Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services has released its three-year plan aimed at improving patient care across the province, and recruitment and retention is front and center.

The provincial government campaigned heavily on a platform of better healthcare, yet many facilities are still struggling to keep their scheduled operating hours due to staffing shortages.

CEO Ron Johnson says the new strategy focuses on filling the need for family physicians, and finding new ways to support staff recruitment and retention.

“We have to make these jobs attractive for people. We have to retain. Recruitment is one piece of it, but retention is just as important. We want people to see our organization as a great place to work. And that has to be more than just saying it’s a great place to work. We have to have strategies that actually show people it is a great place to work.”

Listen to “NLHS CEO Ron Johnson and Senior Director of Long-Term Care Melvin Layden” on Spreaker.