Canada is facing an unprecedented shortage of health care professionals, including occupational therapy professionals and other extended health care providers. The health workforce crisis has been growing for decades, but the COVID-19 pandemic turned it into a crisis. CAOT is taking action to support OTs and OTAs across Canada by partnering with national organizations, meeting with government representatives, highlighting this issue at our 2023 Conference, and creating new ways to collect OT-related information, such as the factors impacting OT vacancies.


red arrow button		  HHR Professional Issues Forum (PIF) Report 


CAOT Health Workforce Priorities

Government Engagement 

CAOT continues to meet with Members of Parliament and their staff to share the value proposition of OT and to provide updates related to the OT HHR crisis across Canada. In 2022, CAOT participated in over 20 meetings.

CAOT was invited to appear before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health (HESA) on March 28th, 2022, to share the perspective of the occupational therapy workforce in Canada. CAOT focused on presenting workforce issues and challenges, including the current lack of supply of occupational therapists to meet the demand for services and the importance of universal access to OT services. 

Stakeholder Engagement

In 2022, CAOT attended various stakeholder engagement sessions hosted by the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS) to provide input on their assessment of the current state of Health Human Resources (HHR). The sessions provided the opportunity to highlight and voice the OT workforce needs across Canada. 

Provincial/Territorial Engagement

CAOT’s Regional Chapters

Quebec

  • Quebec does not train or hire occupational therapist assistants (OTAs). OTs are currently permitted to assign tasks to non-occupational therapy staff in the provision of OT services.
  • Quebec is currently facing a workforce labour shortage that affects most sectors, including health care, and regions.
Saskatchewan
  • July 2022 - CAOT met with senior staff of the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) to discuss the role and value proposition of occupational therapy in mental health and the importance of recognizing OTs for their full scope of practice.
  • January 2023 - The Saskatchewan government said it will invest $5.5 million to help create spaces for 550 new students across 18 health-care training programs – including OT seats in other provinces. CAOT-SK will continue to advocate for an OT program to meet the health care needs of the province.

British Columbia

  • Workplace shortages are limiting access to needed OT services within BC. CAOT-BC will continue to support efforts to advocate for additional seats at BC OT programs to meet the health care needs within the province.
  • CAOT-BC continues to advocate for adequate funding for OT positions in key health areas in the province e.g., primary care, mental health and substance use. 
North
  • Significant challenges exist regarding hiring and retaining for positions in remote communities.
  • CAOT-North continues to provide support to OTs living and working in the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

Occupational therapy workforce data are collected by the ten provincial regulators in Canada and by CAOT for occupational therapists living in the territories (Northwest Territories, the Yukon, and Nunavut) and is shared with the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI).

CIHI is an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides information on Canada's health system and the health of Canadians and gathers health data for dozens of professions. It is important to note that areas of practice are defined differently by CIHI (approximately 30) compared to CAOT (approximately 60), as CIHI clusters data from multiple health professions and utilizes more generic categories. This clarification of areas of practice suggests that current occupational therapy data collections sources may not provide an accurate picture and representation of the occupational therapy workforce across Canada. As a result, there is a need for a coordinated strengthening of occupational therapy data collection and workforce research across Canada. 

In addition, while CAOT collects and provides data to CIHI related to CAOT North members, CAOT does not have full access to occupational therapy data across Canada.

 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is able to do tasks that demand human intelligence, including visual perception, decision making, language and speech recognition, and translation between languages. In the midst of health workforce shortages, AI is one tool that OTs can use to support their practice by maximizing the use of resources, while supporting client outcomes. For example, AI can assist OTs with administrative tasks such as documentation, and with assessment and monitoring by identifying patterns and trends using numerous data sources (e.g., data from wearable devices and clients’ records). AI can assist therapists throughout the process of occupational participation, alleviating some of the load that OTs are carrying as a result of the health workforce crisis.

For more information about how OTs can integrate AI in their practice, please click here.

 


2022: 20,690 OTs licensed to practice in Canada, an increase of 3.1% compared with 2021.

HHR map of Canada

Occupational Therapy Resources

      CIHI Occupational Therapy Data  

      Health Workforce Resources

    Healthcare Worker Resilience Resources

    CAOT is working and partnering with various organizations on a national level to work towards addressing the current heath workforce shortages. 

    HEAL is a coalition of 40 national health organizations (including CAOT) dedicated to improving the health of Canadians and the quality of care they receive. The members are professional associations of regulated health care providers and organizations of health charities that provide a range of health care services across Canada.

     HEAL’s priorities align well with CAOT’s priorities including: the HHR crisis and potential solutions; investments in primary care through interdisciplinary primary care teams (including OTs) that support seniors to live at home and in communities; mental health issues; the need for increasing Federal health transfers; and other much-needed transformations to Canada’s health care system. 

    CAOT is a current member of the EHPC. EHPC aims to improve the health and welfare of all Canadians; promote excellence and innovation in health research and practice and promote the advancement, development, dissemination, and application of knowledge that advances health, social services and well-being for Canadians.

    The network’s mission is to be the Canadian source of health workforce information making it accessible and useful in support of better health system decision-making.

    The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) is an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing essential health information to all Canadians. CIHI works closely with federal, provincial and territorial partners and stakeholders throughout Canada to gather, package and disseminate information to inform policy, management, care and research, leading to better and more equitable health outcomes for all Canadians.

    The coalition will inform immediate and longer-term solutions to address significant health workforce challenges, so that all Canadians can access the quality care they need and deserve. The Coalition will be comprised of representatives from key groups, including nurses, doctors, PSWs, unions, colleges and universities, public health, patients, Indigenous Peoples, and equity-deserving communities. 

    Virtual care has become a means to equity and accessibility to OT services. Many occupational therapists in Canada are working in an interjurisdictional capacity – either as consultants, advisors, in leadership roles, for national organizations, and with direct clinical practice. COVID-19 expanded the concept and opportunities, however, very few resources exist to support OTs.

    • Kalef & Steward. (2021). Providing virtual occupational therapy in Canada: Occupational therapists’ experiences with multi-provincial licensing. OT Now, 23(4), 15-18.   
    • ACOTRO Labour Mobility Support Agreement 
    red arrow button CAOT Career Listings
    red arrow button CAOT Advocacy & Communication Tool
    red arrow button Occupational Therapist Assistants (OTAs)

    Contact Us

    If you would like to share ideas regarding occupational therapy and the health workforce or if you have suggested resources to add to this page, please contact advocacy@caot.ca.