Treaty 1 and Dakota Territory, Homeland of the Red River Métis, Winnipeg MB— Standing outside the University of Manitoba’s Bannatyne Campus, Manitoba NDP Leader Wab Kinew announced the first step in his party's plan to fix the health care staffing crisis caused by Heather Stefanson’s health care cuts.

“The first step to fixing health care starts right here at the Bannatyne campus where the next generation of Manitoba’s health care leaders will pursue excellence and answer the noble call of the medical profession,” said Kinew. “We need to build a new training centre for the health care workers of tomorrow as Manitoba recovers from Heather Stefanson’s cuts”.

“Brian Pallister and Heather Stefanson cut nursing seats, fired nurses and attacked doctors – but we'll train them and give them a rewarding career right here in Manitoba. After seven years of PC health care cuts, it’s time to rebuild so Manitobans can count on better health care for years to come” said Kinew.

The new seats will make up for the 300 cumulative nursing seats the PCs cut from Red River College in 2019 and address the doctor shortage that has reached an all-time high under Heather Stefanson’s watch.

The innovative campus capital expansion will start with a new building, built by Manitobans, that will have more spaces for nurses, doctors, nurse practitioners and physicians' assistants and will include new technology for virtual classrooms to make programs more accessible for rural students.

“We are committed to also increasing nurse educators so that we can train the staff of tomorrow” added Kinew.

This commitment is one part of the Manitoba NDP’s plan to fix the health care staffing crisis. In the coming weeks, the party will lay out their plans to train, recruit and hire more frontline health care staff, increase capacity and improve health care for all Manitobans.