Meetings were with Minister of Agriculture Lana Popham and Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training Anne Kang.
Chair Parker and Lara Beckett spoke to both Ministers about the dire need to increase the number of veterinarians in the province with a solution-based approach. They informed them of the initiatives a small working group has been working on, which include:
- Approaching MNP to do an economic impact study on the vet shortage. 2/3 of the funding had been secured and Minister Popham agreed that her Ministry would fund the remaining amount.
- Relaying information about the barriers that internationally trained vets face to practice in Canada and asked the Province to lobby for changes at the Federal level.
- Shared that the committee has been having conversations with UNBC on exploring the possibilities of some form of vet training at the university.
Chair Parker and Lara Beckett asked that the Ministry of Advanced Education to fund the additional 20 seats for BC students to attend the Western College of Veterinarian Medicine in Saskatchewan on an annual basis. At this time there is only a commitment to fund those seats for the current year.
Both Regional District representatives were very pleased with the outcomes of the meetings and with receiving great support from the province to continue to find solutions for the vet shortage. Overall, Minister Popham was very happy with all the initiatives and requested a follow up meeting to discuss concerns and purposed solutions in greater depth, as did Minister Kang. The follow-up meeting with Minister Kang is scheduled for late November.
As of now the working group will continue exploring options with UNBC. The economic impact study will commence in November with an expected completion date of late February.
