National Survey of the Work and Health of Nurses 2005: Provincial Profiles - ARCHIVED

The 2005 National Survey of the Work and Health of Nurses (NSWHN) represents a collaborative effort involving the Canadian Institute for Health Information, Health Canada, and Statistics Canada.

The NSWHN was designed to examine links between the work environment and the health of regulated nurses in Canada, and is the first nationally representative survey of its kind. The survey's high response rate (80%) reflects the enthusiasm with which nurses involved themselves in the survey.

Nearly 19,000 regulated nurses, representing registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) across the country were interviewed on a variety of topics, including the conditions in which they practice, the challenges they face in doing their jobs, and their physical and mental wellbeing.

They shared their perceptions of work organization, including staffing, shift work, overtime and employee support. Nurses were also asked about work stress, role overload, respect, and quality of patient care. Information about their health status, such as chronic conditions, pain, self-perceived general and mental health, medication use, and the impact of health on the performance of nursing duties, was also collected.

This document presents key findings from the 2005 NSWHN for each province, as well as for the three territories combined.