Schulich to add 24 medical spaces over two years

The University of Western Ontario's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry will boost the number of first year medical students by 24 over the next two years beginning in September:

- 10 new spaces will be in London (six in 2009/10 and four in 2010/11) and

- 14 new spaces in the satellite campus in Windsor (six in 2009/10 and eight in 2010/11).

This is part of the government's commitment to improve access to doctors by creating 100 new first year spaces at five medical schools over the next three years.

Western will also receive $4.2 million to complete the third floor of the University of Windsor's Medical Education Building.

QUOTES

"By training more medical students in our community, we're helping to ensure we will have the doctors we need for the future."

- Khalil Ramal, MPP for London-Fanshawe

"Ontario must train more doctors, and we're helping meet that demand by adding 100 new first-year medical spaces at our medical schools. We're creating more opportunities for medical students to train closer to home, connect with the local medical community and prepare for careers where they study."

- Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities John Milloy

"The McGuinty government is working hard to improve access to physicians for Ontarians - right here where they need it. Today's increase in medical student spaces will ensure our success continues to build in the years to come."

- Minister of Health and Long-Term Care David Caplan

"We're pleased the Ontario government is putting more resources into training new doctors to meet the needs of under-serviced areas throughout the province. Western has grown significantly from having only 96 students in first year medicine in 1999 to today's announcement that we'll have 171 starting in 2010."

- Dr. Carol Herbert, Dean of the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry

QUICK FACTS

• By 2011, the government will have created 260 new first year medical school spaces, a 38 per cent increase since 2004-05.
• Ontario's six medical schools will welcome 952 first year students when the all of the new seats are added by September 2011.
• New spaces are being created at five medical schools and nine locations. In 2006, Ontario announced new community-based medical education campuses in Kitchener-Waterloo, St. Catharines, Windsor and Mississauga to train doctors in more communities and improve access to health care across the province.
• The province is investing $35 million over three years to help medical schools build the specialized rooms, labs, and equipment they need to train our future doctors.