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The Caring Support Blog

Free Courses for Healthcare Workers

October 5, 2022

Continued education is one of the best investments healthcare workers can make for themselves, as it allows them to provide the best healthcare service possible to patients and clients. However, continued education comes at a high cost in most cases, which is why nurses, caregivers, doctors, lab technicians and others are constantly searching for free courses for healthcare workers, both online and in person.

Are you currently looking for free courses for healthcare workers to advance your careers? Then this article is for you. Keep reading.

Free Courses for Healthcare Workers in Canada

In Canada, education is well promoted and facilitated for locals, immigrants, and international students, especially in the healthcare field, as workers in this industry need to be always up to date with the latest resources, techniques, and equipment to help their patients. One of the ways education is facilitated is through free courses. These are some of the organizations that offer free courses for healthcare workers in Canada:

Canadian universities

Canadian universities offer high-quality post-secondary education for all. And for those that already graduated or are still considering enrolling, these academic institutions also have free university courses available for people to enroll if they want to expand their knowledge and develop new skills.

  1. Pros: Free of charge, available online and certificate of completion in most cases
  2. Cons: Some of the free university courses are only available for a limited time and others have limited openings available

HIRE IEHPs

The Health Force Integration Research and Education for Internationally Educated Health Professionals (HIRE IEHPs)  offers free courses in partnership with other organizations to support the successful integration of foreign healthcare workers into Canadian workplaces. They have many open-access online educational resources  available as part of their programs.

  1. Pros: Numerous courses to choose from, exclusively for healthcare workers, free of charge
  2. Cons: Courses have been created for internationally trained health professionals, so local healthcare workers may not find value in them

Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS)

For years, the CCOHS has been offering free courses about workplace health and safety for healthcare workers to complete online and at their own pace. The goal of these courses is to educate employers and employees about mental health and workplace wellness, as well as pandemic planning, ergonomics, and much more.

  1. Pros: Free of charge and available online
  2. Cons: Certificate of completion is not provided

Top Free Healthcare Courses in Ontario

Ontario is the largest province in Canada by population, and that offers many benefits for its inhabitants. For instance, Ontario is home to a wide array of post-secondary institutes for students to choose from, as well as many organizations that offer free courses for healthcare workers and other professionals, such as the ones you can see below:

  1. Public Health Ontario offers online educational courses on a variety of topics, from health promotion to infection prevention and control.  Available courses are computer and mobile-friendly for easy access.
  2. The University of Toronto is constantly opening new courses for healthcare workers and people from other industries. These courses cover topics from mental health and illness, psychology, and dementia care, to physical therapy and exercise, and resources for healthcare workers during COVID-19.
  3. McMaster University also offers free courses to help healthcare workers understand how the Canadian Healthcare System works, learn about medical terminology they may not be aware of, discover the principles of clinical research, and stay up to date with the latest anatomy and physiology trends and treatments, just to name a few topics.
  4. The Registered Nurses Association of Ontario is a great source of free courses for nurses and other healthcare workers in Canada. The organization offers courses on topics like managing patients who use substances, breastfeeding support for mothers, tobacco use and cessation support, delirium and depression management in older adults, and much more.

Read More: How to Apply to a Healthcare Post-Secondary Program in Ontario

Benefits of Free Online Healthcare Courses

When it comes to free courses for healthcare workers, students can choose between in-person and online courses. However, the number of free online courses for healthcare workers surpasses other types of courses by a lot and offers many benefits, such as:

  1. Availability. Online courses are usually offered through pre-recorded videos or presentations that can be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are some cases in which live lectures are offered at specific times, but most times this is not the case.
  2. Convenience. On top of unlimited access, online courses are convenient for healthcare workers as they can study in groups or by themselves, from home or from the break room at work, and at times they don’t interfere with family activities or other personal engagements.
  3. No cost. Of course, not having to pay a fee for an online course, especially if it’s been provided by a post-secondary institute, it’s probably the biggest benefit of all, considering how expensive higher education can be.
Free Online Healthcare Courses

Why Nurses Should Look For Free Online Nursing Courses

Nurses are an essential group inside the healthcare sector that usually have the most contact with patients. For this reason, nurses are encouraged to keep learning and developing skills throughout their careers. A great way to do this is to look for free online nursing courses with certificates, as these programs will not only offer the knowledge but also look great on any nurse’s resume.

Another strong reason for nurses to look for free online nursing courses is the flexibility they offer for people dealing with changing work schedules and maybe even parenting small children or caring for an elderly person. Online courses can be accessed anytime and from anywhere, and students can easily take quizzes, connect with fellow students and message instructors at any moment, which are great advantages.

Fortunately for nurses working in the GTA, Ottawa or Southwestern Ontario, there are dozens of free nursing courses in Ontario. Another alternative is to look for free nurse courses near Toronto, ON that are offered online or labelled as “remote,” which means they can be accessed from anywhere in the country. How to Find your First Job as a New Grad?

Free PSW Courses Ontario 2022

Personal Support Workers (PSW) are another group of essential healthcare workers who benefit greatly from free courses. Furthermore, people who are not yet PSWs can actually train as such, at least in Ontario, just by searching for “free PSW Courses Ontario 2022.” This is because the Ontario government has been offering financial assistance to help train PSWs for a while and whoever is determined to be eligible can enroll in selected private career colleges and receive up to $13,690  to cover the costs of tuition, as well as books and other mandatory fees, and even a stipend for a clinical work placement, which is a great plus.

It should be noted that the financial assistance offered to future PSWs is part of a fast-track training program that aims to support the demand for trained caregivers in Ontario. So, on top of having no tuition fees, the program features a “condensed” schedule that allows students to graduate in about six months and benefit from a paid work placement in the final three months of the program.

Are you a DSW? Developmental Service Workers can also benefit from free DSW online programs available in Ontario. Interested in free nutrition courses online? If you work in long-term care, home care, or at a nursing home, you can benefit from nutrition courses, which teach healthcare workers (and not just dietitians) how to plan meals, cook foods, and help clients and patients improve their health through food.

Free Healthcare Courses in Ottawa

If you are in the Ottawa area and are looking to advance in your career through education, you should explore the wide array of free healthcare courses in Ottawa offered by multiple organizations such as post-secondary institutes, healthcare organizations and more.

Make sure to loom for free healthcare courses in Ottawa for your specific career path or role, and you will be able to find even more options for you to register free of charge.

FAQ About Free Courses for Healthcare Workers

We are aware that people have many questions about free courses for healthcare workers in Canada and we wanted to address the top 3:

Where can I get healthcare free courses?

Free courses for healthcare workers and free healthcare courses for workers from other industries are available online through multiple organizations, including universities. This convenience allows healthcare workers across the country to access valuable knowledge that will help with their careers.

Which Free course is best in healthcare?

The best courses for healthcare workers depend on the specific field in which a student works or wants to work in. For instance, physicians may benefit from clinical research courses, while nurses may benefit from senior care courses. It depends. Another variable to consider is the institution offering the course. If it comes from a local or federal government institution or a post-secondary institute, then it’s worth the time investment.

What is the top online school for nursing?

There are over 15 online schools for nursing across Canada, with programs for students to choose from, depending on their interests, budgets, and goals. For instance, the Ingram School of Nursing at McGill University in Montreal has a fully online academic program offered that has been very successful. There are also options in Ontario, Alberta, and BC.

That's it for now. If you have additional questions about free courses for healthcare workers, don't hesitate to contact us.

And to discover new courses that may interest you at affordable prices, make sure to visit our Marketplace.

Thank you for reading!

About The Author
Laura Woodman
Content Marketing Specialist

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