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New funding will help address veterinarian shortage, says Kenney

Province pledges millions to boost University of Calgary’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine enrolment.
MVT Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides
Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides talked during a Tuesday press conference about laying the groundwork for the University of Calgary's Faculty of Veterinary Medicine to accommodate more students. Government of Alberta YouTube screenshot

New provincial funding in support of the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (UCVM) announced Tuesday will help address a pressing need for more large animal veterinarians and veterinary technologists across rural Alberta, Premier Jason Kenney said at a press conference.

The funding is $8.4 million over three years to support enrolment expansion, and $59 million in capital funding over three years to support the construction of new infrastructure to accommodate future veterinary students.

“Having a pool of skilled veterinarians is a key part in the well-being of our province,” Kenney said during the press conference at the University of Calgary’s Spyhill Campus. “Together these investments will provide for facilities, faculty and administration needed to grow the program in a sustainable way and allow more students to learn and practise vet medicine at home right here in Alberta.

“Veterinary medicine plays a hugely important role in our agriculture sector and agriculture is a major pillar of our provincial economy. To maintain livestock and ensure that they remain healthy and disease free is integral to the health and sustainability of the entire sector and our economy.”

It is estimated that there is a current shortage of about 850 veterinary professional vacancies in Alberta, he said.

The new funding announced Tuesday will support increasing the number of student placements in the UCVM program from the current 50 to up to 100.

During the press conference, Dr. Renate Weller, dean of the UCVM, said the new funding is needed and welcome.

Increasing enrolment in the faculty’s Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program is the "only long-term sustainable way to ensure large animal care" in the province, she said.

“Thank you very much to the government for giving us the opportunity, my team and myself, to tackle this veterinarian shortage,” said Weller. “I have to congratulate Alberta for taking the initiative here.”

Nate Horner, minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development, also attended Tuesday’s press conference.

“Veterinarians and veterinary technologists are pillars, not only of the agriculture industry, but also in the rural communities they serve. Veterinary medicine is a key sector in our rural economy, and more Alberta-trained vets is a big win for our livestock sector,” Horner said.

Demetrios Nicolaides, minister of Advanced Education, said, “These investments are very important steps in the process of ensuring we have more skilled vets available in our province, while offering students the chance to train for successful careers in this field close to home.”

A resolution put forward by Mountain View County councillor and veterinarian Gord Krebs calling for more to be done to address the ongoing veterinarian shortage in Alberta passed at the recent Rural Municipalities of Alberta convention. The resolution passed with 98 per cent support.

The Attraction and Retention of Veterinarians to Rural Veterinary Practice resolution highlighted the scope of the shortage and calls for action.

Specifically it called on Rural Municipalities of Alberta to support veterinary education in Alberta and “urge the government of Alberta to officially endorse new programs at the University of Calgary Veterinary Medicine that will help alleviate the rural veterinarian shortage crisis.”

Actions proposed in the resolution also include development of a rural practitioner stream, participation of Rural Municipalities of Alberta in UCVM programs of outreach to rural municipalities, and increasing the number of Alberta training spaces for veterinarians by doubling the number of UCVM graduates from 50 to 100 per year.

Rural Municipalities of Alberta represents 69 rural municipalities.

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