Ontario proposes allowing nurse practitioners to oversee LTC medical care

Ontario long-term care homes could soon have nurse practitioners overseeing residents' medical care instead of physicians, a move applauded by some but not supported by doctors.

Ontario long-term care homes could soon have nurse practitioners overseeing residents’ medical care instead of physicians, a move applauded by nurses and the homes but not supported by doctors.

The plan to replace the requirement for homes to have a medical director, who must be a physician, with a requirement for a clinical director, who could be a physician or nurse practitioner is among the proposed changes in recently introduced long-term care and seniors legislation.

The bill would also require homes to have a dementia care program and create new offences for the abuse and neglect of residents.

Long-Term Care Minister Natalia Kusendova-Bashta said operators were allowed to fill the medical director role with nurse practitioners during the pandemic, and she is now making that permanent.

“This function is largely an administrative function, so we have full confidence that nurse practitioners can perform this function,” she said.

“At the same time, we are giving physicians more time to focus on the care needs of our residents instead of doing paperwork.”

The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario had pushed for the change, and president Lhamo Dolkar said it will improve collaboration among health professionals in long-term care homes and help retain nurses in Ontario by giving them more career pathways.

“Having NPs authorized to work as clinical directors is a win on many counts,” Dolkar wrote in a statement.