Doctor and Nurse Shortages

Canada’s healthcare system is constantly facing challenges, but the most critical and arising one to state is the growing shortage of doctors and nurses that are pushing emergency rooms to shut their doors, leaving patients, residents, and the elderly without consistent and quality care. From ER closures in smaller towns to understaffed long-term care homes, the rippling effects of the staffing crisis are being felt across the country (“Ontario Health Sector: Spending Plan Review,” 2023). With an increase in burnout from our physicians, an aging population, and a struggle to keep up with the rising demands of healthcare treatment, healthcare workers are sounding the alarm (Press, 2023). We will explore how these shortages are reshaping frontline care and what solutions may be possible to be put into effect. 

Between July 2022 and June 2023, Ontario experienced 203 unplanned emergency department closures at 23 hospitals, mainly driven by the shortage of nurses and doctors (Casey, 2024). These closures disproportionately affected rural and remote communities, where hospitals often relied on agency staff and doctors to keep emergency care available. Some facilities even faced repeated disruptions, for example, Glengarry Memorial Hospital closed nightly for weeks, and South Bruce Grey’s Chelsey site was closed for 57 days altogether (“Emergency Departments”, 2023). Reports criticized the lack of centralized provincial strategy, revealing that hospitals largely handled closures independently and without support or even a notice. 

The impacts of these closures have been sharp. Ontario’s healthcare system recorded 1199 total hospital closures (including ER’s and urgent care centers) through November 2023, resulting in a loss of over 30 000 hours of caregiving time (“Unprecedented and Worsening: Ontario’s Local Hospital Closures 2023 ”). The Ontario Nurses Association warned that understaffing and burnout triggered a “paralysis” of emergency services, with some nurses reporting shifts covering up to 30 patients all alone. Without any type of systemic intervention, albeit improving staffing schedules, better strategies for retention, and workforce planning, ER closures will continue to destabilize access to critical care across the province. 

Doctor and nurse shortages are also taking critical tolls on long-term care (LTC) homes, where the vulnerable elderly populations are often left with inadequate care. Many LTC homes across Canada have reported dangerously low staffing levels, leading to residents experiencing delayed medical attention, missed medications, and basic care needs going unmet. According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, nearly 25% of long-term care staff were absent at some point during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the recovery since then has been very slow (Halperin et al., 2025). The consequences go beyond simply physical neglect; loneliness, deterioration in mental health, and preventable deaths are the unfortunate outcomes of understaffed LTC homes. 

Ontario’s ongoing doctor and nurse shortages have exposed to us the deep structural flaws in the province’s healthcare system, leading to repeated ER closures and strained long-term care capacity. These disruptions not only endanger timely patient care, but also place an unsustainable pressure on the remaining staff, as well as our most vulnerable populations. Without comprehensive workforce planning, improved support for rural healthcare infrastructure, and proper retention strategies, these issues are very likely to worsen. Moving forward, addressing these shortages must be our top priority, by focusing our goals on investing in long-term solutions that protect the integrity and accessibility of healthcare across Canada. 

Works Cited

Casey, Liam. “BarrieToday.com.” BarrieToday.com, 6 Dec. 2023, www.barrietoday.com/ontario-news/ontario-needs-plan-to-deal-with-staff-shortages-behind-er-closures-auditor-report-7930863. Accessed 12 Aug. 2025.  

Halperin, Donna M., et al. “Unveiling the Impact: Understanding Long-Term Care Workers’ Experiences and Their Perceptions of Resident Challenges amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.” BMC Geriatrics, vol. 25, no. 1, 17 Feb. 2025, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-05656-0. 

Office of the Auditor General of Ontario. Office of the Auditor General of Ontario Emergency Departments. 2023.

“Ontario Health Sector: Spending Plan Review - Financial Accountability Office of Ontario %.” Financial Accountability Office of Ontario, Nov. 2024, fao-on.org/en/report/health-2023/?utm. Accessed 12 Aug. 2025.

Press, The Canadian. “Ontario Needs Plan to Deal with Staff Shortages behind ER Closures: Auditor Report.” CTVNews, 6 Dec. 2023, www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/article/ontario-needs-plan-to-deal-with-staff-shortages-behind-er-closures-auditor-report/?utm_. Accessed 12 Aug. 2025. 

“Unprecedented and Worsening: Ontario’s Local Hospital Closures 2023 .” Ontario Health Coalition, 5 Dec. 2023, pp. 1–16.