Ontario Hospitals – Leaders in Efficiency

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On behalf of Ontario hospitals, the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) has released the second edition of: Ontario Hospitals – Leaders in Efficiency.

The report offers a wider-lens view of the hospital sector's past and present state and highlights key evidence that validates the unquestionable efficiency of Ontario hospitals.​ If Ontario funded hospitals at the average rate per capita for all other provinces, it would cost the province an additional $3.7 billion. This Ontario hospital efficiency dividend frees up resources for the province to spend on other health and non-health sector priorities.

Ontario hospitals are fiscally responsible and have always strived to maintain access to high-quality care in the communities they serve. However, hospitals have streamlined their financially lean operations and are straining the limits of what is possible with current resources. While efficiency is one important goal, it is not an end in itself. What is of utmost importance is ensuring the continued delivery of high-quality care. Now, the hospital sector is clearly showing signs of strain – largely due to multiple years of funding restraint, the lack of system-wide capacity planning, significant demographic growth and a shortage of capacity in other health sectors.

Given the extraordinary gains in efficiency made by Ontario hospitals, the expectation that more can be harvested simply isn't realistic, particularly with increasing demand for services. Keeping hospitals financially stable, adding beds and increasing staffing support will help, but what is most needed to address the system's capacity and financial challenges is investment in research and innovation to change the way hospitals work.​