As the representative body of Nurse Practitioners in Ontario, NPAO signs onto Team Primary Care’s Call to Action, titled Our Collective Duty to Act.

03.19.24

Team Primary Care is calling for action towards an integrated health care system in which every individual receives equitable, high-quality, comprehensive care from a well-trained, well-supported, and optimally utilized primary care team. Nurse practitioners are key primary care providers, and are poised and ready to act as part of integrated health teams in Ontario.

Supporting innovative, comprehensive, and effective team based primary care is crucial to addressing the issues facing Canada’s healthcare system. More than 6 million people in Canada lack access to a primary care provider, while wait times to access care are increasing, and quality is falling. The current model of primary care does not take advantage of uniquely trained and experienced healthcare professionals trained in specific areas of medicine, who can provide specialized, high-quality care close to home for more Canadians.

Nurse practitioners are one such group: because of their advanced training and education, NPs are able to perform nearly every role of a physician, including diagnosing and issuing prescriptions, and can even deliver specialized care like MAID. Like so many other primary care providers, NPs are equipped to support our province’s failing health care system and deliver access to care as close to home as possible.

NPAO is proud and eager to work alongside organizations representing other primary care professionals. We know that working together and capitalizing on each other’s strengths is key to delivering the high-quality healthcare that Canadians need.