Losing the country’s only bilingual midwifery program — which was cut by Laurentian University as it deals with its dire financial situation — is nothing short of tragic, supporters say as they urgently try to find the highly sought-after program a new home.
One of just six midwifery degree programs in the country, the worry is that if lost forever, it will impact a profession where demand is already high and waitlists common, and also that families living north of Parry Sound will be disproportionately hit given most Laurentian grads chose to live and work there.
While current students will transfer to either Ryerson or McMaster — the only other midwifery programs available in Ontario — it’s unclear if any of the Francophone students will be able to continue to take classes in their first language.
In a letter to Laurentian President Robert Haché, the Association of Ontario Midwives said it wanted to “express our grave concern for the future of the Midwifery Education Program … as a tri-cultural and bilingual institution, Laurentian plays a critical role in supporting Francophone and Indigenous education and attracted the largest number of Indigenous midwifery students in Ontario … The closure of this program marks the end of bilingual midwifery education in Canada and essentially closes the door to Franco-Ontarians seeking midwifery education.”
The association also said “this closure threatens to reduce the new cohort of midwifery — who will care for tens of thousands of families in Ontario — by one-third.”
Hopes are now that the federal government, through support for French programming, or the provincial government will come through, or that the Northern Ontario School of Medicine — likely to soon become a stand-alone university — will be able to add midwifery to its offerings.
“The demand for midwifery across the province is great; recent statistics show that approximately 27 per cent of families who choose midwifery care are unable to access it — and far more so in the north,” the association wrote.
“Furthermore, Laurentian midwifery graduates play an essential role in providing midwifery care to diverse communities across the province, as they gain a hands-on knowledge of the needs of rural and remote communities through their placements. This closure is not acceptable … The loss of knowledgeable, dedicated faculty and staff is tragic.”
A spokesperson for Colleges and Universities Minister Ross Romano said “the government also understands the importance of the midwifery for northern Ontario’s health care system, and is working with Ontario’s Consortia of Midwifery Programs to understand potential next steps.”
Laurentian, which is restructuring after appealing to the courts for creditor protection — the first public university in the country to do so — recently cut 110 faculty positions and axed 69 programs, including midwifery.
Nickel Belt MPP France Gélinas, the NDP’s health critic, is now calling for a moratorium on the cuts until students’ futures can be sorted out.
She said the midwifery program had 10 times the demand for its 30 spaces, which were directly funded by two government ministries and cost Laurentian little to run.
In court filings, Haché said Laurentian “made the decision to close the midwifery program due to the financial costs associated with running that program that could not adequately be met” via government funding.
“As financial support to post-secondary institutions generally is subject to the prerogative of the province and midwifery is an expensive program to run (relative to other programs), it is difficult for (Laurentian) to solely rely on grant funding to continue operating the program.”
But Laurentian midwifery lecturer Kirsty Bourret — whose position is terminated as of mid-May along with those of the other 13 women who run the program — said she has looked at the data and in northern Ontario, some 60 per cent of midwives are Laurentian graduates, and more than 90 per cent of Francophone midwives practising in places such as Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Hearst and Attawapiskat First Nation.She said the program was in the black this year and that a petition to keep it going has more than 20,000 signatures. Just over a week ago, supporters held a rally outside Laurentian.
“This program is in high demand, and it has a direct impact on the quality of life of families in the north,” added Gélinas. “We are losing it all and I’m just devastated.”
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