Minister Fullerton highlights Accelerated PSW program at Loyalist College

Belleville — Today, Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care, met with a virtual class of personal support worker students at Loyalist College. The Minister highlighted the need for PSWs across Ontario’s health system, spoke about the government’s plan to modernize long-term care, and thanked the students for choosing this important career path.

“Personal support workers are the backbone of long-term care and do vital work every day so that our loved ones receive the quality of care they need and deserve,” said Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care. “I commend the students at Loyalist College for choosing to pursue this meaningful and rewarding career path. I wish them the best in their studies and hope they will consider bringing their talents to long-term care.”

The students the Minister spoke with are part of the Accelerated PSW training program. This program is a tuition-free opportunity for students to complete their course work in six months, getting them into the job market two months faster than the typical program.

“In this region, we have a real need for more skilled, compassionate PSWs dedicated to providing exemplary care for our seniors and vulnerable residents. Our government recognizes that and it is taking action to accelerate training and provide more opportunity for full-time, secure employment,” said Todd Smith, MPP for Bay of Quinte. “I’m pleased to meet some of the first students to commit to that vocation and learn how Loyalist College is preparing them well for their careers  in health care.”The Ontario government has invested more than $115 million to train nearly 8,200 personal support workers through publicly-assisted colleges, and $86 million to train up to 8,000 personal support workers through district school boards and Ontario Student Assistance Program approved private career colleges.

Most recently, the province announced $35 million to increase enrollment in nursing education programs in publicly-assisted colleges and universities across the province. This funding will also support clinical placements for personal support workers and nursing students in long-term care homes.

QUICK FACTS

• In December 2020, Ontario announced the largest long-term care staff recruitment and training drive in the province’s history last year. The plan centres around the province’s commitment of delivering an average of four hours of care per resident per day. To implement this initiative, the government is investing $4.9 billion over the next four years to help create 27,000 new positions for PSWs and nurses in long-term care. This funding will also support a 20 per cent increase in direct care time by allied health professionals including physiotherapists and social workers.

• Through the COVID-19 Fall Preparedness Plan, the government is investing $52.5 million to recruit, retain and support over 3,700 more frontline health care workers and caregivers. This includes adding 800 more nurses and 2,000 more personal support workers.

• Ontario’s Action Plan: Protect, Support, Recover makes $15.2 billion available to support Ontario’s frontline healthcare heroes and protect people from COVID-19. This includes supporting 141 hospitals and health care facilities and 626 long-term care homes since the beginning of the pandemic.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Learn more about training support for personal support workers through private career colleges and district school boards, and the province’s Accelerated PSW Training Program being offered by all 24 public colleges.
• New Action Group to Help Implement One of the Largest Health Care Recruiting and Training Programs in Ontario History.
• Ontario adding 2,000 nurses to the health care system.