Toronto ProRN was founded by JoAnne Andrea Gomez, RN, a Registered Nurse with 27+ years of clinical experience, including 12+ years in the Trauma-Neuro ICU at St. Michael's Hospital and earlier years in the Medical-Surgical ICU at Toronto Western Hospital / UHN. She holds a Critical Care Nursing Certificate from Humber College, a nursing diploma from George Brown College, and a dual Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and English from the University of Nebraska. She's also a published author of two books available on Amazon: Burnout to Balance: Your 8-Step Guide to Thriving in a Messy Workplace and Stronger Than You Think: A Guide for Teens Overcoming Anxiety and Childhood Trauma. She writes regularly about healthcare and nursing at medium.com/@msjag416.
When a loved one gets discharged from ICU with a tracheostomy, a ventilator, or complex medication needs, families assume Personal Support Workers can handle it. They can't. PSWs aren't trained to troubleshoot ventilator alarms, manage invasive airways, or interpret the subtle signs that oxygen saturation is dropping before the monitor catches it. That's when families panic and end up back in the emergency room at 2 AM because they don't know if the high-pressure alarm means the trach is plugged or if Dad just coughed.
We fill that gap with Registered Nurses who've worked in critical care units across Canada. These aren't new grads learning on your loved one. They're experienced ICU nurses who know what a normal chest rise looks like on mechanical ventilation, who can suction a trach without causing a vasovagal response, and who understand when it's safe to wean oxygen versus when you need to call respiratory therapy. They've managed patients on BiPAP, CPAP, invasive ventilation, and high-flow nasal cannula. They know the difference between position-dependent desaturation and true respiratory distress.
For families managing long-term ventilation, post-ICU recovery, complex wound care, IV antibiotic therapy, palliative care at home, or chronic disease management, you need someone who speaks the same language as your respirologist, your oncologist, or your discharge planner. We translate the medical terminology into decisions you can make with confidence. We also work with ALS patients, spinal cord injuries, and anyone requiring complex continuing care at home who can't afford to have an amateur managing their clinical needs.
Important: Toronto ProRN is a private-pay service only. Families pay privately, out of pocket, for our services. OHIP does not cover private duty nursing. We do not bill or accept insurance. We encourage all clients to verify nursing credentials through the official CNO Registry. Every nurse we refer is licensed and authorized to practice in Ontario without restrictions. You're not just hiring a warm body with a certificate. You're hiring someone who can keep your loved one safe when everything goes wrong at 3 AM.
