The province is offering up to $120,000 to repay tuition for 25 doctors who agree to practice in areas of the province that are under served, and an additional $30,000 for a doctor who will practice in an area that does not currently have a regional hospital, according to a press release.
Russell Christie, president, Dalhousie Medical Students Society was pleased with the announcement saying, “Faced with increasing tuition costs, the tuition relief program is welcome news for medical students at Dalhousie University. Not only will this program represent a first step in assisting new and recent graduates repay student debt, it will have a positive impact on the health of Nova Scotians by placing physicians in underserviced areas of the province. As a result, a greater proportion of residents will have their health-care needs met.”
Nova Scotia Health and Wellness Minister Leo Glavine said in the release, “Our focus is on recruiting doctors to the communities that need them the most, so that seniors, children and families will get the health care they need, closer to the community where they live. Young graduating doctors, and those who are currently working outside the province, now have another incentive to practice in Nova Scotia.”
Mr. Glavine told CTV News, “This now is a very strong incentive to get graduates and also those who are practising up to seven years in any part of Canada or the United States to come back. While priority will be given to Nova Scotian applicants, it will be available to medical students in residency, or doctors within their first seven years of practice outside Nova Scotia. There will be a community of need identified and (the province will) work out an agreement with them.”
Those interested in applying can begin by visiting the Nova Scotia government website.
