Federal minister visits Sarnia, touts student loans to ease doctor shortage

The Federal Minister of Public Safety said work being done in the Sarnia-Lambton region to attract doctors and nurses to the region complements health care funding recently announced in the federal budget.

Marco Mendicino spoke at Bluewater Health Tuesday, where he touted the government’s $45 million investment over four years in forgivable student loans for doctors and nurses who practice in remote, underserved, or rural areas.

“This kind of investment aligns with the work that you are doing provincially and here at Bluewater Health to attract and recruit and retain some of that young talent from the schools that surround the region here in London and in Windsor,” said Mendicino.

He said forgivable Canada Student Loans for doctors and nurses have increased by 50 per cent.

“So by doing these two things together we certainly hope that students will be able to afford their education,” he added.

Paula Reaume-Zimmer, the President and CEO of Bluewater Health, said the investments come at a crucial time, “When we are experiencing unprecedented inflationary pressures, as well as a challenging health human resource crisis.”