Purchased hours in inpatient units in Canadian hospitals 2017/18-2021/22
In 2021-2022, during the COVID pandemic, 1.5 million hours were purchased by Canadian hospitals for additional non-physician inpatient unit staff from agencies. While agency nurses and other health professionals account for just a small percentage of total inpatient unit staff in hospitals, the volume of purchased hours increased by 80 percent compared to 2020-2021.