Contribute to a healthcare team and support excellence in patient care.

The Practical Nursing Ontario College Diploma program prepares you for work in the healthcare system. You learn the necessary skills and techniques for the workforce. This includes assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation tools required to provide nursing care to those of all ages. Throughout the program, learning opportunities include theory, lab techniques, applied experiences and independent study.

As a student, you have the opportunity to gain hands-on skills in a variety of healthcare facilities. An added benefit of this program is the Simulation Lab on campus, where you experience realistic patient care scenarios. These help to build confidence in your skills and techniques before working with patients in clinical placements. Placements are in community settings such as retirement homes, long-term care homes and hospitals.

To practice as a Registered Practical Nurse in Ontario, you are required to be licensed by the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO). This program gives you the necessary knowledge and skills to write the Regulatory Exam - Practical Nurse (REx-PN) in Ontario.

Registered Practical Nurses work in close collaboration with healthcare teams. You may find employment a variety of settings such as:

• community clinics
• private homes
• long term care homes
• medical, surgical, and obstetrical units

You may also choose to pursue further studies after graduation.

For more information on the Nursing Profession, please review the Fact Sheet Requisite Skills and Abilities for Nursing Practice in Ontario, available on the CNO website at www.cno.org  

SUCCESS FACTORS

This program is well-suited for students who:

• Enjoy working with and accepting people of all ages and stages of development and of varying backgrounds.
• Have good communication and interpersonal skills.
• Enjoy working with others as a member of a team or in a leadership role.
• Possess strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Are dedicated patient advocates.
• Can handle physically demanding situations.
• Are mature and flexible.
• Can work any scheduled shifts in a 24-hour period.
• Are proficient in math.

Careers

To practice as a Registered Practical Nurse in Ontario, you are required to be licensed by the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO). This program gives you the necessary knowledge and skills to write the Regulatory Exam - Practical Nurse (REx-PN) in Ontario.

Registered Practical Nurses work in close collaboration with health-care teams. You may find employment in a variety of settings such as:

• community clinics
• private homes
• long-term care homes
• medical, surgical, and obstetrical units

For more information on the Nursing Profession, please review the Fact Sheet Requisite Skills and Abilities for Nursing Practice in Ontario, available on the CNO website at www.cno.org.

Pathways

Please use our Pathways tool to search for pathway options.

The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:

1. Communicate therapeutically with clients and members of the health-care team.
2. Assess clients across the life span, in a systematic and holistic manner.
3. Plan safe and competent nursing care, based upon a thorough analysis of available data and evidence-informed practice guidelines.
4. Select and perform nursing interventions using clinical judgment, in collaboration with the client and, where appropriate, the health-care team, that promote health and well-being, prevent disease and injury, maintain and/or restore health, promote rehabilitation, and/or provide palliation.
5. Evaluate the outcomes resulting from all interventions in the nurse-client interaction and modify the plan of care as required.
6. Act equitably and justly with clients and members of the health-care team.
7. Adapt to a variety of healthcare settings, using different leadership skills and styles as appropriate to each setting.
8. Contribute to creating a healthy and safe work environment in a variety of health-care settings.
9. Practise in a self-regulated, professional and ethical manner, complying with relevant legislation and with the standards of both the regulatory body and the practice setting to provide safe and competent client-care.
10. Identify and apply discipline-specific practices that contribute to the local and global community through social responsibility, economic commitment and environmental stewardship.

Application Information

PRACTICAL NURSING
Program Code 1704A01FWO

Applications to full-time day programs must be submitted with official transcripts showing completion of the academic admission requirements through:

ontariocolleges.ca
60 Corporate Court
Guelph, Ontario
N1G 5J3
1-888-892-2228

Students currently enrolled in an Ontario secondary school should notify their Guidance Office prior to their online application at www.ontariocolleges.ca  

Applications for Fall Term and Winter Term admission received by February 1 will be given equal consideration. Applications received after February 1 will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis as long as places are available.

International applicants please visit this link for application process information: https://algonquincollege.force.com/myACint/  

For further information on the admissions process, contact:

Registrar`s Office
Algonquin College
1385 Woodroffe Ave
Ottawa, ON K2G 1V8
Telephone: 613-727-0002
Toll-free: 1-800-565-4723
TTY: 613-727-7766
Fax: 613-727-7632
Contact: https://www.algonquincollege.com/ro  

Program Resources

This full-time day program is also offered at the Pembroke and Perth campuses. While the learning outcomes at all three campuses are the same, the subject delivery is reflective of local circumstances which may affect program delivery. Unless there are extenuating and exceptional circumstances, students are required to stay enrolled at the campus to which they were first accepted. In the case of extenuating circumstances, the request must be made to the Chair of the registered campus, with supporting documentation attached. The transfer decision is made at the Chair level. Please remember that repeating any course is always dependent upon seat availability.

If you opt out of the program for any reason during any semester, you may be advised back into the academic cycle when the next required semester is offered, based on space availability for classroom or clinical courses. You may have to sit out if there is no spot available when you want to return to full-time studies.

The Practical Nursing program highly recommends that all applicants review the CNO Fact Sheet - Requisite Skills and Abilities for Nursing Practice in Ontario - available at www.cno.org. 

Registration requirements for RPNs are also found at the College of Nurses of Ontario website. They include but are not limited to, the following:

• Complete the registration examination.
• Complete the jurisprudence examination.
• Demonstrate language proficiency in English or French.
• Complete a Declaration of Registration Requirements.

Specific information will be contained in the package you receive from the CNO prior to your licensing exams.

Clinical placements receive large numbers of health science students and there may be times during your program of study that require you to attend weekend, evening and night clinical experiences. Clinical placements may be within the city or the region and students are required to travel accordingly. Not all students will have clinical placements in specialty areas (i.e. pediatrics, maternity, mental health, acute medicine and surgery).

Healthcare partners offering clinical placement opportunities have mandatory vaccine requirements. If you have questions about these, or any other placement, consult your Program Coordinator prior to registering.

Clinical placements include Long Term Care so students are required to have the flu vaccine, and the COVID vaccine as well. For consideration of medical exemptions related to immunization and vaccinations, documentation must be provided to Paramed for review. If medically exempt from the Flu vaccine, please note:

1. Facilities have the prerogative to require the flu vaccine in order to proceed with placement and can refuse students who do not have the flu vaccine.
2. In the event of an influenza outbreak, learners will have to abide by facility policies.