UCN Committed to Diploma Practical Nursing in Swan River

University College of the North (UCN) will continue its Diploma in Practical Nursing (DPN) program in Swan River on an ongoing basis, UCN President & Vice-Chancellor, Doug Lauvstad announced.

“The DPN program in Swan River has successfully educated and graduated nurses in the Swan River area and northern Manitoba since 2010. The success of the program is further demonstrated by the fact that all graduates of the program have achieved a hundred percent pass rate for the first writing of their national exam,” Lauvstad said.

The current cohort of students was enrolled in September 2016, and these students are expected to complete the program and graduate in July 2018.

“UCN understands that there are ongoing needs for nursing education throughout the north,” Lauvstad added, “and UCN has been considering its strategy with respect to meeting those needs.”

While the DPN program will remain anchored in Swan River, an additional DPN cohort will be offered in northern communities on a rotating basis.

“We are very pleased to have admitted 13 students into the DPN program in Flin Flon, commencing September 2017,” said Dr. Vicki Zeran, Dean of Health at UCN. “Considering the shortage of practical nurses in the north, we are currently in the preliminary planning stages to offer the program on a rotating basis in northern communities.”

A significant planning consideration for a rotating DPN program is the availability of appropriate clinical placements in accredited health-care facilities close to the program location. Students work in supervised clinical settings with actual patients to apply and consolidate knowledge they gain in the classroom. The Swan River program relies on clinical placements in Swan River and Dauphin. Healthcare facilities in Flin Flon provide clinical placements for the cohort starting in September 2017.

With a mandate to serve northern and Aboriginal Manitobans, UCN has main campuses in The Pas and Thompson, and operates 12 regional centres in communities throughout the province. UCN enrolls approximately 2,000 students per year in adult learning, certificate, diploma and undergraduate degree programs.

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