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All graduating nurses to get job offers, read the headline on the government’s news release dated October 28. When Premier Tim Houston announced that all nurses graduating from Nova Scotia’s universities and Nova Scotia Community College for the next five years will be offered a job in the province, many were shocked to hear that this wasn’t the current practice.
From online social media posts, to watercooler conversations, the public seemed baffled by this promise to hire Nova Scotia-educated nurses right here in our own province. They assumed this was the norm, especially since the nursing shortage has been a decades-long problem.
That assumption is without merit. While a good number of our new grads are offered employment here, some choose to leave and others remain underemployed, especially our licensed practical nurses.
Under the new agreement, every nurse who wants a job in Nova Scotia from the current graduating class until the class of 2026 will be guaranteed one with Nova Scotia Health, the IWK or the continuing care sector. They will receive information about available opportunities and receive job offers.
Our premier called this a bold action to solve healthcare problems in Nova Scotia. Premier Houston said he wants nursing students to know they are not taken for granted, and that this initiative shows how much they are valued for their skill, energy and compassion.
There are many questions left unanswered regarding the offers – in particular, whether it’s fulltime, stable employment. However, nursing students appear to be hopeful at the prospect of working close to home. NSNU will be monitoring the program and its impact on the nursing shortage.
And there’s more good news for some students. Accelerated nursing students at Dalhousie will receive another $3,300 from their student loans. Currently, the provincial portion of the loan only covers 28 weeks of the 34-week program. This will close a funding gap that some nursing students found insurmountable given the demands on their time and their limited ability to finance their education.
In mid October, government made a commitment to employ more NPs in long term care. Nova Scotia Health plans to hire at least 13 NPs at a cost of $2.5 million. The nurse practitioners will diagnose and treat illnesses, order diagnostics, prescribe medications and perform minor procedures for residents in LTC.
While this news is all well and good, mid-career and senior nurses have been left wondering what’s to incentivize them? Like the others, these nurses have been at the centre of the pandemic, mentoring students, working excessive hours, and bearing the brunt of a perpetual nursing shortage and global health crisis.
NSNU appreciates these sentiments and urges government and employers to recognize all nurses in a manner that demonstrates their genuine gratitude for the immeasurable contributions made by our entire nursing workforce.
The NSNU will be going to the bargaining table in the new year in pursuit of a collective agreement that reflects the renumeration nurses deserve. Our goal is to appeal to employers, asking them to reward those who have been there through thick and thin.
When I donned a cap and gown for my 1984 graduation, I was without fulltime employment. It was unsettling. Fulltime opportunities were scarce, and it was several years before I felt like my career was on solid footing.
Each year, Nova Scotia graduates about 700 registered nurses and licensed practical nurses. This assurance to hire all grads is, in many ways, like a gift. No other province has made such a guarantee. I’m optimistic and pleased that our new grads will not experience the uncertainty I felt 37 years ago.
As 2021 comes to a close, I personally want to thank you all for your unwavering dedication to patients, clients, residents and each other. Without your expertise and steadfast selflessness, our healthcare system would be far worse off.
I wish those who celebrate the holiday season, the best. To all of you, may 2022 be kinder, healthier and filled with promise.
