"A New Patients’ Rights Act that gives Islanders legal rights when it comes to timely access to healthcare services: The Liberal Party believes that Islanders deserve the right to timely, legally guaranteed access to healthcare services, regardless of where they live in PEI. This Act will define the rights that Islanders will have regarding access to healthcare. Implementation and enforcement of the Act will be a ministerial responsibility accompanied by an independent officer of the Legislature to adjudicate complaints and recommend corrective and/or remedial action." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"4. Invest in interim residential services and facilities for medically discharged patients who need supports prior to returning home;

5. Invest in restorative care beds so that medically discharged patients have an appropriate care setting to go to recover with the required medical supports" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Expand access to primary care in non-urgent settings to divert patients away from ERs." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Leverage other health professionals such as Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants to become part of the ER care team to address shortages and improve access to care" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Ensure emergency medicine offers compensation commensurate to the stress and difficultly of working conditions so that nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, and other health care providers view emergency medicine as an attractive specialty of the health profession." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Providing funding to organizations such as Pat and the Elephant, Transportation West, and others to do the non-urgent transfer of medically stable patient transfers on PEI. This funding would include covering transportation costs as well as providing funding for the necessary equipment and vehicles to provide patient transfers" — peipc.ca, 2023-03-07

"Reduce or eliminate fees for transportation services like Pat and the Elephant and Transportation West." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-10

"The program includes physiotherapy, occupational therapy, exercise, leisure, therapeutic activities, and education/information sessions.

Emergency Rooms are often filled with patients waiting for longer-term beds in the hospital. Additional restorative care beds, especially at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, will help transition patients more quickly out of the ER and reduce wait times. Restorative care generally requires lower staffing levels and less highly trained staff than emergency departments. This makes it a more efficient use of limited staff resources than keeping patients for longer stays in emergency." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-16

"Add paramedic positions within the public healthcare system." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Develop and support a Chronic Pain Management Strategy and Chronic Pain Management Clinic" — [With You. For You., 2023-03-24](With You. For You., 2023-03-24)

"Create a Portable Health Benefits Program to provide health, dental, and medication insurance for workers who may not be employed full-time, year-round, or those facing barriers to insurance coverage like seasonal workers, contract employees, and gig economy workers." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10

"Expand the Eye See...Eye Learn Program to provide children with two free eye exams and two free pairs of eyeglasses between birth and age 12" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Remove the age cap on continuous glucose monitoring devices and provide support based on household income levels" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Provide $250,000 to facilitate frontline workers — such as social workers, healthcare professionals, correctional workers, police officers and anyone who works with vulnerable Islanders — to take the Brain Story Certification training to better understand the connection between brain development to addiction and mental health" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Invest in a Charlottetown-based dedicated site to provide wrap-around services for vulnerable Islanders, including but not limited to Community Outreach Centre, supportive housing, housing that fosters independent living, harm reduction programs, social supports, training programs, etc." — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Healthcare services should be relevant to the communities receiving those services. Summerside has particularly acute challenges with addictions and would be well served by the provision of withdrawal management (detox) services close to home.

A new withdrawal management facility in Summerside will also help ease backlogs and shorten wait times at the existing provincial addictions facility in Mount Herbert. This would be an expansion in the overall provincial capacity, as such, we would not expect a corresponding reduction in capacity in the Mount Herbert facility or the planned mental health campus.

Cost estimate: approximately $10 million over three years." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-16

"Make sure the overdose prevention site in Charlottetown has all the resources needed to succeed, including consultation with the community and those accessing the service." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Increase the income threshold for KidSport funding to provide up to $600 per child to participate in sports and recreational activities for any household that earns under $80,000" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Increase the Fitness and Activity Tax Credit to $1,000 for registration or membership fees to artistic, cultural, recreational or physical activity programming" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Improve access to fitness activities, including by partnering with community gyms to deliver no or low-cost fitness programs for all ages. Collaborate with healthcare professionals to design programs." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Invest in recreation infrastructure like playgrounds, sports fields, and community gardens so that Islanders of all ages can stay active in their communities. It’s also important public washrooms are available at these facilities." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"Immediately implement management training for all management within Health PEI. This includes nurse managers, upper level management, and all other health managers. This training will focus on providing effective, psychologically safe, and respectful support for frontline staff and patients." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Within the first 90 days meet with healthcare union leaders to begin addressing the culture of silence in healthcare." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"Amend the Health Services Act to remove political interference from the operations and delivery of healthcare on PEI.

• Simplify the recruitment and hiring of healthcare professionals.

• Government will hold Health PEI accountable for providing excellent patient-centred care across PEI while providing the funding and support they need to succeed." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Develop a supply and demand planning model that provides 10-year projections on long-term care, community care, and senior’s housing needs" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Develop and implement subsidies and contractual payments that reflect the actual inflation and cost of living increases experienced by the sector" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Continue to work with the Long-term Care Associations to decrease the wage gap between public and private providers and to develop a long-term human resource strategy for community care and long-term care facilities" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Make legislative amendments to ensure that public and private community care facilities and long-term care facilities move toward common standards, including uniform inspections so that Islanders are safe and receive appropriate care and support" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Introduce additional resources, such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists and other allied health providers, into community care and long-term facilities to improve the quality of life for residents" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Respecting collective agreements, establish a fund to foster recruitment and retention specific to community care and long-term care facilities" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Create a capital loan program for community care and long-term care facilities to expand over the next five years" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Work with the federal, provincial and territorial governments to develop national care standards." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Provide online access to mental health and addictions services to be available for every Islander in need" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Expand access to mental health services through the use of psychologists as part of the PEI Health system on a fee-for-service basis" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Expand the number of mental health walk-in clinics and mobile mental health units to increase services to Islanders, including 24-7 coverage" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Establish a dedicated department of mental health and addictions with its own Minister, budget, and Deputy Minister to deliver enhanced services to Islanders" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Provide $250,000 to facilitate frontline workers — such as social workers, healthcare professionals, correctional workers, police officers and anyone who works with vulnerable Islanders — to take the Brain Story Certification training to better understand the connection between brain development to addiction and mental health" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"The PUCC was established during the pandemic and rapidly became an award-winning service. Shortly afterward it was shut down. A Green Government would reestablish the Charlottetown PUCC and open additional sites across PEI." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-16

"Implement mental health therapy through the PEI health card, allowing Islanders to choose the best services for their needs." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Improve accessibility of our province’s complicated and under-utilized e-health system." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"A Green Government will develop a perinatal mental health strategy to provide clear guidelines and protocols for the prevention, assessment, and treatment of perinatal mental health disorders." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-16

"Expedite access to publicly funded medications so Islanders get access to newly approved medications" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Create a Portable Health Benefits Program to provide health, dental, and medication insurance for workers who may not be employed full-time, year-round, or those facing barriers to insurance coverage like seasonal workers, contract employees, and gig economy workers." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10

"Continue to work with the federal government towards a PharmaCare program by adding more drugs to the formulary covered by the government" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Review the provincial pharmacare program to make sure Islanders are not overburdened by drug costs and dispensing fees." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-10

"A Green government would make an immediate investment of $18 million into provincial pharmacare programs to improve access and eliminate unnecessary fees. This would help close the gap between the Prince Edward Island and Canadian average per capita expenditures on pharmacare. Included in this commitment is free access to contraceptive care." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-21

"Expand funding for obesity treatment with an emphasis on childhood obesity and ensure PEI’s health system recognizes the condition as a chronic disease" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Double spending for health promotion grants to expand promotion activities to support Islanders" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Improve access to cancer screening and treatment with an emphasis on high-risk lung cancer and cervical cancer." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Explore opportunities to expand wastewater testing to new municipalities and to cover new viruses to inform the public health response to illness." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Expand the volume of walk-in clinics on an interim basis by incentivizing physicians to provide these services" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Adjust fee structure/compensation models, so that family medicine becomes a more attractive career choice"  — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Work with the PEI Medical Society, UPEI, and Holland College to develop a digital medical specialist program to help physicians with support to better manage administrative backlogs and inefficiencies" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Expand the range of health conditions for which Island pharmacists can diagnose and prescribe in keeping with their scope of practice that reflects what pharmacists can do in the rest of Canada" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"3. Allow pharmacists to deliver the PEI Smoking and Vaping Cessation Program to allow more Islanders to access these critically important services;

4. Allow pharmacists to deliver contraception management services on a fee-for-service basis to broaden the accessibility of these services for Island women;

5. Allow pharmacists to play a greater role in chronic disease management, including blood pressure and cholesterol diagnosis / treatment and diabetes management;

6. Allow pharmacists to serve as the primary location for vaccine services, including flu and Covid-booster vaccines" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Develop a funding model that encourages and supports pharmacy owners to play a greater role in primary care delivery as well as incentivizes pharmacists to deliver expanded services." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Provide physicians with access to funded digital health technology specialists to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of medical practices."

"Implement online systems and booking options to provide Islanders with real-time information on wait times at ERs, medical clinics, and other care settings to enhance access to non-urgent treatments" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Implement tools like Skip the Waiting Room across all areas of the healthcare system to reduce no-show appointments and provide patients with the ability to book their own appointments" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Implement a Virtual Hallway program to connect family physicians with specialists for consults to avoid unnecessary referrals to specialists." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10

"Modernize the medical fee structure so it is flexible enough to cover innovative arrangements for family physicians who want to provide access to primary care through walk-in clinics outside their existing patients" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Working with communities and non-profit organizations, provide operating grants to establish Access Clinic Exam Spaces for local pharmacists, physicians, nurse practitioners, and locum physicians to provide walk-in clinics for routine, non-urgent matters" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Amend the Medical Act to allow nurse practitioners to work more effectively in a collaborative practice or to manage nurse practitioner-led clinics. Both will allow nurse practitioners to take more patients off the patient registry." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Immediately fund one additional support staff for family physicians and nurse practitioners who request additional support. This may be in the form of a nurse, counsellor, medical administrator, admin support, etc., based on the needs of the practice." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Give all Islanders free access to virtual care services when they need them. Consult with physicians on how to best integrate virtual care into our healthcare system.." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Open more walk-in clinics, such as cough and fever, mobile blood work, and prescription renewal clinics." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Increase family physician residency spots from 5 to 10, supported by new state of the art training technology at UPEI. Physicians tend to stay where they do their residency." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Review family physician salaries and supports in consultation with the medical community to make PEI more competitive with other Canadian provinces." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Support family physicians to open medical homes or collaborative practices across PEI by providing them with the flexibility, support, and funding they need to succeed." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Continue creating patient medical homes and neighbourhoods, with priority placed on those serving in rural areas. These would include primary care, mental health services, chronic disease management, physiotherapy, and other complementary care." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Use a proven Electronic Medical Record system and work to integrate it with EMR systems in other Maritime provinces." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Establish health hubs where primary care teams provide services to individuals in their communities." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Increase our regional licensing system to include other healthcare professionals, similar to what the Atlantic provinces have done with the Atlantic Physician Registry" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Launch a comprehensive Medical Transportation Assistance Program to provide Islanders who have to travel out of province for medical treatment, tests or operations with financial assistance to cover accommodations and per diems for meals, in addition to existing programs to cover gas, bridge or ferry tolls" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Use a proven Electronic Medical Record system and work to integrate it with EMR systems in other Maritime provinces." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Increase nursing spaces in RN and LPN programs to address chronic nursing shortages, including a focus on training nurses in rural areas" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Review the Rural Physician Program to provide direct financial incentives to physicians who live and practice in under-serviced communities." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Create a Rural On-Call Program to provide remuneration to physicians providing emergency on-call services at eligible facilities in rural areas." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Boosting practicum and residency placements for medical students and graduates with experienced rural physicians." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Ensure the HomeFirst Homecare Program is focused on supporting the caregiver with system-wide health supports, including:

• Provincial needs assessment to determine level of care requirements;

• Inclusion in the Provincial Homecare program for monitoring and follow-up;

• Access to 911 and Island EMS paramedics mobile integrated health services for in-home care under the guise of an expanded Senior’s Check-In Program;

• Access to advanced first aid training for caregivers;

• Access to mental health supports and training for caregivers;" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Expanding funding under the Senior’s Home Repair Program to ensure more seniors have access to funding that allows them to remain in their homes longer" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Increase income thresholds for the Seniors Safe at Home program from $10,000 to $15,000" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Establishing a Care-in-Place program by working with home care, community care, and long-term care facilities to provide seniors living at home with enhanced social and health supports including telehealth services available from home, connecting residents with existing community services and programs, friendly check-in calls and in-person social visits, offering intergenerational programming with students, transportation to medical appointments, grocery shopping and social outings, and opening recreational programs available at long-term care facilities to seniors living in their own homes." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-09

"Increase income thresholds for the Seniors Home Repair program from $4,000 to $8,000" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Create a Primary Caregiver Grant of up to $1,500 a month to support families who choose to keep their loved ones at home longer instead of going to community care" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Expand homecare services to seniors and other Islanders in need to make sure they can age in place with access to appropriate supports and services.

• Adopt a wraparound approach for seniors. The application process must be simplified so Island seniors do not miss out on needed services.

• Increase resources for Seniors Navigator." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Strengthen the full-range complement of professional services in the publicly managed home care program – OT, physio, social work, personal support and home help." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Create a substantial Caregiver Tax Credit to provide real financial support to family caregivers." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

"Expand in public investments in 500 new, affordable seniors housing units that provide seniors with assisted living options." — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Doubling the Seniors Hearing Aid Rebate program to a maximum coverage of up to $6,000 instead of a maximum of $3,000 per individual" — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10

"Expand the Seniors Independence Initiative to provide up to $2,500 in assistance for individuals with a household income of up to $40,000 for a single person or $50,000 for a couple" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"● increase funding for public housing repairs and renovations;

● improve security and access to in-person maintenance support in public housing;

● improve access to food programs and technology; and

● review eligibility thresholds for seniors public housing." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-17

"Immediately make repairs to government-owned seniors housing and ensure that maintenance is always up to date." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-17

"The Seniors Food Program delivers reheatable meals, but this program is limited to the Georgetown and Cardigan areas. A Green government would expand this program to include all of Prince Edward Island." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-17

"A Green Government would establish an independent seniors’ advocate, an officer of the Legislative Assembly to support and advocate on behalf of seniors and persons with disabilities with respect to their rights and interests in relation to government policies and services. It is based in part on the model of the recently created Office of the Child and Youth Advocate, and the Child and Youth Advocate Act." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-17

"Allow pharmacists to prescribe contraceptives and order blood work for prescription renewals." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

"Working with the PEI Speech and Hearing Association, develop a 12-month action plan to add new Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists positions to the public system to address the current waitlist and population gaps in services" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Engage with RN and LPN Nursing organizations to develop a Nursing Sustainability Strategy with the nursing profession that is based on a 10-year workforce projection in order to define projected shortages and recruitment/retention/compensation challenges and solutions" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Address financial compensation so that nursing becomes a financially-rewarding career that attracts new entrants, retains our current nurses, and brings retired nurses back into active practice" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Increase student enrollment in expanded PEI nursing programs through a Team Nursing Scholarship program that covers the tuition costs for any nurse who returns to work in PEI’s healthcare system" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Establish inter-provincial labour mobility among nurses licensed to practice in other provinces to practice in PEI" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Establish a workplace where nursing workloads are based upon legislated nurse-to-patient ratios" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Launch an Associate Physician license to allow foreign-trained physicians expedited licensing to practice to a defined scope under the supervision of other fully licensed physicians" — peipc.ca, 2023-03-09

"Develop a recruitment and retention strategy for high vacancy positions, including lab technology, social work, psychology and therapists, by working with post-secondary partners in the region" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Immediately invest $37 million directly into wage increases and benefits for frontline healthcare staff at Health PEI. This includes all levels of nursing, medical lab technologists, radiation technologists, porters, cleaning staff, and all others who work on the frontline of patient care." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Amend legislation to allow Physician Assistants (PA) to work in healthcare on PEI. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia already allow PAs to work in their healthcare systems." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Implement regional bursaries to registered nurses to train to become nurse practitioners at UPEI. Target RNs currently living or working in underserved regions." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Offer employment to all Nurse Practitioner graduates of UPEI. Once the range of care is increased to allow nurse practitioners to work independently, immediately hire additional nurse practitioners to take on patient panels directly from the patient registry." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Work with the medical colleges to speed up and simplify the process for internationally trained health professionals.

Reduce fees that internationally trained health professionals must pay to practise on PEI." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Look for managers that can go back to the frontline to cover shifts. There are many healthcare professionals who move into administrative roles. These positions could be created with a requirement to continue working a minimum number of hours of clinical practice. This would likely be negotiated during hiring." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"The LPN to RN bridging program will help licensed practical nurses already in the health system upgrade their skills to those of a registered nurse. The program will be designed in consultation with key stakeholders such as healthcare unions, Health PEI, and post-secondary institutions." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"Currently any RN or LPN who does not identify English as their first language must complete an English language competency test to be registered on PEI. The cost of this test is $280 and is only administered in New Brunswick or Nova Scotia. Any student graduating from an RN or LPN program on PEI who requires this testing will have the test and associated travel costs covered by the province." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"Increase nursing spaces in RN and LPN programs to address chronic nursing shortages, including a focus on training nurses in rural areas" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Increase student enrollment in expanded PEI nursing programs through a Team Nursing Scholarship program that covers the tuition costs for any nurse who returns to work in PEI’s healthcare system" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Double scholarships/financial recruitment incentives to ensure Island students studying medicine in other provinces will find it attractive to return to PEI to practice" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Establish return-in-service agreements for Island students studying at a Canadian University where the PEI government has purchased seats and double the number of medical residency seats, including four new seats for students studying outside of Canada" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

"Work with communities and our post-secondary institutions to offer training programs for healthcare professionals in communities across the province, as our PC government has done for RCW training" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

"Develop a Healthcare Career Pathway Pilot in high schools allowing students to more easily transition from high school to health-based careers." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-20

"Implement regional bursaries to registered nurses to train to become nurse practitioners at UPEI. Target RNs currently living or working in underserved regions." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"Offer employment to all Nurse Practitioner graduates of UPEI. Once the range of care is increased to allow nurse practitioners to work independently, immediately hire additional nurse practitioners to take on patient panels directly from the patient registry." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-08

"The LPN to RN bridging program will help licensed practical nurses already in the health system upgrade their skills to those of a registered nurse. The program will be designed in consultation with key stakeholders such as healthcare unions, Health PEI, and post-secondary institutions." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13

"Boosting practicum and residency placements for medical students and graduates with experienced rural physicians." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09