The RTSO is seeking an RTSO member to join the
Board of Directors as Communications Director.

Deadline to apply: January 22, 2021
Joint Statement from the
OHA, OMA, RNAO, RPNAO and the RTSO
As New Modelling Confirms ICU Cases Climbing Toward Devastating Levels, Health Organizations Re-issue Plea for Tougher Government Restrictions and Help from each Ontarian
ATTENTION
Action required by all RRT’s
in Ontario!
Members and Non-members
The RTSO is lobbying and working behind the scenes to improve your ability to use ultrasound equipment when performing procedures to improve patient care. We have been working with a government relations firm Stosic & Associates and we are now reaching out to you for some help. Simply download and copy/paste the templated letter into an email and send it to your MPP. We have also included instructions on how to find your MPP.
The more RT’s across Ontario that send this letter the more support we will have moving forward with changing the authorization of the use of ultrasound.
Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) Integrated Role Profile in Ontario
The RTSO has created a document with the help of many RT’s across the province to assist organizations who employ or intend to employ RT’s with a description of a broad, inclusive role working in a variety of practice settings across the continuum of care, demonstrating our specialized expertise in all sectors of healthcare.
Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the document and use it as a reference and share broadly with other stakeholders.
AAs Excluded from
Pandemic Pay
Doug Ford recognized many healthcare workers in his pandemic pay initiative. However, he forgot key players that were in hospitals every single day and in direct contact with COVID patients throughout the pandemic.
These forgotten healthcare workers have fought for recognition of their services during this pandemic and for entitlement to pandemic pay. They include Anesthesia Assistants, Perfusionists, Medical Radiation Technologists, Diagnostic Medical Sonographers, Medical Lab Technicians, Registered Dieticians, and Physiotherapists. This list is not exhaustive.
Imagine you’re a very sick COVID patient entering a hospital. An Anesthesia Assistant helps anesthetize you and place your breathing tube. The progression of COVID’s effect on your lungs/body is tracked by images taken by radiation technologists/other medical imaging staff; they will take multiple images/scans during your hospitalization to help guide treatment. Blood work and labs are collected and analyzed by medical lab technicians. Your condition worsens and you require extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) – the most intense form of life support – a perfusionist will be managing that machine and keeping you alive until the machine is no longer necessary. Perfusionists see the sickest COVID patients every single day. Your body is continually growing weaker as it is fighting COVID, physiotherapists ensure your body stays strong while registered dieticians manage your diet to optimize your body for recovery. Diagnosis, treatment, recovery, and rehab are a team effort.
All these individuals were left off the list of being eligible for pandemic pay despite having direct contact with COVID patients. If painters, plasterers, locksmiths, carpenters, truck drivers, electricians, and other hospital staff who did not directly contact COVID patients qualified, WHY DIDN’T WE?
Please help us appeal to Doug Ford to remedy this situation.
If your profession was also excluded from Ford’s pandemic pay program in Ontario, please email me at fairpandemicpay@gmail.com.
Please sign the Pandemic Pay for Ontario’s Forgotten Healthcare Workers Petition
Occupational Stress Injury (OSI) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Respiratory Therapists (RTs)
It is imperative to have services and supports in place to keep RTs protected, mentally fit and healthy to ensure we can carry on our important and heavily replied upon expert services in this very intense and stressful role…for the good of each one of us and the patients we serve.
Respiratory therapists (RTs) work as essential members of rapid response, various code, disaster, radiation and other emergency response teams.