Front-Line Registered Nurses Mark 2010 Day of Mourning

from the Ontario Nurses’ Association

The Ontario Nurses’ Association’s (ONA) 55,000 registered nurses and allied health professionals are today marking the 2010 Day of Mourning, honouring the thousands of workers who have lost their lives or been injured on the job.

“It’s vital that we pause to remember the colleagues we have lost,” said ONA President Linda Haslam-Stroud, RN. “RNs are among the most injured and ill of all professionals because of the high occupational health and safety hazards we encounter daily while caring for our patients. This, combined with heavy workloads and the risk of workplace violence as patients and their families grow frustrated with wait times, makes nursing an often dangerous occupation.”

Nurses across Ontario will mark the day at events in every corner of the province. In Toronto, ONA Vice-President Andy Summers, RN will speak at an event at Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square at noon.

ONA members will remember their colleagues Heather Taylor, RN, who died as a result of acquiring an infectious disease while on the job, Lori Dupont, RN, who was murdered by a colleague while working at Windsor’s Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital, as well as Tecla Lin and Nelia Larosa, RN, who died during the SARS outbreak.