SAINT JOHN (GNB) – The licensed practical nurse (LPN) bachelor of nursing bridge program, which helps train LPNs to become registered nurses, will be reintroduced at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) to help address the province’s nursing shortage.
The funding will support 24 LPNs in the program at the university’s Saint John campus beginning in January 2020, with a May 2022 graduation.
“Addressing the nursing shortage in our province is a priority of our government,” said Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour Minister Trevor Holder. “Reintroducing the LPN bridging program will allow UNB to train more nurses that our health-care system is in critical need of. Addressing the nursing shortage is complex, and I am pleased our government was able to partner with UNB to train more nurses in our province.”
“Nurses have become leaders within the health care system. As a result, nursing education needs to change to reflect the increasingly complicated and demanding nature of the profession,” said Petra Hauf, vice-president of UNB’s Saint John campus. “That is exactly what we are doing.”
The government is providing up to $500,000 toward the cost of delivering one cohort of the program.
LPN graduates from New Brunswick Community College or Oulton College will be eligible for the program, which will consist of a combination of classroom learning and clinical experience. The program is designed to recognize their experience and education while addressing the knowledge and training differences between LPNs and registered nurses.
The LPN bridge program was piloted at UNB’s Saint John campus in 2013 with four cohorts.
05-07-19
