$3.4 million Approved for More Nursing Seats
Two-hundred and twenty-six more nurses will be trained in Nova Scotia this year with the approval of $3.4 million for university and community college nursing seats.
"We recognize the human resource challenges that we face in the coming years as a result of predicted retirements of nurses and the opening of 832 long-term care beds by 2010 through the Continuing Care Strategy," said Health Minister Chris d'Entremont. "We also know that overtime and work-life balance are issues for many nurses.
"This investment, combined with significant efforts in retention and recruitment and a new collaborative care model for the health system, will bring us closer to addressing those needs, bettering the work environment for nurses, and improving access to quality health care for all Nova Scotians."
The provincial budget included the funding for 46 baccalaureate nursing seats at universities and 180 practical nursing seats at the Nova Scotia Community College.
"It is very encouraging to hear about this increase in nursing seats," says Janet Hazelton, president of the Nova Scotia Nurses' Union. "Acquiring more nurses in the system will be of great benefit to all. Nurses will be allotted the relief they require to do their jobs well and patients will be provided with the best of care."
There will be 16 more seats in the Bachelor of Nursing program at Cape Breton University in Sydney 25 at Dalhousie University in Halifax, and five at Dalhousie's Yarmouth campus.
Nova Scotia Community College will receive funding to create seats for 30 more students at each of the following campuses: Truro, Cumberland in Springhill, Kingstec in Kentville, Burridge in Yarmouth, and Pictou in Stellarton. There will also be funding for 15 more students at the Waterfront Campus in Dartmouth and Marconi Campus in Sydney.
About $350,000 in additional funding has been provided to Dalhousie's Halifax and Yarmouth campuses, and to Cape Breton University for enhancements to labs and facilities to accommodate additional students.
The nursing program at Cape Breton University was joint with St. Francis Xavier University until this year, and is now an independent program. St. FX's nursing program is operating at full capacity after an increase of 75 seats between 1995 and 2003.
The $3.4-million investment brings the province's total annual budget for nursing seats to $11.4 million. Training of the 226 nurses will begin September.
The collaborative care model is the result of the Model of Care Initiative in Nova Scotia. It is a joint project of the district health authorities, IWK and Department of Health to design a more patient-centred, collaborative approach to delivering care. It was a recommendation of the Provincial Health Services Operational Review accepted earlier this year.