Nova Scotians want and deserve to be able to get the health care they need when they need it. That is why government is investing even more into improving access to care across the province.

Government will continue to work with universities to train more doctors and nurses this year. Twelve new first year medical seats will be added at Dalhousie University in August.
Government and its partners will also continue to provide more training and educational opportunities in rural Nova Scotia through expanded residency and clerkship programs. Based on the success of the clerkship program in Cape Breton, it will be launched on the South Shore this fall. Research shows people are more likely to stay in communities where they have trained.

More nurses will be trained from one end of the province to the other with 62 new first-year nursing seats being added at Cape Breton University and eight more at Dalhousie University’s Yarmouth campus. This is the largest and only increase in undergraduate nursing seats in 12 years.

These new training initiatives will complement other recruitment efforts such as the practice ready assessment program to help internationally trained doctors work in Nova Scotia and immigration programs specifically for doctors and other health professionals and a new fund to support community efforts around doctor recruitment.

Government also wants people to be able to get the medication they need. Nearly $21 million more will ...