Midwifery program in limbo because of funding, not accreditation, says University College of the North

Manitoba's education minister is under fire for saying the midwifery program at the University College of the North likely won't be offered this fall because of a lack of accreditation, with university officials and midwives saying a lack of provincial funding is the real culprit.

Confusion has reigned over the status of the four-year Bachelor of Midwifery program, which was to be jointly offered by UCN and the University of Manitoba, after its 14 current students were told this week that some funding has been cut and courses will not continue in the upcoming school year.

Education Minister Ian Wishart said on Tuesday that funding was not the issue. The issue, he said, was that the College of Midwives of Manitoba did not provide accreditation for the program because of concerns over some practical training elements.

"That's an unnuanced description of the situation," Dan Smith, UCN's vice-president of academics and research, said of Wishart's explanation on Wednesday.

"The act of not funding the program meant that a number of things could not happen."

The College of Midwives of Manitoba said the joint program was approved earlier this year.

In a letter to affected students, which was provided to media by the opposition NDP, the college said it learned this month "that the joint program had not been funded, therefore the program would not be implemented by the partner institutions."

"The college is the regulatory body, so they're essentially saying the program that [they] were asked to approve, and that they did approve, doesn't exist. It won't exist in that form anymore, and so it can't be approved," Smith said.

"I'm resisting the implication that it was the college … that is causing this problem. The reality is is that the lack of funding means the program that they approved cannot be implemented, and so there is no program."

College of Midwives registrar Janice Erickson sent a statement to CBC News late Wednesday afternoon, saying her office will be talking with Wishart's office.

"We have just now been in communication with the office of the Minister of Education and Training, and understand that further clarification on this complex issue may be forthcoming, and our understanding is that discussions regarding midwifery education will continue," Erickson wrote.

She added that Wishart "provided additional comments in the House today confirming that the College of Midwives of Manitoba did approve the joint program this year, and that this program that was developed and approved is no longer being offered."

Midwives group 'deeply disappointed'

In the meantime, the 14 midwifery students have been offered spots in the University of Manitoba's nursing program, but many have said they won't take that option.

The Midwives Association of Manitoba issued a statement saying it is "shocked and deeply disappointed" with the current situation and its impact on the students.

"The students have been told directly no midwifery program will be offered in the fall and that they would be welcomed into the nursing program. This is not an appropriate solution and demonstrates an ongoing lack of understanding with regards to the midwifery profession," the association's statement reads in part.

The association notes that the University College of the North does have an unaccredited midwifery program — an older version, offered by UCN alone, that is no longer accredited because it's meant to be replaced by the new joint program developed by UCN and the University of Manitoba.

The previous NDP government announced the launch of the joint program in 2014.

"We had spent two or three years developing that program and getting it through the approval process, and it had gotten all the way to the point where both University College of the North and the University of Manitoba had approved it; that happened in December and January," Smith said.

"The College of Midwives of Manitoba approved it in January. The Government of Manitoba, through the program approval process, approved it in March. And then in May 31, the provincial budget didn't provide the funds to support that program, and so that program could not be implemented."

The association says the province is continuing to fund a program that doesn't exist anymore.

"We have a program which is funded but not accredited and a program which is accredited but not funded," it said. "Why is the government awarding money to a program that is incapable of running?"