December 15, 2021
Province to Invest $19.5 Million to Increase Nurse Training Seats at Post-Secondary Institutions Across Manitoba
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The Manitoba government is investing $19.5 million to add 259 nurse training seats starting this year at five post-secondary institutions across the province as part of its multi-year plan to add close to 400 seats, Premier Heather Stefanson, Advanced Education, Skills and Immigration Minister Wayne Ewasko and Health and Seniors Care Minister Audrey Gordon announced today.
“I want to recognize and commend the incredible contribution of nurses working in our hospitals, personal care homes and community home-care services across our province,” said Stefanson. “We know this pandemic has put an enormous strain on our nurses and our health-care system. Our government is keen to work closely and collaboratively with our post-secondary institutions to expand nursing education seats across the province to ensure Manitoba has a strong nursing workforce now and well into the future.”
There are currently more than 800 nursing seats in Manitoba offered at six publicly funded post-secondary institutions across the province. The expansion of 259 seats is scheduled to begin this year, with each post-secondary institution to finalize specific details. The proposal includes:
- an additional 15 combined bachelor of nursing and licensed practical nursing seats at Université de Saint-Boniface (USB);
- an additional 55 licensed practical nursing seats through Assiniboine Community College in Portage la Prairie and rural rotating sites;
- an additional 32 registered nursing and registered psychiatric nursing seats at Brandon University in Brandon; and
- an additional 120 registered nursing seats at the University of Manitoba.
The premier noted the government is also investing in 37 additional nursing seats at University College of the North, announced yesterday.
“I want to thank our post-secondary institutions for working collaboratively with us to make this expansion possible, as it will ensure educational opportunities are available to support the labour needs of our health-care system,” said Ewasko. “This investment also supports the implementation of our Skills, Talent and Knowledge Strategy by ensuring people have more access to post-secondary education and aligning education and training opportunities to Manitoba’s labour market needs.”
The funding will support the expansion by enabling sites to invest in areas such as equipment, classroom renovations and instructors to support the additional seats. Ewasko said additional seats would also be discussed with all post-secondary institutions currently offering licensed practical nurse and registered nurse programs including RRC Polytech.
“Université de Saint-Boniface is delighted to receive confirmation that it will be receiving over one million dollars in recurrent funding from the nursing program expansion,” said Dr. Sophie Bouffard, president, Université de Saint-Boniface. “This investment will allow us to increase program seats by 30 per cent in our bachelor of nursing program and by 50 per cent in our practical nursing diploma program. This new source of financial support will strengthen USB’s ability to produce a greater number of top-quality bilingual graduates that are highly trained to meet the health needs of Manitoba’s general population in addition to those of Manitoba’s Francophone communities – a unique and significant response to the shortage of registered and practical nurses in the province which the Government of Manitoba aims to combat.”
Gordon said the announcement builds on the province’s commitment to create close to 400 new seats over the next several years, as well as other initiatives to support nurses in Manitoba.
“We know additional seats are required to ensure we support the labour needs of our health care system, and the addition of these seats builds on other commitments to address the nursing shortage in Manitoba,” said Gordon. “This includes recent incentives to increase intensive care unit nurse capacity, supporting internationally educated nurse applicants to begin practising in Manitoba, introducing the province’s first undergraduate nursing employee program and adding 60 new full-time nursing positions to ICUs at Grace, St. Boniface and Health Sciences Centre hospitals in Winnipeg and in Brandon.”
The premier noted the provincial government will continue to work with post-secondary institutions to identify additional opportunities and funding requirements to add additional nursing seats.
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