The Ontario government is investing over $4.2 million to expand nursing education across the province. These investments will improve access to care by ensuring more nurses are trained and ready to work in communities across Ontario.
"By investing in education and accelerating training for nurses, our government is protecting Ontario and building on our progress to grow our nursing workforce for years to come," said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. "These investments will help ensure families can connect to the care they need no matter where they live, while also supporting the next generation of health-care professionals."
The government is investing $2 million to support the launch of an accelerated registered nursing (RN) degree program at four post-secondary institutions to allow students to complete their undergraduate program within three to three-and-a-half years, instead of four years, enabling nurses to enter the workforce sooner. Conestoga College (Kitchener), St. Lawrence College (Kingston), Western University (London) and York University (Toronto) will receive up to $500,000 to support the development and implementation of the accelerated nursing program, beginning in the 2025-26 and 2026-27 academic years.
In addition, Ontario is investing $750,000 to support the inclusion of RN prescribing education into the undergraduate nursing curriculum at Georgian College (Barrie), Humber Polytechnic (Toronto) and the University of Windsor, enabling nurses to play a greater role in patient care by prescribing medication. This will make Ontario the first jurisdiction in Canada to include RN prescribing in undergraduate programs.
"Ontario's world-class colleges and universities are training the health-care workforce of today, and tomorrow," said Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. "This critical investment will equip our province's nursing students with the skills and education they need to get into the health-care workforce at a quicker rate and deliver excellent care in communities across the province."
Finally, to support access to health care in northern and rural Ontario, the province is investing nearly $1.5 million to expand the capacity for nursing programs at Confederation College in Thunder Bay and Cambrian College in Sudbury. This funding will help increase enrolment and create new clinical placement opportunities by adding 50 new registered practical nursing seats at Confederation College and 17 at Cambrian College.
Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the Ontario government continues to take bold and decisive action to grow the province's highly skilled health-care workforce and ensure people and their families have access to high-quality care closer to home for generations to come.
Quick Facts
- The government is investing $56.8 million over the next three years to support an enrolment increase of nursing spaces at publicly assisted colleges and universities by over 2,200 registered and registered practical nurses and nurse practitioners. In addition, this funding will support continued investments in innovative, flexible, online nursing pathways.
- Since 2018, Ontario has seen a record-breaking number of new health-care professionals join the workforce, adding nearly 100,000 new nurses with another 30,000 nurses currently studying at Ontario colleges and universities.
- On December 4, 2023, the Nursing Act, 1991 was amended to allow RNs in Ontario to prescribe specific medications and to communicate a diagnosis for the purpose of prescribing.
- Since expanding the role of registered nurses to prescribe medications, 671 registered nurses have completed the training and are authorized to prescribe.
- Ontario is investing $743 million over three years to continue to address immediate health-care staffing needs, as well as to grow the workforce for years to come.
Quotes
"Our government is growing the long-term care workforce so residents across the province can get the high-quality care they need, in the right place. By investing in the workforce of tomorrow, we're helping more people begin their nursing careers at publicly assisted colleges and universities."
- Paul Calandra, Acting Minister of Long-Term Care
"York University is proud to be part of this innovative initiative that supports the growth and long-term sustainability of Ontario's nursing workforce while addressing the current nursing shortage. We are grateful for the government's support in meeting the diverse needs of nursing students, particularly those who, for personal or financial reasons, will benefit from an accelerated, direct-entry registered nursing degree. We are also excited to leverage new technologies, including virtual and augmented reality, to deliver innovative, non-traditional approaches in educating our future nursing workforce for the benefit of all Ontarians."
- Rhonda Lenton, President & Vice-Chancellor, York University
"At Humber Polytechnic, we are committed to equipping our students with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to meet the evolving needs of our health system. We welcome this important investment by the Ontario government to expand nursing education and integrate RN prescribing into undergraduate programs. This initiative will enhance clinical readiness and help build a more responsive, resilient health-care workforce across the province. It represents a significant step forward in preparing future nurses to take on expanded roles in delivering high-quality care. I am confident this investment will have a lasting impact on our students, our communities, and the future of health care in Ontario."
- Dr. Ann Marie Vaughan, President and CEO, Humber Polytechnic
"Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning is honoured to receive this grant to support the accelerated training of nursing students. Our accelerated BScN stream will offer a comprehensive nursing curriculum over 32 months, allowing students to expedite their academic journey to enter the workforce one year faster. Conestoga believes this transformative grant will help address nursing workforce shortages and strengthen the province's health-care system."
- Natalia Ronda, Dean, Health & Life Sciences, Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
"The ability to offer an accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program reflects our commitment to addressing the growing demand for skilled, compassionate nurses in today's health-care environment. We are excited to offer virtual reality in this enhanced curriculum to provide students with an immersive experience to hone their skills."
- Laralea Stalkie, Associate Dean, School of Nursing, St. Lawrence College
"This funding supports our capacity at Western to move nurses into the workforce more quickly and to expand and enrich experiential learning opportunities across the program, underscoring our commitment to preparing highly qualified nurses to meet the evolving needs of our communities. Under this new model, Nursing students at Western will graduate from the program in an accelerated timeframe, beginning in 2026. Through enhanced clinical placements, simulation-based education, and innovative practice-based learning models, students will gain earlier and more comprehensive exposure to real-world health-care environments, ensuring they are well-prepared to deliver high-quality, patient-centered care upon graduation."
- Victoria Smye, Professor and Director, Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing, Western University
"Georgian College is proud to be one of only three institutions in Ontario approved to offer RN Prescribing within our Honours Bachelor of Science Nursing program. This important advancement supports our ongoing commitment to strengthening Ontario's health-care system by preparing Registered Nurses to practice the full extent of their training and expertise. Our graduates will be equipped with expanded, specialized skills to help meet the evolving needs of our communities while enhancing patient care. It's an investment in our future health-care professionals that will improve access to timely, high-quality care- especially in underserved and growing communities across our region."
- Kevin Weaver, President and CEO, Georgian College
"We are excited to see the RN prescribing course being piloted within undergraduate nursing education at the University of Windsor. This forward-thinking initiative represents a significant step toward empowering the next generation of nurses with the advanced knowledge and clinical skills needed to safely and effectively prescribe medications. By embedding this course at the undergraduate level, we are not only enhancing clinical competency, but also preparing future nurses to take on expanded roles in patient care with greater autonomy, confidence, and responsiveness to the evolving needs of our health-care system. It's an exciting time for nursing education and for the future of health-care delivery in Ontario."
- Dr. Gina Pittman NP, PhD, Assistant Professor and Clinical Placement Co-Lead for the NP Consortium, University of Windsor
"An investment in nursing education to support the expansion of Confederation College's Practical Nursing program is critical for meeting the health-care demands for communities across northwestern Ontario. This funding reduces the financial barriers that students in rural northern communities face, creating an opportunity to pursue nursing education in their home communities of Thunder Bay, Dryden, Sioux Lookout, Fort Frances, Geraldton, Marathon and Kenora. This is an exciting opportunity and represents partnerships across multiple health-care organizations in each of these communities."
- Shane Strickland, Dean, School of Health, Negahneewin, and Community Services, Confederation College
"NPAO welcomes the Ontario government's $4.2 million investment to expand nursing education across the province, which will help ensure more Ontarians can access timely, high-quality care across the province. Expanding educational pathways is a necessary step for strengthening our health system. As Nurse Practitioners (NPs) are uniquely positioned to address Ontario's health-care crisis, NPAO looks forward to their skills and expertise to be fully leveraged by the Government of Ontario and the Ministry of Health."
- Dr. NP Michelle Acorn, CEO, Nurse Practitioners' Association of Ontario (NPAO)
"RNAO applauds the Ontario government for strengthening nursing education through the addition of 2,200 new seats and programs that directly respond to the needs of Ontarians. The launch of an accelerated RN program at Conestoga College (Kitchener), St. Lawrence College (Kingston), Western University (London), and York University (Toronto) will enable students to enter the profession sooner - without compromising the rigour of their education - and help address urgent staffing shortages. We are thrilled to see RN prescribing embedded into the BScN curriculum at Georgian College (Barrie), Humber Polytechnic (Toronto), and the University of Windsor - a long-standing call by RNAO that must now be extended to all BScN programs in Ontario. We also celebrate the expansion of capacity in northern and rural nursing programs at Confederation College in Thunder Bay and Cambrian College in Sudbury. Alongside these important investments, government and employers must ensure we retain existing nursing talent - by securing safe staffing, competitive compensation across all sectors, and healthy work environments. Together, we are enabling nurses to build fulfilling careers in Ontario - so that Ontarians receive the best possible care."
- Dr. Doris Grinspun, RN, PhD, O.ONT., CEO, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO)
"Today's announcement from the Ontario government is a significant step forward in building a robust and responsive nursing workforce. The targeted investments in accelerated programs and the focus on expanding capacity in underserved regions demonstrate a clear understanding of what's needed to bolster our health-care system. These measures will not only bring more skilled nurses into practice sooner but also empower them with advanced capabilities, ultimately benefiting patients and communities across Ontario."
- Dianne Martin, CEO, WeRPN
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