100M for Training for 32,000 New Nurses and PSWs

 The Ontario government is investing more than $100 million in two programs that will train more than 32,000 new personal support workers (PSWs) and nurses in long-term care over the next three years. The investments are part of the government’s Your Health plan to recruit and retain tens of thousands of long-term care staff over the coming years.

“Our government is fixing long-term care by training, hiring and retaining thousands of health care workers to provide high-quality care for residents,” said Stan Cho, Minister of Long-Term Care. “We’re investing in programs that are building a pipeline of talent for the future and giving them more hands-on clinical training so our long-term care residents get the high-quality care they deserve.”

Ontario is investing $94.5 million over three years to extend the (PREP LTC). Launch in 2021, the program has already helped 500 long-term care homes provide clinical placements for over 17,000 nursing and personal support worker students. With the new investment, the program now aims to train more than 3,000 new preceptors and support 31,000 new clinical placements by 2027.

Clinical placements are key to providing nursing and personal support worker students with hands-on experience on-site in long-term care homes under the supervision of preceptors — experienced staff who are trained for this role. Positive clinical placement experiences drive recruitment, as students often take jobs in the homes where they complete their placements. Meanwhile, becoming a preceptor gives existing long-term care staff the opportunity for career development and growth.