By Government of Saskatchewan

Attracting Specialists – Saskatchewan’s HHR Action Plan

May 21, 2024 | 10:06 AM

Saskatchewan’s Health Human Resources (HHR) Action Plan continues to show progress in key areas to recruit, train, incentivize and retain more health care workers.

“Our ambitious HHR Action Plan is a key strategy to strengthen our health system and valued health care teams, and support our current and future health professionals,” Health Minister Everett Hindley said. “Continued investment in health human resources along with generous incentives help ensure Saskatchewan remains an attractive place for health care professionals to live, work and study.”

A perfusionist, originally from Calgary, has now started working in Interventional Cardiology and Cardiac Support Services at Regina General Hospital. Perfusionists work with cardiac surgeons, anesthesiologists and other members of the operating room team and are in high demand.

A new retention incentive is now offered to PediatricGastroenterology and Pediatric Immunology and Allergy specialists. This incentive is effective April 1, 2024, and it totals $200,000 over five years for a return-of-service in Saskatoon.

This is in addition to several new incentives recently introduced to support recruitment and retention of specialists in high demand. Incentive packages of $200,000 over five years are offered for anesthesia, psychiatry, and breast and interventional radiology.

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“The Saskatchewan Health Authority is committed to working with the Government of Saskatchewan to advance the HHR Action Plan ensuring we are delivering safe, high-quality patient-centred care as close to home as possible for everyone in our province,” SHA Chief Human Resources Officer Mike Northcott said. “I can’t say thank you enough for the dedication and tireless efforts of all our teams and we are excited to see the results of our recruitment and retention initiatives.”

The spring 2024-25 callout is now open for the Ministry of Health’s Final Clinical Placement Bursary assisting students preparing for a career in health care. The bursary is offered to students who will begin their final clinical placements between April 1 and September 30, 2024. Strong interest is anticipated for this incentive again this year based on the record number of bursaries approved in 2023-24.

Additional HHR Progress Updates

• 252 internationally educated health professionals from the Philippines have arrived in Saskatchewan and 179 of these, the majority nurses, are now working in communities across the province.
• 1156 nursing graduates from Saskatchewan and out-of-province have been hired since December 2022, which includes 59 since April 1, 2024.
• 238 of 250 targeted new and enhanced full-time positions in high-priority occupations to stabilize staffing in rural and northern areas have now been filled.
• 303 hard-to-recruit positions have been filled as a result of the Rural and Remote Recruitment Incentive of up to $50,000 over three years.
• The Rural Physician Incentive of up to $200,000 over five years offered to physicians who practice in rural and northern communities has received 269 potentially eligible applications, and 138 have been approved for payment.

Details on health care opportunities, how to access them and more information on the province’s HHR Action Plan are available at saskatchewan.ca/HHR.