Hamilton, ON November 28, 2002: The Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science (CSMLS) is urging the federal and provincial governments to work together to implement the Romanow Commission's recommendations on health human resources.
"We are pleased that the Romanow Report has recognized the need to invest in developing Canada's health human resources," says CSMLS president, Margie Flynn.
"Nearly half of Canada's medical laboratory technologists will be eligible to retire over the next ten years," says CSMLS executive director, Kurt Davis. "We're concerned that the shortage will hit at a time when demand for laboratory testing is expected to increase due to the aging population, availability of new diagnostic tests, and the emergence of new pathogens such as the West Nile Virus. And we're not alone. Most health care professions, including doctors and nurses, are facing human resource shortages."
CSMLS supports the commission's call for a more integrated and evidence-based approach to health human resource planning. " Effective human resource planning can't be done in isolation, nor can it be done without accurate data. We endorse the recommendation to centralize health human resource planning under the leadership of the Health Council of Canada and urge governments and health care providers to work together to make it happen," says Ms. Flynn.
CSMLS is the national certifying body for medical laboratory technologists and assistants. It represents 14,000 medical laboratory professionals in Canada and around the world.