Jan
11
2023

Holland College Resident Care Worker Program in Souris accepting applications for September 2023

Holland College will offer a Resident Care Worker (RCW) program in Souris this September to address the need for more skilled workers in rural PEI, while also providing rural residents the opportunity to study and gain meaningful employment closer to home.

RCWs are an integral part of the health system, working in numerous facilities across PEI in acute, long term, and homecare settings, many of which are in rural areas.

“There continues to be a shortage of trained Resident Care Workers throughout our healthcare system. Adding a program in Souris encourages more Islanders to enroll in the training program to join our healthcare system in these critical roles. Resident Care Workers are critically important members of our health care team, working in many settings including long-term care, homecare, mental health and addictions and acute care settings.”

- Minister of Health and Wellness, Ernie Hudson

The program, which is 30 weeks long, is being offered by Holland College and supported by Health PEI, the Department of Health and Wellness, and the Department of Economic Growth, Tourism and Culture through Skills PEI. The Souris program will have 16 seats available to students to begin their studies in September 2023.  

“We are delighted to partner with the provincial government to offer the Resident Care Worker program in Souris. Partnerships such as this will help us cultivate a robust health care system while providing Islanders with meaningful, full-time employment,” said Holland College president, Dr. Alexander (Sandy) MacDonald.

The Resident Care Worker Support Program provides financial assistance, including free tuition to eligible individuals to help them complete a post-secondary certificate or diploma and transition to sustainable employment.   

Since the announcement in April 2022, 100 Islanders have registered through the Resident Care Worker Support Program covering tuition costs for students in any Resident Care Worker training program on Prince Edward Island.

The eligibility criteria for the Resident Care Worker Support Program has been expanded to include candidates who are under-employed looking for a career in the health field.

“The Town of Souris has been a leader in the institution of this program being offered in the Town. We are very pleased to be a part of this announcement today and we would like to thank the supporting departments for their commitment for funding this initiative. We are looking forward to assisting in the promotion of the RCW course being offered in the Town of Souris in September,” said JoAnne Dunphy, Mayor of the Town of Souris.

Holland College also offers the Resident Care Worker program in Charlottetown, on the Prince of Wales Campus, and on the West Prince Campus in Alberton. For more information, visit RCW Program in Souris, the Resident Care Support Worker Program, Holland College Resident Care Worker Program, and the Marguerite Connolly Training & Consulting Resident Care Worker Program.

Media Contacts:

Morgan Martin
Health and Wellness
(902) 218-3430
mxmartin@gov.pe.ca

Greg Arsenault
Holland College
(902) 566-9615
gjarsenault@hollandcollege.com

JoAnne Dunphy
Town of Souris
jdunphy@sourispei.com

 

General Inquiries

Department of Health and Wellness
4th Floor North, Shaw Building
105 Rochford Street
Charlottetown, PE   C1A 7N8

Phone: 902-368-6414
Fax: 902-368-4121

DeptHW@gov.pe.ca