The provincial government announced a comprehensive four-year strategy today to recruit new nurses to the province and retain nurses now working in the PEI health system.
Premier Pat Binns advised that the new $6 million Nursing Recruitment and Retention strategy will build on the success of the $10 million Health Stabilization Fund which created 85 new full and part-time nursing positions last year, and provided 60 casual nurses with permanent work. "Today we are announcing 60 more permanent registered nursing positions, initiatives to improve quality of work life for nurses, and incentives to encourage more Island nursing students to remain in the province to work," said the Premier.
Health and Social Services Minister Jamie Ballem announced that $6 million will be invested over the next four years to meet immediate needs and address long term nursing requirements.
Funding of $3.3 million will be used to create 60 new registered nursing positions over the next four years to provide relief support to hospitals and long term care facilities. These new permanent float nurses will be cross-trained to work in several areas of care. "Because there are fewer casual nurses available, we hope to make relief work more attractive to nurses by offering permanent position status, benefits and guaranteed work hours," said Minister Ballem, "At the same time, we hope the addition of these positions will improve the quality of work life for nurses by easing their workloads and adding more flexibility in scheduling weekend shifts and holidays."
A new Summer Student Employment Program ($1,632,000) will be introduced to support nursing staff during the summer months and increase employment experience opportunities for nursing students. Beginning this summer, third and fourth year nursing students will be offered employment in health facilities for a 12-week period. This added exposure to the PEI health system will enhance the job readiness of students and encourage more Island nursing students to remain in PEI to work.
A new Student Sponsorship Program ($192,000) will be created to recruit more new nursing graduates to Island health facilities and assist nursing students with employment and tuition costs. Up to 20 BN students who have completed their second or third years at nursing schools in PEI or out-of-province will be sponsored by the Regional Health Authorities. Sponsored students will receive assistance of up to $2400 per year with tuition fees when they agree to work in the health region for an agreed upon period of time.
A new Refresher Program Cost Assistance Program ($28,000) will make incentives available to encourage nurses to re-enter the workforce. The $1400 fee for the nursing refresher course will be reimbursed to nurses who complete the program and agree to work in the health system for a designated period.
Nursing education and career development will be enhanced through the establishment of new Clinical Education Resources ($550,000). Three new clinical education instructor positions will be created to provide clinical education to nurses in patient care units and to students at UPEI.
Nursing recruitment efforts will be supported by enhanced recruitment resources ($200,000) for marketing PEI nursing opportunities to universities, other jurisdictions and Islanders away. In addition, nurses interested in relocating to Prince Edward Island will be offered assistance of up to $5,000 with relocation costs.
Finally, a nursing workforce development strategy will be developed to ensure that the current and future supply of nurses develop competencies that meet changing workplace requirements. "Government recognizes the importance of ensuring a sustainable supply of nurses if we are to ensure quality health care for Islanders now and in future," said the minister, "At the same time, we recognize that nurses work in a complex and integrated health environment. Government is committed to providing the necessary leadership and resources to ensure that we plan for and meet the future requirements of nurses, employers and educators."
A summary of the new nursing and recruitment and retention strategies is available of the government website at www.gov.pe.ca.