The province is funding two new programs at the University of Saskatchewan to help recruit and retain more health care professionals.
Beginning in 2026, the University of Saskatchewan will offer two-year master's programs in speech-language-hearing therapy and occupational therapy. Each program at the University of Saskatchewan will admit up to 40 students each year.
Currently, the province is paying for 50 places for Saskatchewan students to study in a similar program at the University of Alberta, at a cost of $40,000 per seat.
The state is spending $8.1 million to establish the two programs at the University of South Carolina, with about $7 million to renovate campus space and about $1 million for start-up operating costs. The state will also fund ongoing operations, but the annual cost has yet to be determined.
The training programs are targeted at two high-demand medical specialties, and Saskatchewan Health Minister Everett Hindley said local students are more likely to stay in the province after they graduate.
“Due to the high demand to build out our state's health care system and fund more permanent, full-time positions, we are currently struggling to recruit,” Hindley said in a release Friday.
“But unless we're producing graduates who have completed higher education programs, it's going to be hard to fill those positions.”
Christine Fleming, regional director for the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists, said the association has been working for years to establish a training program in the province.
Christine Fleming, regional director for the Canadian Occupational Therapists Association, said the association has been working for years to establish a training program in the province. (CBC News)
Christine Fleming, regional director for the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists, said the association has been working for years to establish a training program in the province.
“The creation of an occupational therapy program at the University of Saskatchewan will address the province’s long-standing shortage of occupational therapists. [occupational therapist assistants] It will expand access to vital occupational therapy services,” Fleming said.
