Nova Scotia says it will offer free practical nursing education to some continuing care assistants working in long-term care.
The province, that has been dealing with a chronic shortage of health-care, staff said Tuesday it will pay for 25 continuing care assistants to complete a practical nursing diploma at Nova Scotia Community College.
Continuing care assistants that have worked in a nursing home or in home care for at least two years will be eligible for the provincially-funded education — so long as they sign a contract to keep working full-time in Nova Scotia’s continuing care sector for at least two years after graduation.
“We've heard from CCAs (continuing care assistants) that they are looking for opportunities to advance their careers and we are happy to support them in their journey," Barbara Adams, minister of seniors and long-term care, said in a statement.
Adams said the program, which is a first in Nova Scotia, will help reduce financial barriers to professional development and will “help in our efforts to make continuing care a career path of choice in Nova Scotia."
The practical nursing program is two and a half years long and the first class is set to start in January. Students are expected to take classes online and complete in-person labs at the college’s Truro campus.
Those who graduate from this program will be eligible to write the licensed practical exam.
"I'm so pleased the college and government have been able to collaborate and use the existing pathway to support this blended practical nursing program,” Don Bureaux, president of Nova Scotia Community College said in a statement.
“This opens another door for our hard-working CCAs working in continuing care — offering an important opportunity to work and learn if they want to train to become a licensed practical nurse."
In February, a government official told Nova Scotia’s standing committee on health that there was a “significant deficit” of long-term care staff, which led to the province paying $45 million over 18 months to travel nurses to fill gaps in long-term care.
“Travel nurses have absolutely been a necessity while we ensure that we’ve got beds open in the nursing homes in the province so that people who are waiting at home can get into a facility,” said Tracey Barbrick, associate deputy minister of the Department of Seniors and Long-Term Care, during in a Feb. 14, 2023 meeting.
