Ontario hospitals spent over $9B on for-profit nursing agencies in past decade: study

A new study concludes Ontario hospitals spent more than $9 billion on nurses and other staff from for-profit agencies in a 10-year period.

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives study examined financial statements for 134 Ontario hospital corporations as well as data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

It found that from 2013-14 to 2022-23 public hospital spending on staff increased six per cent, but their spending on private agencies increased 98 per cent.

Study author Andrew Longhurst also found that while the number of hours worked by agency staff in Ontario hospitals accounted for 0.4 per cent of all front-line worker hours in 2022-23, six per cent of hospitals’ labour costs went toward the private staff.

Hospitals turn to staffing agencies for qualified workers who can fill shifts on a temporary basis, but agencies charge double or even triple the regular hourly rate for their staff.