‘We’re proactively working to ensure that there is a pipeline of trained professionals to help fill current and future vacancies’
In a move to strengthen its healthcare workforce pipeline, New Brunswick is offering tuition bursaries to paramedics and emergency medical technicians.
The provincial government is investing $6.5 million to support this initiative, which is available to individuals who commit to a return-of-service contract with Ambulance New Brunswick.
"When New Brunswickers make an emergency call, they expect someone will respond in their time of need," said Health Minister John Dornan. "Today we are investing in the people who respond to emergency medical calls. The need is growing in New Brunswick, and that’s why we’re proactively working to ensure that there is a pipeline of trained professionals to help fill current and future vacancies in Ambulance New Brunswick."
Nova Scotia previously announced a similar offer within its jurisdiction.
To qualify for New Brunswick’s bursaries, primary care paramedic and advanced care paramedic recipients must sign a two-year return-of-service agreement, while emergency medical technicians must sign a one-year agreement. The first half of the bursary will be paid when recipients begin working, and the second half will be disbursed upon completion of their return-of-service commitment.
The government’s talent recruitment division is providing bursaries to 75 students currently enrolled in primary care paramedic training programs. Bursaries will also be available to as many as 166 additional students who begin their courses during the 2025–26 academic year.
Additionally, the government will fund bursaries for up to 32 students admitted to advanced care paramedic courses for the 2025–26 academic year (now through March 31, 2026).
Bursaries will similarly be available for up to 39 graduates of emergency medical technician courses. Fourteen students are enrolled in an English-language course beginning later this month at Medavie HealthEd in Moncton. A French-language emergency medical technician course will also be offered through Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick. More details are available here.
"We are very pleased that these rewarding careers in paramedicine are now more accessible than ever to New Brunswickers who are looking to make a positive impact in their communities," said Craig Dalton, CEO of Extra-Mural/Ambulance New Brunswick. "This important investment will help address one of our biggest challenges — paramedic staffing — and, in turn, will help increase access to services for patients and reduce pressure on current staff."
New Brunswick also noted that several primary care paramedic training programs will begin in the coming months, including:
The federal government and several provinces have put focus on recruiting healthcare workers from the United States.
