Some startling new numbers show that the province’s nursing vacancy rate is growing and the Registered Nurses Union wants to see a concerted effort to address the problem in the upcoming provincial budget.

The RNU says government’s latest stats show there were 752 registered nurse vacancies in the province in October of 2022. That’s a 22 per cent increase in vacancies from 615 in the previous April.

RNU President Yvette Coffey says the province has more than 200 long-term care beds sitting empty because the nursing staff are not available to fill them, which is putting added strain on the rest of the system.

Retention of health care professionals is key says Coffey to help stabilize the province’s health care sector.