Specialty under siege

Occupational health nurses – the standard-bearers of preventative health care in Ontario – are celebrating their 35th anniversary as a formal profession this year.

They're also fighting for their survival.

Not since the very first industrial nurse, Olive Bradley, set up shop in the Welland Cordage factory in 1906 has occupational health nursing faced such a serious dilemma.

Simply stated, there are now more job openings for occupational health nurses (OHNs) than qualified people to fill them. But the field has been virtually ignored by nursing programs at colleges and universities.

Marlene Demko, president of the Ontario Occupational Health Nurses' Association, says that without new blood, there is a serious risk the profession could disappear.

"We have a demographic that is of real concern, and I'm part of that demographic," says Demko, 52, an OHN practitioner for 28 of her 30 years in nursing.

She says many OHNs are in their mid-50s, approaching retirement.

The association is now mounting a spirited campaign to promote the OHN field and encourage new recruits. The strategy includes:

Lobbying government to offer tax breaks to smaller companies, so they can afford to hire an occupational health nurse.

Asking all nursing programs to include content about occupational health in their curriculum.

Lobbying experienced hospital RNs who may be facing job burnout to transfer their skills to workplace health.

The campaign may seem ill-timed, in light of Ontario's current economic downturn. But Demko suggests OHNs make more sense than ever, considering our aging workforce and demands for higher productivity.

To prove its case, the association asked the Schulich School of Business to analyze the costs and benefits of employing occupational health nurses. The results make a powerful argument for employers.

The Schulich study concluded that one full-time OHN can save a company with 2,000 workers about $220,000 per year – well worth the $75,000 annual cost of employing the nurse.

– Paul Dalby