Moncton college opens health campus after $3-million expansion

Oulton College in Moncton has expanded with a health facility.

Oulton College in Moncton, N.B., has opened its Elmwood Health Campus following a $3-million expansion that is expected to train more than 500 nursing students.

The expanded campus features simulation labs, modern clinical training spaces and 300 new student seats. The campus will support Bachelor of Science in Nursing, practical nursing and paramedic programs, according to a news release from the college.

“We know when health professionals train here, it increases the likelihood of them staying here to practice and build their lives in the province,” said Health Minister John Dornan in the release.

“We respect and appreciate our health professionals and eagerly invite and welcome graduates to build careers as part of New Brunswick’s health and long-term care workforce to provide the care that New Brunswickers need, now and into the future.”

In an interview, Dornan said the province is still short on a number of health-care providers, so the new campus could be big for New Brunswick.

“We want to support our health care workers. To do that, we need to have more of them so that their comfortable in their workplace, reasonable salaries, so this is a huge announcement for us,” he said.

Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Training Jean-Claude D’Amours said the new program is crucial to the province.

“We need more health professionals and so we will be able to have registered nurses coming from this college in the New Brunswick system in the really near future, so we are very happy that Oulton College decided to make that investment,” said D’Amours.

Oulton College, which was founded in 1956, offers programs in health sciences, human services, information technology and business.

“This campus represents our long-standing commitment to supporting the health of New Brunswickers,” said Darcie Reidpath, president of the college. “By expanding our nursing and allied health programs, we are increasing access to high-quality education and preparing more graduates to step directly into critical roles across the province.”

With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Derek Haggett

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