 The Canadian Nurses’ Association has launched a national expert commission, which they are calling The Health of Our Nation - The Future of Our Health System, to make recommendations on evolving health services.
UNA President Heather Smith has been named to the national expert panel, along with Senator Sharon Carstairs, Thomas d’Aquino, Judith Shamian and others.
The Commission is being co-chaired by Marlene Smadu and Maureen McTeer. Running until June 2012 the commission will make policy recommendations to support the transformation of Canada's health system.
“I am pleased to join in and help bring forward the best ideas for improving and expanding our public health system,” Heather Smith said about the commission. “Nurses have an important part to play in ensuring our system really works to enhance the health security of all Canadians, wealthy or poor.”
Marlene Smadu a past president of CNA and current vicepresident of the International Council of Nurses, is an accomplished nurse educator, researcher and government advisor. Maureen McTeer is a health law expert and author, as well as adjunct professor, Faculty of Common Law, University of Ottawa. A diverse roster of Canadian thought leaders with complementary backgrounds, experience and expertise will round out the Commission.
The Commission will consult with nurses, other healthcare leaders and the public to weigh evidence and advice on how to accelerate a positive transformation of Canada’s publicly funded, notforprofit medicare system.
“By paying attention to supports and services in communities that are effective in providing care, we can ease health system bottlenecks, improve the health of Canadians and reduce costly hospital stays,” said Smadu. “Similarly, investing in health promotion and illness/injury prevention makes more sense than spending big dollars to cure conditions that could have been avoided altogether.”
According to McTeer, “the Commission will address several key questions: How do we shift and realign health services to make better use of existing resources, including the skills of registered nurses? How can we reduce duplication and maximize teamwork to make our health system smarter and more effective?
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