AHS, Red Deer Polytechnic Sign Reciprocal Agreement

SUNDRE – Alberta Health Services (AHS) and Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) have signed an agreement that will benefit nursing students, nursing staff and healthcare as a whole.

Under the agreement, AHS nurses can take on RDP clinical instructor placements on a temporary basis when RDP is unable to recruit a qualified instructor. This joint appointment fills RDP’s need for instructors while students are completing their placements and, at the same time, enables AHS to preserve its valuable and experienced nurses.

“There is significant demand for registered nurses across the province and the Government of Alberta has responded with an investment for more post-secondary spaces to teach them,” says Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Health and MLA for Red Deer North.

“Through collaboration between AHS and RDP, more instructors become available, more nursing students from rural areas can learn in their home communities, and more nurses graduate to provide care at sites across the province. We are grateful for the innovation of these partners in providing sustainable healthcare solutions.”

RDP has created 192 more spaces in its nursing program through 2022-2025 as part of the Government of Alberta’s investment in more seats for post-secondary programs across the province.

The Myron Thompson Health Centre in Sundre is the first site to host the new agreement, which began this past September. Students in their third year of a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at RDP have taken a three-month clinical placement in Sundre under the instruction of an AHS registered nurse recruited by RDP.

One nurse instructor is assigned per site to a group of students who are engaged in hands-on learning related to rural healthcare.

“When we are deciding which rural healthcare sites can accommodate nursing students’ clinical placements, it hinges on providing a qualified instructor to guide these registered nurses in-the-making,” says Carolyn Trumper, AHS Executive Director of Integrated Quality Management, Professional Practice & Education, Planning & Performance and Clinical Information Systems.

“We are grateful to our RDP partners for having worked with us to find an agreement of mutual benefit. This is truly a win-win situation for rural acute care sites, students, post-secondary and communities.”

Daphne Kennedy, Associate Dean, School of Health and Wellness at Red Deer Polytechnic, 
says the agreement “reduces barriers for practising registered nurses to instruct nursing students and prepare them for rewarding careers in healthcare.”

“Through this agreement, AHS, along with our faculty and staff, will continue to effectively contribute to RDP’s nationally recognized nursing program, helping to address labour market demand, and enhancing the health and wellness of communities across Alberta,” Kennedy says. 

About Alberta Health Services:
Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Our mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans. Our current focus is on reducing emergency department wait times, improving EMS response times, increasing access to surgeries, and improving patient flow.