CREDIT: EMILY STEWART
Susan Cluett, the dean of the Faculty of Access, Language, and Regional Campuses, said that an aging population comes with a greater demand for personal support workers (PSWs). The South West Local Health Integration Network Bursary will help fill the PSW shortage in the home care and community care sectors.

Fanshawe College now offers a bursary to help incoming personal support worker (PSW) certificate students who want to work in the home and community care sectors.

The College announced on Oct. 7 that the South West Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) will provide $1 million towards 200 bursaries for students in the PSW certificate program at four colleges, including Fanshawe. Lambton College, Conestoga College, and Georgian College also received the funding.

Fanshawe received $500,000 in funding and will put it towards the South West LHIN Personal Support Worker Bursary. The bursary is for students interested in working as a PSW in home and community care within the Perth, Oxford, Norfolk, Middlesex, Huron, Bruce, Elgin, and Grey Counties.

The College website’s page about the bursary said each bursary is worth $5,000, and is meant to cover the cost of tuition for two semesters. New students with a demonstrated financial need entering the program, beginning with those starting in January 2020, are eligible.

Susan Cluett, dean of the Faculty of Access, Language, and Regional Campuses said the College is looking forward to partner with Southwest LHIN for this opportunity.

“They’ve identified a real gap in the labour market in terms of the numbers of PSWs who need to be hired to work in home care and community care and this is one of the ways that they are supporting filling those employment needs in our communities,” Cluett said.

She added that London and surrounding area, including Woodstock, St. Thomas, Simcoe, and Huron-Bruce, all urgently need PSWs in community and home care sectors. Cluett said that there’s a demand for PSWs because there’s an aging population with more people who need assistance for independent living.

“The PSW plays a critical role in providing that kind of support that allows individuals to maintaining independence and live comfortably in their homes and community and of course,” she said. “Our increasing numbers of individuals who are requiring our care place that demand on us to prepare more and more graduates for our communities.”

The bursaries will be spaced out over the intake period. The PSW certificate program is eight-months long and provides the required training to work as a PSW. In addition to January, students can also either start the program in May 2020 at the St. Thomas campus or September 2020 at any of the campuses.

As of Oct. 22 on the College website, the PSW certificate program is still accepting students for the January 2020 intake at the London, Clinton, Woodstock, St. Thomas and Simcoe campuses.

Visit fanshawec.ca/bursaries for more information. To find job opportunities and other available bursaries for PSWs, visit becomeapsw.ca.