Hundreds of nurse practitioners from across Canada gather in Halifax

Hundreds of nurse practitioners have gathered in Halifax for a conference.

Hundreds of nurse practitioners from across Canada are gathering in Halifax for the National Nurse Practitioner Conference.

The third annual event, put on by the Nurse Practitioner Association of Canada (NPAC), brings together nurse practitioners for the chance to learn, share, and grow.

“Not only is it an opportunity for professional development and continuing competency, but it’s an opportunity for nurse practitioners to gather from across the country, to share what’s happening in their own jurisdictions, but also to come together as professionals who understand who we are and the work that we do,” said NPAC president Ellen Christie.

For the first time, the conference is being held in Halifax.

“We have approximately 450 nurse practitioners present coming from Nova Scotia, but then I think we have representation from all the provinces and the territories as well,” said Christie.

It’s one of the fastest-growing health professions in the country, at a time when there is so much strain on the system.

“Certainly, primary care has been a big focus because we know that there are some six million Canadians without a primary care provider, but we also see nurse practitioners really very much integrated into acute care and specialty practice settings,” said NPAC CEO Stan Marchuk.

One of the big topics being discussed this year: AI in health care.

“We want to know how do you implement that safely? So, we look at being able to have an AI scribe when you’re taking a patient history. What kind of real technology should we be using? What is considered vetted and what is safe? What is costly and not going to be putting an extra burden onto patients and their families?” said conference director Nancy Clark.

Of the hundreds in attendance, there were both veteran nurse practitioners as well as those just starting out.

“I’ll be graduating on May 12 from the UPEI nurse practitioner program,” said Danielle MacKinnon.

MacKinnon already had a background in health care – previously working as a NICU care nurse and most recently as the coordinator at the Asthma Education Centre in Charlottetown – but she wanted to go down the nurse practitioner path.

“There was just a big gap in access to primary care,” she said. MacKinnon is looking forward to taking the knowledge she learned at the conference and bringing it to her new career.

“I think it’s super important to connect with your colleagues and those in your profession, and really learn how nurse practitioners are changing health care across the country and look for ideas on how to collaborate together, and what’s happening in different parts of the country and what can we adopt and bring to our side of the country,” she said.

The conference continues Saturday.

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