Graduating nurses guaranteed jobs
The provincial government has taken all the legwork out of job searching for nursing students, by promising all new graduates full-time employment in Ontario.
Last month Ontario's Health Minister, George Smitherman, said the 4,000 nurses who are expected to enter the workforce next year will be guaranteed full-time positions in the hospital, long-term care, home care, public health, and primary care sectors.
“This is a boost for nursing and recognizes the importance of fulltime jobs for nurses,” said Dr Sandy DeLuca, Chair of the nursing division at Fanshawe.
Dr Deluca said between 100-107 Fanshawe nursing students are expected to graduate next spring and will benefit from the $30 million initiative.
The government also promised $1 million towards tuition for nursing students interested in practicing in rural, remote or under-serviced areas of the province, which are in desperate need for medical professionals.
“There is a lot of money available for graduates working in rural areas,” Dr Deluca said.
“If we want to have a sufficient number of nurses to meet the needs of patients, we must continue to implement new approaches to attract and retain new graduates as well as provide a positive work environment for existing staff,” said Tom Closson, head of HealthForceOntario, a new government human resources taskforce that aims to improve the province's supply of health care professionals.
“We want to keep all of our new nursing graduates here in Ontario, providing care to Ontario patients,” said Smitherman. “That's why we're offering this job guarantee to every nursing graduate.”
Attracting and keeping new nurses has become a problem in Ontario. Many new doctors and nurses are lured away by offers of more money from medical facilities in the US.
Although she believes the guaranteed jobs are a much-needed boost for the future nurses of Ontario, Dr Deluca is also concerned with close to 5,000 unionized part-time nurses in the province who are searching for full-time employment.
“It's a struggle,” Dr Deluca said of the established nurses looking for full-time work. “Many nurses have two or three part-time jobs.”
Medical Professionals also predict a nursing shortage in the upcoming years, due to the aging population of nurses.
To combat this, the McGuinty government has invested $34 million to keep experienced nurses, who would otherwise retire, in the workforce.
According to Dr Deluca, the average age of an Ontario nurse is between 49 and 50.
Fanshawe's nursing program is in cooperation with the University of Western Ontario. The collaborative Bachelor of Science in nursing degree accepted 115 students last year and is expected to attract 125 new students in September.
Last month Ontario's Health Minister, George Smitherman, said the 4,000 nurses who are expected to enter the workforce next year will be guaranteed full-time positions in the hospital, long-term care, home care, public health, and primary care sectors.
“This is a boost for nursing and recognizes the importance of fulltime jobs for nurses,” said Dr Sandy DeLuca, Chair of the nursing division at Fanshawe.
Dr Deluca said between 100-107 Fanshawe nursing students are expected to graduate next spring and will benefit from the $30 million initiative.
The government also promised $1 million towards tuition for nursing students interested in practicing in rural, remote or under-serviced areas of the province, which are in desperate need for medical professionals.
“There is a lot of money available for graduates working in rural areas,” Dr Deluca said.
“If we want to have a sufficient number of nurses to meet the needs of patients, we must continue to implement new approaches to attract and retain new graduates as well as provide a positive work environment for existing staff,” said Tom Closson, head of HealthForceOntario, a new government human resources taskforce that aims to improve the province's supply of health care professionals.
“We want to keep all of our new nursing graduates here in Ontario, providing care to Ontario patients,” said Smitherman. “That's why we're offering this job guarantee to every nursing graduate.”
Attracting and keeping new nurses has become a problem in Ontario. Many new doctors and nurses are lured away by offers of more money from medical facilities in the US.
Although she believes the guaranteed jobs are a much-needed boost for the future nurses of Ontario, Dr Deluca is also concerned with close to 5,000 unionized part-time nurses in the province who are searching for full-time employment.
“It's a struggle,” Dr Deluca said of the established nurses looking for full-time work. “Many nurses have two or three part-time jobs.”
Medical Professionals also predict a nursing shortage in the upcoming years, due to the aging population of nurses.
To combat this, the McGuinty government has invested $34 million to keep experienced nurses, who would otherwise retire, in the workforce.
According to Dr Deluca, the average age of an Ontario nurse is between 49 and 50.
Fanshawe's nursing program is in cooperation with the University of Western Ontario. The collaborative Bachelor of Science in nursing degree accepted 115 students last year and is expected to attract 125 new students in September.
