Posted on 04/15/2009, 11:06 am, by mySteinbach

New data from Manitoba’s nursing colleges indicate there are 245 more nurses practising in the province over this time last year, marking an increase of 2,034 new nurses since 1999, Health Minister Theresa Oswald announced.
 
“Manitoba nurses are at the heart of our health-care system and we are committed to further building the province’s complement of hard-working health professionals,” Oswald said.  “In contrast to the previous decade when the number of Manitoba nurses fell nearly every year, we have increased the number of nurses working in the province every year since taking office.”
 
The number of practising Manitoba nurses has climbed every year since 2000, from 14,092 when the government took office, to 16,126 today.  The number of practising Manitoba nurses fell every year from 1992-99.
 
The minister stressed the province will continue to invest in nurse training and retention to meet a persistent demand for nurses, in particular in rural and northern Manitoba.
 
The number of nurse training spaces in Manitoba has nearly doubled since 1999, the minister noted. The province committed in last month’s provincial budget to further expand nurse training.
 
Data from the colleges’ annual reports indicate the province gained 180 registered nurses, 41 licensed practical nurses, eight registered psychiatric nurses and 16 nurse practitioners in the past year.