan's 2006 book, with translated Executive Summary, reviews the evolution of Canada's health care system and points the way forward with solutions for today's problems.

Getting Healthy Work Environments in Health Workplaces discusses how unhealthy work environments result in unhealthy workers and reduced health outcomes for patients. This commentary focuses on getting real change in the workplace, changes that workers and patients will talk about.

Nursing sector recommends strategies for addressing nursing HR issues
The Nursing Sector Study's Phase II Final Report outlines all of the pan-Canadian opportunities for collaboration identified by stakeholders. It also provides linkages to other health human resources projects underway in Canada.

Our Health, Our Future: Creating Quality Workplaces for Canadian Nurses
The final report of the Canadian Nursing Advisory Committee, released in 2002, makes 51 recommendations to improve the retention and worklife of Canadian nurses. Linda Silas was a member of the author committee.

Report: Taking Steps Forward: Retaining and valuing Experienced Nurses January 26, 2006
This report, informed by a 2005 survey of nurses reminds policy makers and managers that keeping experienced nurses in the workforce is essential to addressing Canada's worsening nursing shortage as recruitment is not keeping pace with retirement. It points out that linking experienced and novice nurses is the only way to guarantee quality patient care.

Research Report: More for Less: A National Pharmacare Strategy
This report, prepared by the Canadian Health Coalition, makes a compelling case for why Canadians need a public national drug plan.

The Pulse of Renewal: A Focus on Nursing Human Resources
The Pulse of Renewal: A Focus on Nursing Human Resources is a report of work commissioned by Health Canada's Office of Nursing Policy and is focused on strategies for augmenting and enhancing nursing human resources. The research covers a diverse spectrum

Under Pressure: Implications of Work-Life Balance and Job Stress
This report presents new findings from two national surveys, one of employers and the other of workers, on work-life balance and job stress. The report discusses the implications of these issues for employers and points to actions they can take to...


Control Over Time and Work-Life Balance
This report was prepared for the Federal Labour Standards Review Committee. It examines the research and relevant Canadian empirical evidence on work schedules, work time and work-life balance. It assesses trends and current practices in Canada.

It's a matter of trust

This article discusses the key to building a trust-based corporate culture.

Salaries and Other Compensation for Healthcare Workers in Canada

FROM CANADA'S ACADEMIC HEALTH SCIENCES CENTRES . . . AND MORE