Founder & Registered Nurse
Meet Tracy Saldivia-Odar-RN, Community Home Healthcare Registered Nurse
Tracy is a dedicated Registered Nurse and community healthcare advocate committed to transforming the landscape of home care in Ottawa through professional respect, fair wages for Ottawa nurses and billing transparency to the clients to ensure better care and affordability.
Tracy Saldivia-Odar, RN | Founder
A Story Rooted in Care
NurseFirst Home Healthcare was born from a simple observation: the heartbeat of healthcare is the nurse-patient relationship.
During her time with the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) as Communications Network Officer and Social Media Network Officer, Tracy gained a broader perspective on Ontario’s healthcare system and the policies that shape it. Combining her nursing and business experience and her time with RNAO provided a unique view of the systemic challenges affecting healthcare delivery, revealing gaps that often place significant pressure on both frontline nurses and the families who rely on their care.
Seeing the growing strain on dedicated healthcare professionals and the impact these challenges can have on patient outcomes inspired Tracy to create a different kind of home healthcare experience. NurseFirst Home Healthcare was founded on the principles of trust, compassion, continuity of care, and strong nurse-patient relationships, with a commitment to fair nursing wages and transparent billing practices that put both caregivers and families first.
She envisioned a model where nurses aren't just staff, but respected partners. By ensuring fair nursing wages equal to hospital nurses, fair treatment and professional autonomy, we create an environment where compassion and nursing work isn't rushed or pushed for corporate profit gain. When a nurse feels truly valued that warmth and expertise directly translates into better, safer, and more dignified care for your loved ones.
Our Core Values
Fair Nursing Wages in Ottawa
Ottawa community home healthcare nurses earn 30–40% less than their hospital counterparts despite providing equally essential healthcare services. Despite Ottawa nurses advocating politically for wage changes for over 50 years, Ottawa corporate home healthcare companies continue to pay low wages to ottawa nurses because they are protected by business laws that allows them to.
Safe Working Conditions
Every healthcare professional deserves a safe, respectful environment to perform their essential work.
Equal Treatment
We promote equality and opportunity for all staff, ensuring dignity is at the heart of our agency.
Professional Autonomy
Nurses and the healthcare team make professional clinical decisions based on the best interests of the client, not on directives from corporate individuals who are focused on profits and overcharging the healthcare system.
Transparency
Large corporate home healthcare providers are often not transparent about their billing practices with nurses or their clients. At NurseFirst Home Healthcare, we are clear about how every dollar is allocated so nurses are treated fairly and clients know their care is built on honesty.
Respect
A workplace culture built on mutual respect between nurses, patients, and the community.