Canada does not have enough medical personnel
Because of the shortage of workers, emergency departments are being closed.
The prolonged pandemic has taken a heavy toll on health care in Canada. Medical personnel, faced with very difficult working conditions, low pay compared to their workload, and professional burnout, are being laid off en masse. All this leads to a shortage of doctors and health care workers in the country.
In June of this year, Statistics Canada reported a record high of 136,800 vacancies in the health care sector during the first quarter of 2022. That's almost double the number reported in the first quarter of 2020. A survey conducted by the Canadian Public Employees Union this year found that 87% of the 2,600 registered nurses in hospitals were considering retiring from their jobs.
Many hospitals and emergency departments in the Canadian provinces are closing or shortening their hours of operation due to staff shortages. Patients suffer because they have to wait a long time for medical care or for an ambulance to arrive.
In March 2022, World Education Services presented a report reporting that foreigners play an important role in filling jobs in health care in Canada. It was pointed out that immigrants and refugees make up a large proportion of the practicing medical staff. In addition, it is assumed that the recent negative situation in this field will also be corrected by foreign workers.
In the report, WES provided a number of recommendations for government agencies dealing with immigration. They should help to improve the flow of highly qualified medics from abroad and address the situation.
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