
Alberta to create well being care scholar areas with $200M, 3-year spend
“In the present day had been’e investing in the way forward for every citizen within the province and shifting in the direction of making our imaginative and prescient of equitable entry to well being care a actuality,” says U of A medical faculty dean.

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Alberta’s UCP authorities is trumpeting its plan to spend virtually $200 million over three years to coach 1000’s of recent well being care professionals.
Superior Schooling Minister Demetrios Nicolaides stated Monday on the College of Alberta in Edmonton the enlargement plan places near $20 million in the direction of including 120 new doctor seats on the College of Calgary and the College of Alberta, representing a few 34 per cent enhance by 2025.
Funds 2023 contains $72 million to create greater than 3,400 new seats in post-secondary well being care packages, and $113 million from Alberta Well being so as to add 100 residency coaching areas for newly graduated docs over three years.
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Talking with Postmedia earlier Monday, Nicolaides stated the province’s post-secondaries are sometimes turning away certified candidates.
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“We’ve college students proper right here at dwelling who wish to pursue a profession as a health care provider, as a nurse, however areas may be restricted, and naturally, having extra of us be a part of our health-care workforce and our health-care system helps to create a stronger system,” he stated.
The federal government estimates that there have been greater than 3,500 certified candidates who didn’t get accepted into well being care coaching packages within the final yr alone.
Nicolaides instructed Postmedia the operational funding may also assist rent instructors, and that proposals from the College of Alberta and the College of Calgary to develop doctor areas by 58 per cent over 10 years led to Monday’s announcement.
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Well being Minister Jason Copping stated the province added 254 physicians and 800 registered nurses, licensed sensible nurses and well being care aides in 2022.
“This enlargement of the coaching program ensures that med faculty graduates have the residency alternatives wanted to have the ability to absolutely follow,” he stated.
After cuts to varsities’ working grants through the UCP’s first three budgets, Nicolaides stated the brand new funding comes partly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic created health-care staffing shortages in Canada and world wide.
“That’s a part of the rationale why we started conversations with the U of A, the U of C, and others about how will we prepare extra docs? What’s wanted from the federal government? How can we ship on this?”
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Nicolaides additionally pointed to the federal government’s focused enrolment enlargement program, which places $111 million over three years in the direction of creating faculty house in areas with the best scholar demand, together with non-trade development, vitality, expertise, and enterprise.
Increase will assist develop care in rural and Indigenous communities
Dr. Brenda Hemmelgarn, dean of the college of medication and dentistry on the College of Alberta stated on the authorities announcement the funding will assist develop well being care availability, particularly in rural and Indigenous communities.
“In the present day we’re investing in the way forward for every citizen within the province and shifting in the direction of making our imaginative and prescient of equitable entry to well being care a actuality,” stated Hemmelgarn.
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Dr. Todd Anderson, dean of the Cumming College of Medication on the College of Calgary, stated he’s assured the funding will allow medical colleges to recruit the lecturers it might want to meet demand.
NDP Opposition well being critic David Shepherd stated Monday the extra funding for medical colleges is vital, however the UCP has already made practising drugs in Alberta far much less steady and predictable, with residency positions nonetheless going unfilled.
“Alberta requires extra than simply new funding to encourage individuals to work in well being care — we’d like a brand new authorities,” he stated in a press release.
Earlier than releasing its price range final month, the federal government introduced an expanded bursary for internationally skilled nurses and further classroom seats for current nursing bridging and licensing packages. It’s placing $15 million in the direction of creating new packages so as to add 900 new scholar areas for internationally educated nurses.
The UCP just lately introduced it’s going to spend $1 million exploring potential regional medical coaching centres in Lethbridge and Grande Prairie.
The federal government estimates that final yr’s price range helped create 2,500 new well being care program seats with $26 million.
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