Manitoba partnering with colleges to get former nurses back to work

The Manitoba government is partnering with all three nursing colleges to get former nurses back to work, with new initiatives in place to help speed up the process.

“We are welcoming back as many nurses as possible,” said Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara. “If you are retired recently and you want to return to work we want you back in healthcare in Manitoba we want you back on our healthcare team.”

Asagwara made the announcement that will see former licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, and registered psychiatric nurses who worked in Manitoba’s healthcare system in the last five years and were in good standing with their regulatory college have a faster, more flexible pathway to return to their profession.

The plan will aim to reduce the number of recent practice hours required for reinstatement and provide more options to meet requirements for currency of practice, including conditional registration or a supervised return to practice. 

“We are asking you to come back and take paid positions in a role where your expertise can be put to great work and support newer nurses in the workforce,” said Asagwara.

Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson echoed this statement saying, that right now experienced nurses are few and far between, with new grads feeling unsupported coming out of nursing school.

“That is what is going to retain new grads in this province, is having mentors and support peoples in the workplaces so I encourage them to come back and be in that role if possible,”said Jackson.

Asagwara says this is the first step to fixing healthcare in Manitoba, saying now that the government is in collaboration with all three nursing colleges, they can continue to work together to make sure healthcare in Manitoba is the best in Canada.

“That is how were gunna retain staff, that is how were going to recruit and attract talent and that is our mission here as a government alongside partners, to make sure Manitoba is the best place to be a healthcare worker in the country,” said Asagwara.

Former nurses who are interested in returning to the public health-care system, can contact the regulatory college associated with their profession for more information on the new reinstatement criteria,