ELECTION TOOLKIT - CONTACT YOUR MPP

Find your Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP)

Find your riding/electoral district by visiting the Elections Ontario website and searching via your Postal Code.
Scroll down to "Member of Provincial Parliament" - the name of your MPP will appear as a link below.
Click the name of your MPP - this links to their Legislative Assembly of Ontario page which includes contact info.

Send a Letter

Using the message below as a template, write to your MPP. The Legislative Assembly of Ontario page has both their email and mailing addresses, so decide what will be best for you:

Letter vs. Email: If you are sending a letter, include the date and address information. If you are sending an email, just begin "Dear Ms./Mr./Minister [NAME]"

Personalize: Your MPP wants to get to know the interests of their constituents and is more likely to read a personalized communication carefully than something they think they've already seen. Use a template to start your letter and add details about how this issue impacts you and your community.

Let us know: Please include mlpao@mlpao.org in CC so we can follow up on your email.

Template Letters

Medical Laboratory Professional
Dear Candidate,

My name is [NAME] and I live in [NAME OF RIDING]. I work as a [NAME OF YOUR ROLE] at [NAME OF YOUR WORKPLACE].

Ontario’s laboratories are experiencing a critical shortage of medical laboratory technologists (MLTs). 70% of labs entered COVID-19 short-staffed. Now, 90 % of medical laboratory professionals are experiencing burnout with 73% actively desiring to leave the profession.

Medical laboratories impact all aspects of patient care, from emergency rooms to family medicine to mental health. According to the CDC, 70% of medical decisions rely on laboratory results. We are an essential and unseen part of the healthcare system.

We urgently require investment to retain existing staff and train new staff before mass exodus. If you get elected, do you and your party commit to:

Develop a retention pay strategy for medical laboratory professionals.
Allocate funding for clinical placements to help address the labour shortages.
Extend the Skills Development Fund (SDF) timeline from 1 year to 18-24 months.
Support laboratory services in rural and remote communities.
Enhance bridging and upskilling for medical laboratory professionals.

We have seen 30+ announcements from the Ministry of Health to support new beds and hospitals. This investment in healthcare is hopeful, but beds are just beds unless they have adequate staffing. We need equal investment in all areas that impact patient care, particularly the lab. We can't grow healthcare unless we grow together.

Working short-staffed is impacting us in the lab—we are exhausted and afraid of turnaround time delays, lengthening hospital stays, and re-scheduled appointments could affect quality of care. Investing in laboratories could avert $1.6 billion annually and improve the health of all Ontarians.

Although you might not see us, lab IS essential. Will you support medical laboratory professionals like me at Queen’s Park?

Sincerely,
NAME
ADDRESS
EMAIL
PHONE

Healthcare Stakeholder (Hospitals and Laboratories)
Dear Candidate,

[NAME OF YOUR WORKPLACE] serves the communities of [NAME CATCHEMENT AREA/CITIES] with XXX beds. XXXXX patients annually receive care here, and our medical laboratory processes and analyzes XXX tests annually.

We are experiencing a very critical shortage of medical laboratory technologists (MLTs). [SHARE A BIT ABOUT THE SHORTAGE SITUATION IN YOUR LAB AND TURNAROUND TIMES].

70% of labs entered COVID-19 short-staffed. Now, after 2+ years of the pandemic, 90% of medical laboratory professionals are experiencing burnout with 73% actively desiring to leave the profession. 41% will be eligible to retire in 2-4 years, with not enough candidates to replace them.

Investment in a few key areas will help retain existing staff and train new staff. If you get elected, do you and your party commit to:

Develop a retention pay strategy for medical laboratory professionals.
Allocate funding for clinical placements to help address the labour shortages.
Extend the Skills Development Fund (SDF) timeline from 1 year to 18-24 months.
Support laboratory services in rural and remote communities.
Enhance bridging and upskilling for medical laboratory professionals.

Investing in laboratories could avert $1.6 billion annually in lengthening hospital stays, duplicate family practice appointments, and delayed turnaround times for tests.

Lab IS essential—will you support Ontario’s medical laboratories at Queen’s Park?

Sincerely,
NAME
ADDRESS
EMAIL
PHONE

Supporter
Dear Candidate,

My name is [NAME] and I live in [NAME OF RIDING]. I am a patient at [NAME OF YOUR HOSPITAL OR LABORATORY]. [SHARE A BIT ABOUT HOW LABORATORY SERVICES HAVE HELPED YOU]

Medical laboratories impact all aspects of patient care, from emergency rooms to family medicine to mental health. According to the CDC, 70% of medical decisions rely on laboratory results. Laboratories are an essential and unseen part of the healthcare system.

We urgently require investment in laboratories before mass exodus. If you get elected, do you and your party commit to:

Develop a retention pay strategy for medical laboratory professionals.
Allocate funding for clinical placements to help address the labour shortages.
Extend the Skills Development Fund (SDF) timeline from 1 year to 18-24 months.
Support laboratory services in rural and remote communities.
Enhance bridging and upskilling for medical laboratory professionals.

Investing in laboratories could avert $1.6 billion annually in lengthening hospital stays, duplicate family practice appointments, and delayed turnaround times for tests.

Lab IS essential—will you support Ontario’s medical laboratories at Queen’s Park?

Sincerely,
NAME
ADDRESS
EMAIL
PHONE

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MLP

Stakeholder

Supporter