The Ontario government says it is investing $30 million to expand the province’s primary care workforce, funding new training programs and education spaces aimed at improving access to family doctors and front-line care.
The investment will help upskill more than 1,400 registered nurses, create 170 nurse practitioner education seats and add up to 150 physician assistant training spaces as part of the province’s $2.1-billion Primary Care Action Plan, which aims to connect every Ontarian to primary care by 2029.
The investment comes as national research warns demand for primary care providers is expected to outpace supply in the coming years. A report from the C.D. Howe Institute projects that the need for family physicians will continue rising through the next decade, while workforce growth may lag as many doctors retire.
Projected demand for family physicians is expected to outpace supply through 2032. (Credit: The Doctor Dilemma: Improving Primary Care Access in Canada – C.D. Howe Institute)
Health Minister Sylvia Jones said the initiative is part of broader efforts to strengthen the health-care workforce.
“By increasing the number of nurse practitioners and physician assistants, while upskilling registered nurses, we are taking one more step towards our goal of ensuring everyone can connect to primary care,” Health Minister Sylvia Jones said in a statement on Monday.
More than $4.5 million of the funding will support a new 12-week training program launching this year to help registered nurses gain experience in areas such as chronic disease management, cancer screening, maternal and child care and immunizations. The program will be delivered through Conestoga College, Lakehead University, Trent University and Western University.
An additional $8.5 million will fund new nurse practitioner education seats at universities across Ontario, including McMaster University, Queen’s University, the University of Ottawa and Western University, helping increase the number of practitioners working in primary care.
Dr. Jane Philpott, the chair of Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team. (Credit: Meghan Balogh /The Whig-Standard)
Dr. Jane Philpott, chair of the Primary Care Action Team, said expanding education and training opportunities will help strengthen access to services.
“These new education and upskilling initiatives will help ensure that nurses, nurse practitioners and physician assistants are equipped to provide the comprehensive, team-based care Ontarians rely on, close to home,” Philpott said.
Beginning in 2026-27, the province will invest an additional $16 million to expand physician assistant education programs, which officials say will help reduce wait times and improve patient access to services across Ontario.
The government says the funding builds on ongoing efforts to expand the health-care workforce and improve access to primary care across the province.
