In an attempt to recruit more nursing assistants and administrative officers, the Quebec government is launching a fast-track training program to help with the labour shortages in this field.

According to media relations spokesperson Marie-Pier Després, the Outaouais region will be receiving 107 scholarships in order to recruit . . .

administrative officers, and 96 scholarships for nursing assistants.

The implementation of the training program for administrative officers will be conducted over a course of eight-weeks and will lead to a 240-hour attestation of professional studies.

The allocated scholarship amount for administrative officers is $4,000 but admissibility conditions must be met.

“Ultimately, obtaining this AEP will allow graduates to work as administrative agents in functions similar to those of a class 3 in Quebec’s health and social services institutions,” said Després.

The following conditions

must be met by applicants:

Must have obtained credits from a Secondary 3 or the equivalent in the language of scholarity, in a secondary language and in mathematics.

Must have obtained an attestation for the equivalency level of scholarity.

Must have successfully completed a general development test with or without specific prerequisites.

Applicants must also meet one of the following

conditions:

It must be at least 12 months since the interruption of full time studies.

Must be 18 years old by the time the program begins.

Must have a highschool diploma or a diploma of professional studies or the equivalent.

Must meet Emploi Quebec admissibility standards.

The nursing assistant program will last over a period of 14 months, as opposed to 22 months under normal circumstances.

“It will still run for the same amount of hours (1,800), it’s the same competencies as the regular program but at a more intensive pace,” according to RN (registered nurse) and teacher at the Pontiac Continuing Education Centre in Shawville, Heidi Hall.

This is the first time an accelerated program has been proposed, according to Hall, who has been teaching since it began at the centre more than a decade-and-a-half ago.

“The program seems to be getting a lot of attention after being announced just a few days ago,” said Hall, who is optimistic about the success of the new accelerated format.

Nursing assistants will be receiving a diploma of professional studies at the end of the program due to begin in Jan. 2022, with an end date of March 2023.

“It will basically run with longer days, shorter holiday and summer breaks,” Hall explained.

Once they complete the program, graduates will be able to work as nursing assistants after they pass the examination of the Ordre des infirmières auxiliaires du Québec, which permits them to practice their profession, according to Després.

The scholarship amount for this portion of the program is set at $20,000 and once again, admissibility conditions that must be met. Scholarship cohorts will begin on Jan. 17, 2022 for all of the regions of Quebec.

The following conditions

for admissibility must be met:

Must possess a high school diploma or a recognized equivalent, a college diploma or a bachelor’s degree.

Must be 16 years old by Sept. 30 of the year you begin your program and must have obtained Secondary 5 credits in the language of scholarity and Secondary 4 in a second language as well as mathematics.

Must be at least 18 years of age at the onset of the accelerated study program and must possess the prerequisites including having successfully completed the general development test as well as the credits from Secondary 5 in your language of scholarity.

Must have your Secondary 3 units in your language of scholarity, in a secondary language and in mathematics in study programs recognized by the Ministry and must be pursuing general studies in order to obtain any missing credits.

“CISSO is vetting the applicants and promising them jobs before they even finish the program, so it should be successful,” said Hall.

The aim of the accelerated program is to have 2,000 candidates ready to enter the workforce by March 2023. Those wishing to apply for these accelerated programs can do so at www.admissionfp.com.

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