RENFREW COUNTY — Following on the heels of a very successful 2019 partnership with Algonquin College, Bonnechere Manor will once again be offering an onsite Personal Support Worker (PSW) program starting in January 2020. PSW’s are on the front line in providing nursing and personal care to adults who need long-term care.
Kelly Barr, a graduate of the 2019 program and now employed at Bonnechere Manor, urges any one who wants to make a difference in the lives of some of society’s most vulnerable to consider a career as a PSW. Ms. Barr adds that the PSW program located at the Home was both an ideal learning environment and also served to prepare her very well for her new career.
Algonquin College’s Acting Chair of Health and Community Studies, Jamie Bramburger, says “We are very pleased to again be partnering with Bonnechere Manor to deliver a Personal Support Worker program in Renfrew. We know there is a critical need for more PSW’s throughout Renfrew County and this partnership is allowing us to make this training more accessible to prospective students in the Renfrew area. It is vitally important that we support our local health care providers so they can meet their hiring needs.”
Shelley Sheedy, County of Renfrew Director of Long-Term Care, emphasizes that this partnership with the College is a ‘win/win’ – “our residents warmly welcome students into their home and our staff are delighted to serve as mentors to this next generation of skilled healthcare providers”. Mrs. Sheedy adds that the format is an ideal learning environment where students learn theory, practice their new skills in a lab setting and then with the residents, all onsite at the Manor and under the supervision of Algonquin College instructors, with the assistance of Manor staff. The Manor hired 50% and hosted a job fair to help link the new PSW graduates with other LTC and community PSW employers in our community.
Elected officials with the County of Renfrew are also highly supportive of the partnership with Algonquin College. County Warden Jennifer Murphy calls it a continued proactive step that “supports Bonnechere Manor’s longer-range PSW recruitment plan” adding “it also helps the many other health care organizations that rely on PSW’s as the backbone of their health care teams.”
Algonquin College and Bonnechere Manor will be hosting an information session:
WHERE: Bonnechere Manor, 470 Albert Street, Renfrew, Ontario.
WHEN: Thursday, October 24, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Anyone interested in learning more about the PSW program including the opportunity to speak with recent PSW graduates regarding this career as well as Nursing managers and Algonquin College staff and to learn more about the requirements to register for this Algonquin College program; are encouraged to attend. Zack Riley, Regional Recruitment Specialist with ParaMed, a community nursing organization, will also be on hand to talk about opportunities for prospective PSWs in the community.
Algonquin College has been operating since 1967 and offers 21 full-time programs at its Pembroke Campus. The College delivers several health care programs including Personal Support Worker, Practical Nursing and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Over the years, students in these programs have benefitted from clinical placements provided at several health care facilities including Bonnechere Manor.
Bonnechere Manor, a highly regarded long-term care home in Renfrew, Ontario, is a municipal (not-for-profit) long-term care home owned and operated by the County of Renfrew and City of Pembroke. Since 1958, a wide-range of quality long-term programs and services including 24 hour nursing care, accommodation, meals, as well as physiotherapy programs and a variety of social and recreational activities have been provided to the 18o residents that call the Manor ‘home’. Bonnechere Manor also offers a variety of community services such as respite care, an adult day program in Cobden and Renfrew, and a Parkinson’s support group. Bonnechere Manor holds accreditation with Accreditation Canada which provides the Home with the opportunity to benchmark their programs and services to national standards and assists in continuous quality improvements.
